Jobs for May.

At the moment I am planting some bedding plants to fill in the small gaps. I hope it isn't too early but they look healthy.
My sweetpeas took a tumble [the dwarf ones are in a hanging basket looking good] but I don't know if the seeds have been spoiled now. Is it too early to buy some ready grown ones to plant out?

 

I've planted out young Cosmos plants to fill a few gaps in the borders and they're already blooming. I've also planted up geranium plants (couldn't be bothered overwintering last years for a third year) and they seem fine - been in the raised bed 2 weeks now.

Livingstone Daisy seedlings coming along nicely - no idea where to plant them though!

And I finally planted out the Nerine Bowdenii bulbs/corms. One is already sprouting

 

Going to plant up the tubs for the front of the house, but leave them "maturing" in the COnservatory until the end of the month.

But the Petunias haven't been pricked out yet (a job for today) as a slug ate the first batch ...

... going to remember to buy and extra packet of seed next year so I can recover from a failure more quickly.

 

I've given up on my petunias - too fiddly. Sowed some Ipomaea today - indoors and outdoors.

 

"I've given up on my petunias - too fiddly"

I see them as a challenge (to prick out!) ... not sure they are going to be ready by 1st June for putting the tubs out though ...

 

Hmmm, better than mine at least!

 

My sweetpeas have been out for a few weeks now are are very healthy and strong. I bought them as ready growns too.....in my opinion they'll be fine.

 

I bought some yesterday, because I haven't got as many as I would like, and they had some varieties I grew last year that I couldn't find seed for in the shops.

Anyway, they were just seedlings in a 4" pan, £1.99 per pot and I got 47 plants. The seeds are £2.49 for 20 ... so all-in-all not three bad !!! Potted on into 3" pots, I will keep them in the greenhouse for 3 or 4 days, to get underway, and then harden off for a week or so, and then plant out.

Being a very sad person I counted the seedlings in the pots and bought the two with the most! I also went round the back where they have multi-shelf trolleys of new-arrivals and got the pots from there - they have much less root on them, the ones that have been sitting out-front for a couple of weeks will probably be a nighmare to untangle without damaging a whole load of roots. Have a look at the bottom of the pot and make sure that the roots haven't come though and made a mat underneath the pot - if you can only just seed the root that would be ideal.

 

Thanks Butterflies, they are out but I need to get some more. I just love them, now I need to nurture them.

 

As I was recommended once, sweetpeas are like children, you need to train them to begin with. Make sure their support canes, trellis, ties are in place as they'll soon kick off growing. Once they send out tendrils looking for support, you can train them towards the supports and once they have the idea, there's no stopping them.

Keep picking the blooms when they appear, otherwise they'll got to seed. If you keep this up, you'll have blooms all summer long.

 

"once they have the idea, there's no stopping them"

I like your patter! but I'm not sure I would agree with that.

The tops often "drop down", where the tendrils fail to attach, and the net result is that the flower stem shich was growing upright, is all-of-a-sudden now pointing downwards, so it grows round in a loop to point upwards - which works fine, but is very hard to put in a vase!

I tie mine to their canes twice a week to prevent this happening ...

 

I now think I did mine a little too early, some of them are in flower and the pansies are going that way too

I will be doing all my french beans in the next week, and whatever else I can get my hands on that I have room for

 

Petunias flower readily, and will keep on flowering all summer. They can be put out in a couple of weeks time, so should start hardening off.

I plant up my tubs and urns in the conservatory, so they get a couple of weeks "arm growing" before going out on 1st June.

 

Deep Joy! I have a load of Mesembryanthemum to prick out and find somewhere to plant. Keep putting them off as THEY are fiddily.