Master Gardener: Gifts for the gardening mom

May is a wonderful time to enjoy your garden; the intoxicating scent of sweet peas, roses and other spring flowers fill the air and birds have returned to add their songs. Mother's Day will be here shortly. How about giving Mom a gift that will last longer than a flower arrangement? A beautiful pot for the patio? A hummingbird feeder? Or better yet, a plant that invites hummingbirds into her garden!

Annuals - Time to plant summer annuals. With proper selection and care they will look great until the first frost in November. Try to finish planting early in the month to give the plants time to establish before the summer heat really kicks in. For sunny spots try ageratum, amaranths, bedding dahlias, celosias, cleome, cosmos, dianthus, four o'clock, gomphrena, marigolds, nierembergia, petunias, portulacas, salvias, sunflowers, and zinnias. Shaded areas can be brightened up with begonias, caladiums, coleus, impatiens and New Guinea impatiens.

Herbs - Basils, bay, catnip, chives, epazote, lavender, mints, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, and yarrow can all be planted. Beware, mints will take over, it's best to grow them in a pot so they don't overgrow their welcome.

Perennials - There are so many great ones, here are just a few: coneflower, coreopsis, coral-bells, daylily, gaura, gerbera daisy, lamb's ear, ornamental grasses, ornamental sweet potato, salvias, sedums, red hot poker, verbena and yarrow.

Vegetables - Plant beans, corn, cucumber, eggplant, melons, okra, peppers, pumpkins, summer squash, and tomatoes. Stagger your plantings so you have fresh veggies all summer long. When buying tomato seedlings, look for the letters V, F and N or T next to the cultivar's name. These letters indicate disease resistance to Verticillium wilt, Fusarium wilt, Nematodes and Tobacco mosaic virus. The more letters the more disease resistant your plant should be. With our long growing season, there's still time to plant seeds. Seeds are very affordable and there is more choice in varieties.

Vines - Annual vines add that "WOW" factor to your garden. Make sure you have a sturdy trellis or other structure for them to climb on. Good candidates are cypress vine, moonflower, hyacinth vine, and scarlet runner beans. One of my all time favorites is the bird nest gourd, easy to grow and great for crafts later on.

Lawns - May is a prime time to renovate warm season lawns like bermuda and St. Augustine. Dethatch them with a vertical mower, add fertilizer and water, and they will spring back like new. Mow bermuda lawns 1/2-1" and fescue lawns 2-3" tall. Mowing fescue lawns too low will encourage weeds and require more water. Mowing warm season lawns too high will encourage thatch to develop.

Pest Control - The battle between gardeners and bugs never ends. Blast aphids, mites and spittlebugs with a jet of water from a hose aiming at the undersides of leaves. Repeat regularly as doing it once is not enough. If infestations are extremely heavy try using an insecticidal soap. Watch for caterpillars or "worms" on plants, especially petunias and geraniums. If necessary, spray with Bacillus thuringiensis, a natural pesticide commonly called BT. Bait or handpick slugs and snails.

Garden chores:

1. Pinch out growing tips of bedding plants to promote branching and compact growth; also the fall bloomers, asters and chrysanthemums.

2. Give your spring blooming perennials a trim. Mexican sage benefits if you cut it back and give it some fertilizer and a good watering; it will get new leaves in no time and flower again in the fall.

3. Prune spring flowering shrubs (forsythia, lilac) when they have finished flowering.

4. Put stakes or supports for tall perennials like asters; this will prevent them from falling over later in the summer.

5. Thin out fruit trees, especially peaches and nectarines; allow 6 to 8 inches between remaining fruit.

6. Pull weeds when they are young and before they develop seeds; some weeds have as many as 15,000 seeds per plant. Be sure to get all the roots on perennial weeds, otherwise they grow right back.

7. Fertilize lawns, roses, shrubs and trees. Give acid fertilizer to azaleas, gardenias and rhododendrons as soon as they are finished blooming.

Finally, don't forget watering. As the days get warmer increase your water time, but always try to conserve water. Infrequent deep watering during early morning hours is best. Test sprinklers to be sure they are aimed right and in working order with no leaks or clogged emitters. Yes, I know they were working fine last month, but you never know until you check! Be sure that plant growth hasn't blocked their path or the dog hasn't used the sprinkler head as a chew toy.

Thea Fiskin is part of the Tulare-Kings Master Gardener Program. Call 582-3211, ext. 2736, e-mail cekings@davis.edu or write UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners, 680 N. Campus Drive, Suite A, Hanford, CA 93230.

(May 2, 2007)