May, Hoo-ray!
by Leslie Watkins

Ruby Throated Hummingbird by ©Leslie Watkins

Well, things are looking up! Warmer days and sunshine beckon us outside to poke about the garden, picking up litter and rearranging frost-heaved plants and stones. Spring peepers are welcoming warmer temperatures and the honeybees are flying. Time to get busy.

Cold-hardy transplants can go into the vegetable garden in early May: leeks, onions, and brassicas. If you haven’t already done so, sow seeds of lettuce, peas, spinach, parsnips, carrots, radishes and plant seed potatoes directly in the garden. About ten days later, sow beans and corn. Traditionally in our area, the last frost date is Memorial Day. After that, it is time to harden off and plant the tender transplants: tomatoes, basil, peppers and eggplants, and sow the cucurbits: squash, melons, cucumbers, and pumpkins.

While other animals were snoozing through the long winter, the vole population did not miss a beat. They were busy making more voles and expanding their territory. They plotted and planned their summer vacation in your garden. They love dining on parsley, beets, and potatoes, munching away at underground roots, out of sight of their predators. Let them know they are not welcome by placing mousetraps baited with bits of chicken, steak and medium stiff peanut butter, securely attached to the trap with thin florist’s wire. Place the traps next to the vole hole with an upturned flower pot over both the hole and the trap, and place a hefty flat rock on top. Check daily to remove your unwanted guests.

Be on the lookout for perennial weeds such as garlic mustard, burdock, bishop’s weed, and quack grass. Dig them out while the soil is soft and before they have a chance to set seed.

Plant new trees, shrubs, and perennials to take advantage of the spring’s longer days, warmer weather and saturating rains. Increase your collection by dividing perennials, and share or trade your extras with friends and neighbors. As you plant, take the opportunity to amend the soil with additions of leaf mould, and well-rotted manure (a little goes a long way). If you top the planting off with mulch, it will help keep in moisture and hold back weeds.

This is the season of the ephemeral wildflowers. As the ground thaws and before the trees leaf out, you can find Dutchman’s breeches, trilliums, trout lilies, mayapples, wild ginger, and bloodroot. These delicate woodland gems bloom for only a short time, and vanish among the summer’s foliage. Be careful not to step on newts as they make their way to the vernal pools.

Try to resist the urge to be too tidy in your woods. Decomposing timber and brush piles provide good habitat for many helpful species. Toads, birds, snakes, centipedes, spiders and beneficial insects are your allies. They will add interest and enliven your garden, and help defend your plants against other harmful bugs and critters.

Memorial Day is when the hummingbirds return. Attract them to your feeders with easy-to- make sugar syrup: mix four parts water to one part white granulated sugar. Boil the mixture to dissolve the sugar, and to kill bacteria and mold. You can store a large batch in the refrigerator. Clean and refill the feeders with fresh syrup every 2-3 days.

If possible, postpone mowing your lawn while the dandelions bloom. They are one of the most valuable early spring wildflowers providing nectar for pollinators.  If a honeybee hive is able to survive the winter, this is the plant that will help keep them alive. Here in town, we have a small and devoted group of backyard beekeepers. If you see a honeybee, chances are it lives in one of our neighbor’s yards. Crops that benefit from their pollination are blueberries, apples, strawberries and raspberries.

May Chore Checklist

Plant new trees and shrubs.
Plant and divide perennials.
Cut back woody perennials and roses.
Put up peony supports.
Edge garden beds and mulch.
Deadhead spring bulbs.
Keep asparagus picked to keep it producing.
Pick rhubarb stems for your favorite recipes.
Put up hummingbird feeders and birdhouses.
Give salamanders a hand by assisting them across roads.