Monthly List Of Things To Do - Smith County Master Gardeners

Each month there are plenty of things you could be doing in your garden or landscape. The listing below is also available in our East Texas Garden Guide and Calendar that Smith County Master Gardeners publishes every year. Along with these activities, our annual calendar features specific horticultural topics such as pollinators, beneficial insects, or trees. This year’s topic is Native Plants. Click HERE to find out more about our Calendar and Garden Guide.

Plant Care

Dig beds for spring planting and mix in compost, but never when soil is wet.
Cut back ornamental grasses to about 8 inches.
Dig and divide daylilies and other summer and fall-blooming perennials.
Prune peach and plum trees into a bowl shape so that light and air can reach all branches.
Prune dead wood, lower limbs, suckers, and crossed limbs from shade trees.
Do NOT top or hard prune crapemyrtles.
Plant fruit and bare-root nut trees, roses, asparagus, onions, ornamental cabbages, pansies, and snapdragons this month.

Fertilize

Fertilize cool-season annuals, vegetables, and winter-flowering plants with a 3:2:1 lawn fertilizer, such as 15-5-10.

Pests

Apply broadleaf weed killer to control non-grassy weeds during warm periods.
Spray dormant oil to control scale.
Remove and destroy bagworm pouches.

Odds & Ends

Have soil tested and amend as necessary.
Clean flower pots with soapy water and soak in a 5% bleach solution.
Clean out bird feeders, houses, and baths.
Sort chemicals and dispose of expired ones.

Plant Care

Prune hybrid tea roses mid-month at a 45-degree angle just above an outward-facing bud. Remove dead wood and crossing branches. Prune climbers after first bloom. Prune shrub roses with hedge clippers.
Begin to plant roses, groundcovers, cool-season annuals, cannas, and ornamental grasses.
Begin to plant your garden with onions, potatoes, radishes, greens, sugar snap peas, carrots, beets, turnips, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, collards and cauliflower.

Pests

Begin a regular disease prevention program for susceptible roses.
Treat aphids on ornamentals with a strong spray of water or insecticidal soap.
At first sign of green loopers on broccoli, greens, cabbage, and lettuce apply BT (Bacillus thuringiensis).

Odds & Ends

Clean, sharpen, and oil outdoor tools.
Check irrigation systems for missing or broken heads. Clean filters.
Service mowers and power equipment.
Clean/put out hummingbird feeders.
Clean out and/or put up bluebird nest boxes and purple martin houses.

Plant Care

Continue dividing summer and fall-blooming perennials.
Plant summer-blooming bulbs and tubers, such as gladiolas, crinums, cannas, and lilies.
Refresh mulch in beds to retain moisture and diminish weeds.
After the danger of frost, set out tomato plants and summer vegetables such as eggplant, zucchini, and peppers. Rotate the planting position of the vegetable varieties from previous seasons to decrease disease likelihood.
Begin planting bedding plants and perennial salvias after last frost (do not plant periwinkles until June).
Allow spring bulb foliage to die naturally in order to feed the bulb for the next year.

Fertilize

Apply fertilizer to annual bedding plants and vegetables.
Do not fertilize lawns until mid-April when nights are warm and you have mowed the grass (not the weeds) several times.

Pests

Treat pests as they arise. Consider using proven organic remedies or at least nontoxic remedies for the health of your family and Earth, especially in the vegetable garden. Aphids can be controlled with a strong jet of water followed by a gentle wipe with your fingers.
Check crapemyrtles for bark scale and treat with a systemic insecticide.
Treat large white webs of tent caterpillars in trees with BT or malathion. Remove the webs with a long stick in early morning or evening.

Odds & Ends

Secure canes of climbers.
Water gardens should be drained, cleaned, and replanted as needed.
Apply pre-emergent herbicide ASAP for crabgrass, grass burs, and other annual summer weeds.

Plant Care

Prune spring-blooming shrubs after they flower.
Divide summer and fall-blooming perennials.
Thin fruit on heavily laden trees to about one per 6 inches.
Plant hanging baskets, containers, and beds. Consider summer-blooming bulbs and grasses for a change.
Mulch vegetable and flower beds to hold moisture, discourage weeds, and improve soil.
Continue planting the vegetable garden. Add cages for tomatoes and cucumbers. Strips of old pantyhose make good ties when securing plants to cages and trellises.
Plant summer-blooming annuals and perennials to add interest and color to your garden beds.
Cut back dying foliage on oxblood lilies and spider lilies.

Fertilize

Fertilize azaleas and camellias after they have finished blooming with either an azalea/camellia/gardenia fertilizer, 21-0-0 fertilizer, or cottonseed meal.
Apply high-nitrogen fertilizer to evergreen shrubs, shade trees, and fruit and nut trees around the drip line.
Feed lawns based on a soil test or with a 3:1:2 fertilizer such as 15-5-10 or similar.

Pests

Check for powdery mildew on plants and shrubs. Treat with appropriate fungicide.
Check crapemyrtles for bark scale and treat with a systemic insecticide.

Odds & Ends

Clean bird baths to prepare for our flying friends. Put up hummingbird feeders early in the month.

Plant Care

Pinch out growing tips of plants such as coleus, mums, and salvias to encourage branching. Keep this up every couple of weeks until September for a good fall show.
Plant caladium bulbs late in the month after weather has warmed.
Allow bulbs to complete their growing cycle, allowing the foliage to die naturally. This encourages bulbs to store enough energy to produce a bigger and better crop of flowers for next year. Most daffodil, narcissus, and jonquil foliage can be cut back after Mother’s Day or when yellow.
Deadhead roses, annuals, and perennials to encourage more blooms.
Remove damaged limbs from trees and shrubs after spring storms.
Maintain organic mulch around trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, and vegetables.
Side-dress tomato and pepper plants with nitrogen every 2-3 weeks until fruit is harvested.
Watch for early blight on tomatoes. The lowest leaves will develop yellow blotches. Treat with a labeled fungicide before the disease moves upward.

Pests

Check azaleas for lace bugs, especially in sunny locations. Damaged leaves look stippled or bleached and have shiny black spots on the undersides. Apply systemic insecticide before damage is unsightly.
Be on the lookout for bag worms on evergreens. Control early with Sevin or BT.

Odds & Ends

Provide fresh water for the birds.
Keep hummingbird feeders filled. Discard any nectar left in feeders after a week as it can ferment in hot weather. Wash feeders thoroughly.

Plant Care

Plant heat-tolerant annuals such as periwinkles and ornamental sweet potato and fall-blooming perennials in order to fill the garden with vivid color.
Guard against blossom-end rot on tomatoes by keeping the soil evenly moist. Water deeply and do not let the soil get too dry between watering. Keep mulched.
Plant tomato seeds or cuttings for fall garden transplants.
Begin to water lawns deeply about once a week, adding 1″ of water per watering. If you are unsure of amount applied, put out empty cat food or tuna cans and water until cans are full.
Cut grass every 4-5 days to reduce stress, and mulch clippings on lawn.
To encourage lush new growth, pinch off flower stalks on coleus, caladiums, lambs ear, basil, and other annuals grown for their foliage.
Dig and divide large clumps of daffodils that did not bloom well. Replant 6-8 inches apart in a sunny well-drained spot.
Watch for iron deficiency on azaleas. This will appear as yellowing leaves with green veins. Fertilize with a product containing chelated iron.

Pests

Spider mites can occur on plants when the weather becomes hot and dry. Reduce light infestations by spraying the leaves with a sharp stream of water or by using insecticidal soap. For more severe infestations, use a approved miticide.
To protect bees, spray pesticides only in the evening after the bees have returned to the hive.

Odds & Ends

Keep birdbaths and humming bird feeders clean.

Plant Care

Plant zinnia seeds for a late summer to fall bloom.
Plant transplants of hot-weather annuals, such as globe amaranth, celosia, melampodium, marigolds, and coleus.
Cut back leggy annuals to encourage fresh blooms. Carry pruners with you every time you go into the garden to make grooming easier.
Deadhead annuals, perennials, and roses regularly to encourage reblooming.
Scout garden daily for pests or problems.
Water beds and lawns deeply but infrequently. Lawns generally need an inch of water per week, best done in early morning.
Water azaleas once every two weeks, perennials, ground covers, shrubs, and fruit trees once a month, and most shade trees only during severe droughts.
Make sure there are 2 to 4 inches of organic mulch on beds to preserve moisture, prevent weeds, and to keep soil cool.
Fertilize potted plants weekly using a half-strength fertilizer soltion.
Plant fall transplants of tomatoes (first two weeks of July), peppers, and eggplants.
Seed fall crops of pumpkin and squash.
Note which plants do well in the heat to plan for next year.
Protect your skin from sun damage and stay hydrated when working in the garden.

Pests

Check St. Augustine grass regularly for chinch bugs and treat with labeled insecticide.
To remove aphids, spray plants – including underside of leaves – with a strong blast of water or shear off infected new growth.
Treat lawns for grub worms if populations are high.

Plant Care

Watch for signs of drought stress in plantings. Apply necessary deep-soaking supplemental water as needed. Large-leaved plants such as hydrangeas and elephant ears may need extra water during drought. Keep plants mulched to minimize drought stress.
Remove spent blooms and bloom stalks of cannas. Cut spent stalks to ground level and new ones will pop up.
In the vegetable garden, plant beans, cucumbers, and squash.
Continue to irrigate lawn, annuals, and vegetables once per week (one inch of water), azaleas every two weeks, and shrubs, perennials, groundcover, and fruit trees once per month until fall rains begin.
Continue to watch for chinch bugs on St. Augusting grass in hot, sunny, exposed locations. Treat immediately as needed.
Mid-month or early September prune roses by a third to encourage heavy fall bloom.

Fertilize

For a flush of fall color, fertilize perennials, especially fall-blooming ones such as salvia and mums, with slow-release granular fertilizer after pruning.

Odds & Ends

Provide much needed water for the birds. Change nectar in hummingbird feeders every week as heat causes the nectar to ferment.
Guard against mosquitoes by eliminating standing water in containers. Use mosquito dunks (Bacillus turingiensis israelenis) in bird baths and garden ponds.

Plant Care

Prepare beds for fall planting by adding organic compost.
Dig and divide oxblood and spider lily bulbs while in bloom or as they just finish. Also divide crowded perennials such as cannas, iris, and cone flowers.
Mulch about 3 inches to prevent weeds and protect against winter damage.
Plant cool-season leafy vegetables such as lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, kale, collards, dill, cilantro, and parsley.
Begin to plant new container-grown trees and shrubs. Keep well watered until they become established.
Plant bluebonnets and other wildflowers. Barely cover the seeds and firm or tamp down the soil.
Stop shearing fall-blooming perennials such as garden mums, cigar plant, and Mexican bush sage to allow for fall blooms.
Prune roses by Labor Day for nice fall bloom. Most antique roses and shrub roses need only a light shearing to shape them.
Winterize lawn. Use 3:1:2 ratio such as 15:5:10, 18-6-12, etc. Water in well.
Stop fertilizing warm-season perennials and tropicals.

Pests

Watch for aphids, lace bugs, mites, white flies, and thrips. Control with insecticidal soap or other labeled insecticide.
Apply BT (Bacillus thuringiensis) to cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts, collards, and kale to protect from cabbage loopers.
Apply pre-emergent herbicide to established lawns with annual infestations to prevent cool-season weeds such as henbit, chickweed, and lawn burweed.

Plant Care

Start carrots, radishes, lettuces, arugula, and parsley from seed.
Discontinue watering lawns to reduce chance of brown patch and other diseases.
Limit pruning of shrubs and trees to the removal of damaged or dead branches.
Chill tulip bulbs at least 45 days in the refrigerator prior to planting.
Compost fallen leaves, twigs, and disease-free plants, including annuals.
Plant transplants of cool-season vegetables. Direct-seed poppies, larkspur, and sweet peas.
Set out chrysanthemums, pansies, dianthus, snapdragons, and ornamental cabbage and kale.
Plant trees, shrubs, vines, and spring-blooming perennials. Remember “Fall is for Planting.” Fall is best, winter second best, spring third, and summer the worst time for planting woody landscape plants.
Plant spring-flowering bulbs (except tulips and hyacinths that need chilling).
Overseed lawns with perennial ryegrass (actually a cool-season annual).

Pests

Monitor newly planted annuals for aphids and treat with insecticidal soap or other labeled insecticide as needed.
Before moving any plants indoors, check for pests and treat as needed.

Plant Care

Mow lawns until first frost.
Discontinue using landscape sprinkler systems since our cool moist season has arrived.
Mow St. Augustine lawns only when they are completely dry to prevent spreading brown patch disease.
Mulch fallen leaves.
Collect pine straw for landscape mulching.
Set out pansies, flowering kale, dianthus, calendula, and snapdragons.
Sow bluebonnet, poppy and larkspur seed.
Plant trees, shrubs, and vines to take advantage of moisture, cooler temperatures, and mild winters.
Replenish mulch to 3 – 4 inches, especially paying attention to tender plants and topicals, which need 10 – 12 inches, depending on depth of roots.

Fertilize

Fertilize cold-tolerant herbaceous plants with 3:1:2 lawn-type fertilizer, such as 15-5-10, 18-6-12, etc.
To promote size and height, fertilize trees and shrubs with 3:2:1 “lawn” fertilizer such as 15-5-10, 18-6-12, etc.

Odds & Ends

Bring in glass rain gauges, ceramic, and terra cotta planters, and any other breakable lawn art before the first freeze.
Drain water hoses and fountains.
Buy and chill tulips and hyacinths for 6 – 8 weeks before planting.
Late in the month pot up Amaryllis bulbs and paperwhites for holiday bloom.

Plant Care

Keep beds mulched and weeded. Cool-season weeds do not take the winter off.
Discontinue lawn fertilization until cold weather is over.
Fertilize winter annuals with 20-20-20 liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks during warm spells throughout the winter.
Trim trees, making sure to cut limbs flush with branch collar, at the trunk, or next to another limb.
Pot amaryllis, paperwhites, and chilled hyacinths for forced winter bloom.

Odds & Ends

Clean, sharpen, and oil garden tools, as well as mower blades.
Clear gutters.
Stock bird feeders with black oil sunflower seed.
Drain gasoline from power equipment for winter storage.
Order seeds for next year from catalogs and websites now, as popular selections often run out.
Finish cleaning, labeling, and storing saved seed.
Plan vegetable and flower gardens for next year.