These are some things to do in with your home outdoor environment in the month of May

***IN THE EVENT OF AN EXTREME FREEZE IN THE PRIOR WINTER, DON’T BE SURPRISED TO SEE SOME LATENT FREEZE DAMAGE ON SOME OF YOUR MORE TENDER PLANTS, LIKE BOTTLEBRUSH, JAPANESE BLUEBERRIES, CITRUS, AND OTHER SEMI-TROPICAL PLANTS. WHEN THE WEATHER WAS MILD AND THERE WAS PLENTY OF MOISTURE, THESE PLANTS MAY HAVE LOOKED LIKE THEY SURVIVED WITH ONLY MINOR DAMAGE. HOWEVER, PLANTS WITH DAMAGED TISSUE WILL START SHOWING SIGNS OF STRESS AND MAY EVEN DIE ONCE THE STRESSES OF SUMMER OCCUR.  

*Put down a pre-emergent weed killer to prevent weeds like crabgrass from sprouting in the summer.

*Now is the time to think about setting out hot season annual bedding plants like vinca, caladiums, moss rose, coleus, pentas, and purslane.

*If you haven’t put any mulch down, now would be a great time. It will help you reduce watering and control weeds. Check out our Landscapers Pride mulches.

*Continue to feed your roses with Nitro Phos Rose food or Color Star fertilizer.

*Be on the lookout for powdery mildew on your crape myrtles and roses. This is easy to remedy with a product like Bonide Infuse or Monterey Triple Action

*If you haven’t put down your lawn fertilizer in April, now would be a great time to get it done. Use a fertilizer like Nitro Phos Super Turf slow release fertilizer. If you want to use an organic then consider using the Microlife 6-2-4 or the Nitro Phos Sweet Green.

*During periods of cloudy damp weather be sure and spray your shrubs with Bonide Infuse, especially roses, to prevent fungal diseases like black spot.

*This is a great month to spray for Virginia Buttonweed.

*Use a systemic insecticide on your crape myrtles to prevent aphids.