Garden Chores – Mid to Late May – USDA Zone 4 & 5

So Which Chores Take Precedence in Late May?

• Planting warm weather plants after ALL risk of frost has passed. Soil temp of 50 and above needed: DONE
  
  -peppers
  -tomato
  -tomatillo
  -eggplant
  -winter squash
  -melons
  -tobacco
  -okra
  -corn
  
  
• Before planting, check soil temp. Where do I find soil temp? Your local extension should have a link to that resource. If you are in South Dakota, I have it for you. https://climate.sdstate.edu/
  
  

• Make sure you are good with all the summer products. Suntan lotion, sunblock, hats, sunglasses, aloe, pain spray, bug spray, bug repellent plants, protective sleeves, new cushions for the patio chair…
  
• If you add fertilizer to your plants as you transplant them, ensure you are noting how long those amendments last and mark your calendar when they need to be re-applied. If you have a soil test report, make sure to refer back to it before applying more of any nutrient. DONE
  
• Weeds are kicking into high gear. Lot of hand weeding happening. I am not using weed killer as I need all the good grass clippings I can get. I use a tool called Grandpa’s Weeder that makes it far easier. ONGOING
  
• Mulch after you weed. I use grass clipping as I don’t treat my yard with herbicide. The general rule is wood mulches are more suitable for perennials, bushes, trees and shrubs, but it’s not a hard rule for my yard. YYMV. ONGOING
  
• Complete the indoor clean-up. Throw away empty seed packets and tags of plants you know you’ll never plant again. Put up the indoor greenhouse, gardening tables. DONE
  
• Clean up the outdoor storage area. DONE
  
• Buy the seeds you need for successive planting. I purchased more pea and bean seeds. DONE
  
• Inventory your plants. Do you need to replace any plants that didn’t make it? Do you have the variety you need? Think of your favorite summer recipes. Do you have what you need? DONE
  
• Cover the strawberries so the birds leave me some. DONE
  
• At petal fall, spray the apple tree with my personal mix for codling moth. DONE
  
• Watch the apples. Prune each bundle down to one apple per bunch. Cover with footies or craft bags. DONE
  
• Fertilize everything before final mulches. DONE
  
• Clean AC Unit
  
• Cardboard on vine paths DONE
  
  
  

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The End