Gardener’s To-Do List for May

May To-Do List for Zone 8

• Harvest spring crops daily to keep them producing for as long as possible.
• Continue to plant heat-tolerant tomatoes, such as ‘Heatwave', ‘Sunchaser', and ‘Sweet 100'.
• Plant eggplant, peppers, cucumbers, squash, okra, beans, sweet potatoes, melons, and southern peas this month.
• Plant caladiums in shaded sites. Try narrow-leaved zinnia (Zinnia angustifolia) for hot spots. Give new plantings plenty of water.
• Continue planting daisies, asters, coreopsis, marigolds, and sunflowers—they nourish the beneficial insects, which will help keep pests in check.
• Check your drip irrigation system—you'll be depending on it soon.
   

Photo: (cc) jjj56cp/Flickr