Winter crops can now be sown – Leeks, brussels sprouts, winter cabbage, marrow. Starting them off in pots is a good idea, you can then plant them out in a few weeks once you have seedlings.
Harden off your tomatoes – If you have ‘potted on’ your tomato seedlings, May is a good time to start hardening them off by introducing them to gradually to the outside, extending the length of time you leave them out each day. However, do not leave the plants out overnight until all risk of frost has passed as they are very sensitive to frost and it will kill them off. Alternatively you can introduce them to an unheated greenhouse to harden them off.
Earth up your potatoes – Keep pulling the soil up around the base of your potatoes to avoid them coming into contact with the light, as this turns them green.
- Continue with successional sowing of your vegetables and salad crops.
- ‘Earth up’ your potatoes.
- Tie in new shoots on autumn raspberries and sweet peas.
- Plant out seedlings from your greenhouse such as beans, courgettes and squashes when the danger of frost has passed.
- Plant sweetcorn.
- Apply mulch to discourage weeds and help your soil to retain moisture, and continue to vigilantly weed, as well as to watch out for pests on your fruit plants.
Seeds to sow in May…
- Tomato (harvest in 50-90 days)
- Peas (harvest in 60-70 days)
- Broad Beans (harvest in 80-100 days)
- Cucumber (harvest in 55-65 days)
- Sweetcorn (harvest in 60-100 days)
- Chilli Pepper (harvest in 60-80 days)
- Radish (harvest in 30-50 days)
- Pumpkin (harvest in 100-120 days)
- Squash (harvest in 50-65 days)
- Kale (harvest in 70-80 days)
- Rocket (harvest in 25 days)
- Tomato (harvest in 50-90 days)
- Spinach (harvest in 40-50 days)
- Beetroot (harvest in 90 days)
- Carrots (harvest in 50-75 days)
- Lettuce (harvest in 45-55 days)
- Courgette (harvest in 40-50 days)
- Swede (harvest in 100+ days)
- Brocolli (harvest in 70-100 days)
