19/04/2026
Jobs for May.
Below is a blog from Martin Fish who will be joining us at Birchwood Gardening Club later this year.
Make sure any newly planted shrubs and perennials are thoroughly watered to help them settle in and establish. Water the soil around the plants and allow it to soak down to the roots.
Start supporting tall perennials before they get too tall and fall over, canes, twiggy sticks or plant supports are ideal.
Early spring flowering shrubs such as spiraea, forsythia, viburnum and ribes that flowered in March and April can be given a light prune if needed. Cut back some of flowering stems and weak growth. This will encourage new growth that will flower next year.
With it being so dry slugs and snails are not a problem, but once it does rain, they will be out looking for food, so be prepared. Organic slug pellets, beer traps or garlic spray can all be used.
From mid-May you can start planting tender bedding plants out into the garden. If planting in containers or hanging baskets, make sure they are kept frost free until the plants establish.
Established clumps of polyanthus and primroses can be divided once they have finished flowering. Re-plant, weather thoroughly and they will soon make new growth.
Check lilies for the red lily beetles which are very easy to spot and even more pleasurable to squash!
Tomato plants can be planted into a cold greenhouse or conservatory from early May, either in large pots or growbags, but remember on cold nights to drape some garden fleece over them. If planning to grow outside tomatoes on a patio wait until the end of May.
Earth-up potatoes into ridges and give them a feed of a granular fertiliser to help underground stems and tubers develop.
Pheromone traps to help control Codling moth on apples trees can be hung in the trees from the 3rd week of May. They will greatly reduce the amount of damage to the fruits.
There is still plenty of time to sow a wide range of vegetables such as carrots, beetroot, lettuce & salad leaves, runner and French beans and all brassicas.
We’re delighted that Kings Seeds are once again offering a 10% discount on seeds purchased from their web site www.kingsseeds.com by quoting the code PT2025. It’s valid until the end of 2025. (T&Cs apply)
For more weekly gardening tips and advice, you can watch our gardening videos “Pots & Trowels” on Facebook or subscribe on YouTube for free. And don’t forget our weekly P&T podcast where we chat to gardening guests, give a few jobs for the week and answer your gardening questions. Available through your normal podcast provider or listen on www.potsandtrowels.com
Happy gardening
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Sturton by Stow, Lincolnshire
Gardening how-to's, podcast, interviews & masterclasses. RHS Chelsea Judge & Gardening Guru Martin Fish & a host of people who know their onions!
