Sunny, warmer days make the garden real in May.  While there are many garden plants that can be seeded outdoors now, don’t be tempted to start working your soil if it is still wet.  If you insist on tilling your garden it is very important to wait until the soil has drained and dried enough to be crumbly, not gooey or sticky.  I do not till my garden soil at all because tilling is very damaging to soil & unnecessary.  If you have raised beds (see previous article) you can get started sooner because of better drainage, warmer soils & no tilling is needed.  Let’s look at what we can plant right now and a couple seasonal tips about voles, carrots, and lawns to make things go better.

Seeds you can plant outdoors in May (and later):

• Carrots
• Chives
• Dill
• Onions (sets)
• Parsley
• Peas
• Radish
• Spinach
• Turnips
• Seeds that can be planted outdoors in late May (and later):
• Beets
• Carrots
• Collards
• Salad greens/mesclun
• Arugula
• Radish
• Kale
• Kohlrabi
• Leeks
• Onion sets/scallions
• Peas
• Potatoes
• Spinach
• Turnips

A very helpful reference is the High Mowing Seeds Planting Chart available online that gives detailed information about how, how much, and when to plant a long list of herbs and vegetables.  The same table appears in their published seed catalog.

Seeds you can start indoors now for transplanting in 3-6 weeks:

• Basil  
• Broccoli
• Cauliflower   
• Cabbage
• Kale   
• Lettuces
• Peas (see “gutter peas” below)
• Cucumbers
• Squashes (summer & winter)
• Zinnia, nasturtiums, snapdragons

The soil is still cool and loses heat on clear nights.  Follow the directions on your seed packets regarding seed depth and spacing.  Many early seeds do best when surface planted with a very small amount of soil covering just to keep them moist until they grow some roots.  That’s how nature plants seeds!  Also, since seeds carry enough nutrients for the first days of life they do not need to be fertilized until after their true leaves appear.  The only nutrients I like to provide at planting are phosphate (rock phosphate or bone char) and micronutrients (azomite or green sand) that can be sprinkled on & mixed into the soil under the seeds.  These are slow release natural minerals that promote strong root development and healthy plants.  Of course, the best long-term source of phosphate and micronutrients in every home garden is compost, made on-site with your own materials.

Carrots are a special case since they are slow to germinate and seeds must not be allowed to dry out until they have established roots.  Gardeners used to lay old boards on top of moistened, seeded rows for a couple weeks to prevent them from drying out.  Once the first sprouts appear underneath, the boards are removed.  Today we have “row cover” fabric (Agribon-19) that is easier to use and the rows can be watered through the fabric with a sprinkling can if it doesn’t rain.  I’ve had excellent results using row cover on carrots to get high germination and vigorous early growth.

A basic question we all face is whether to direct plant seeds or to transplant already started plants.  Plants that are really sub-tropical and need a longer growing season than we have in Vermont need a head start in order to yield the fruits we want to harvest.  These include tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, onions (from seed), and sweet potato.  There is a long list of vegetables that can be directly seeded (see above) but we also can use transplants to get an earlier harvest and these include broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, corn, cucumber, lettuce, basil, cilantro, kale, pumpkin, and all squashes.  Using transplants for these also give the plants extra protection from pests that can damage young seedlings but don’t bother larger plants so much. 

Finally, I would like to advise that although we all like to see nice big plants in a new garden, don’t be tempted to buy plants that are bigger than the pot they’re in.  Those oversized plants are probably root bound, will suffer more severe transplant shock, and produce no more yield than smaller, more vigorous plants.

If you are new to gardening or interested in learning more, the Rodale Institute has an excellent resource available (Free) that has a wealth of good information in videos and text for gardeners.  Take a look at their Victory Garden Starter Kit.

Got Voles? Start your peas in a gutter!

Voles are not Moles!  Moles are beneficial carnivores and eat grubs and other invertebrates in the soil.  They make tunnels around your lawn if you have grubs (Japanese Beetles, etc.) which they help to control.  Beneficial Nematodes applied across your lawn will eliminate most grubs for years and the moles will move away.  Voles, on the other hand, are herbivores (plant eaters) and love to eat tender young plants in your garden.

Normally peas are direct seeded, but if Voles (not moles) find the tender young sprouts they will eat them all before you know it.  Peas don’t like to be transplanted but there is a simple trick to bypass the voles and get a row of peas nicely established.  All you need is a length (5 to 10 ft.) of gutter (not galvanized) and 2 end caps such as large yogurt container covers. (see photos below)  Place the gutter in an indoor place where it won’t be disturbed or moved and gets good sunlight.  Fill the gutter just over half full of moist seed starter mix and gently pack the soil a bit.  Next place your pea seeds about 2 inches apart in an alternating double row for the length of the gutter.  Fill the gutter with the moist starter mix to cover the seeds with ½ inch of soil and gently tamp the soil.  Water the gutter if it dries out and when the peas are 2-3 inches tall with true leaves (and too tough for the voles) they are ready to transplant. 

In the garden, dig a shallow trench the length of the gutter and the same depth as the gutter.  I like to sprinkle some rock phosphate (or bone meal) along the trench bottom (see the middle photo below) to give the pea roots a strong start.  Place the gutter in the trench and elevate one end just enough to help the soil & peas slide out one open end.  Pull out short sections (1 ft.) of the soil as you slide the gutter out from under the peas.  After the peas are all in your trench you can fix up the row and cover the plants with some extra loose soil if needed.  Gently pack them in and water.  You now have established peas with a head start on the voles and the weather!  Just to be extra sure, I also sprinkle MoleMax©, a botanical repellent, along the row to deter any hungry voles.  This system has worked successfully for 4 years now with no seedling losses.

If you have another way to prevent Vole damage in the garden I would all love to hear from you in the Comments space below.

Meadows or Lawns?  If you avoided mowing your lawn for “No Mow May” then you provided a great floral banquet for our native pollinators and honeybees, thank you!  Now it’s a good time to think about converting some of that lawn area into natural meadow.  Local volunteer plants or sown wildflowers will do very well and continue to provide vital habitat for butterflies, hummingbirds, bumblebees, and honeybees for the whole summer.  Alternatively, you can improve your lawn areas by simply not applying any herbicides (weedkillers), insecticides, or fungicides.  All of these chemicals are toxic and can harm those beneficial species.  Increased biological diversity in your lawns will create a healthier environment and mean less work trying to force a “perfect” turf that really isn’t so desirable.