Check out Part One of Your Annual Lawn & Garden Diary For the Coastal Carolinas in the Fall Issue 10 for the months of September through February!

Gardening in the winter is a completely different experience than gardening in the spring, but to a true gardener doing a few chores each month will help keep your landscape in top form season to season and year to year.

Here is a general gardening diary that will help you plan your projects for each month.

March
 
Spring fever is alive and well in southeastern North Carolina, and the gardening frenzy begins.  Feed your roses a well-balanced, organically-fortified rose food this month.  Your Centipede lawn is showing some life, finally!  Resist the urge to fertilize the lawn this month.  This is an ideal time to service your lawn mower for the long season that lies ahead.  Your dogwood tree should be showing a display of creamy white flowers soon after the redbud has displayed its lilac-looking blooms.  For a showier display of flowers on your Gardenias in May, feed them toward the end of the month with a 5-5-10.  Address weed issues in your lawn as the days begin to warm up.  The end of this month is Azalea and Indian Hawthorn feeding time.  Use slow-release or organic fertilizers formulated just for Azaleas and a slow release 10-10-10 for your Hawthorns. Prune all winter injury from your Oleanders.  Try to remove no more than a third of the plant.  Aggressive pruning, particularly on Oleanders that do not receive full sun, could adversely affect blooms this year.

April

Azalea festival time is here again!  The Redbuds are the first tree to bloom, and even your lawn is beginning to perk up!  Lawn fertilization can begin late this month, following our last average freeze date of approximately April 15.  (Remember the Easter freeze of 2007?)  Fertilize your Gardenia toward the end of this month using about a half cup of 5-5-10 slow-release fertilizer. Fertilize your Hostas now with low nitrogen organic food such as fish emulsions or sea kelp.  These are also excellent plant foods for roses. To insure robust bloom on your perennial flowers, feed Lantana and Verbena at the end of the month with a 5-10-10 slow-release food.  Cut dead plant material from last year on your Lantana.  Cutting Lantanas back in late fall or winter could result in freeze damage from water collecting in hollow stems and roots. Start your tomato plants indoors, or wait until May to plant them outside.  Pansies are looking in top form before the heat takes its toll on them.  Rather than pulling them out when growth is complete, just cut them back and hope for a revisit next fall.

 

 

May

It is beginning to feel like summer here in southeastern North Carolina, and the gardening world is coming to life.  The black spot on the roses is probably active, as humidity levels increase.  Try mixing four tablespoons of baking soda, and one tablespoon of corn oil to one gallon of water.  Shake well before spraying your roses. This should suppress both black spot and powdery mildew disease.  Spray as needed. Your Lorepetalum has completed most of its spring blooming now, so some mild pruning to shape up branches that are out of control may be necessary.  This is an ideal time to fertilize all warm season lawns such as Centipede, St. Augustine, Bermuda, and Zoysia. Spot spray broadleaf weeds with a selective herbicide designed for southern lawns if necessary.  An hour or two spent pulling weeds may not only give you the same end results as spraying, but is healthier for the grass and for you as well!  Get your palms off to a good start by feeding them with a good balanced palm food that is high in magnesium, manganese, and potassium.

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June

This is an excellent time to prune after new growth has hardened on some of your Holly, Pittosporum, Box Woods, Eleagnus, and some other evergreens.  If your Azaleas are in need of pruning and you have not yet done so, prune now before your plant begins to set bloom for next season.  Many of your lilies such as the “Stella D Oro,” are in full bloom.  You can extend the blooming period by removing the dead seed pods and brown spikes.  If you have St Augustine grass, watch out for Chinch Bugs in warm, sunny areas. Pyrethrin which is an extract from the Chrysanthemum, or a Pyrethoid which is a man- made synthetic version, will keep Chinch Bugs in check.  Gardenias are now in bloom. Dead-heading the spent blooms will encourage more blooms.  If iron chlorosis is evident (yellow foliage with dark, green veins), apply a chelated liquid iron such as Ironite. Weeds can become a nuisance in your garden at this time of the year.  Add mulch to thin areas if needed, and try to keep the weed population down to prevent them from competing with your plants for water and nutrients.  Watch for new growth and acorns (and lots of squirrels) on your oaks.  Keep your shallow-rooted plants such as Azaleas well watered during the summer months.

July

 

Happy Birthday America!  These are the dog days of summer and the gardening chores are best performed in early morning or evening.  Watch for your Crepe Myrtle to explode into color toward the end of this month.  You can extend the blooming period well into the fall by clipping off the spent blooms on your Crepe Myrtles.  The lawns are really growing now and weekly mowing is suggested.  Bermuda lawns should be mowed every three-to-four days for optimum performance.  Feed your roses monthly during this summer period.  Insects such as aphids, scale, and whitefly can be troublesome this time of year.  You can reduce these pests by making your own insecticidal soap.  Mix two-and-one-half tablespoons of Dawn detergent and one teaspoon of cider vinegar to one gallon of water.  Be sure to spray all of the plant parts.  Feed your Camellias now for better blooms this fall and winter.  Apply one cup of super phosphate around the base of each Camellia early this month.  This is an ideal time to fertilize your lawn with nitrogen for the last time.  The extreme humidity may cause grey leaf spot disease on your St Augustine lawn.  Your Rose of Sharon is in full bloom, but it’s the Oleanders that are stealing the show this month!

August

Your Hydrangeas have completed their showy display for the season.  Snip off the robust flowers while they still have some color early this month, hang them upside down to dry for a few weeks, then spray with a clear lacquer for a terrific dry flower arrangement.  Many annual flowers growing in containers may appear a little tired at this time.  Feed and water your container plants well during this period to prolong the flowering cycle.  Start thinking fall.  Plan your fall and winter flower changes now. Remember to fertilize your tropical flowering plants such as Hibiscus, Manda Villa, Bougenvilla, and Passion flowers.  Watch for slugs on your Impatients, Hostas, and Begonias, and use a slug bait that contains the active ingredient iron phosphate.  It works great, feeds your plant some iron, and is safer for kids, pets, and our environment.  Your Buddleia bush (Butterfly Bush) should be pumping out flowers galore during this period. Dead-head the blooms often to promote more flowering.  Fertilize your palms at the end of this month with one cup of Epsom salts for winter hardiness.

MARK A. TAMN has been in the lawn and landscape industry for over thirty years.  Mark is an agronomist, NC Certified Turf Grass Professional, radio talk show host of “In the Garden,” author of the book "Olde Time Gardening For New Age Concerns", and President of Freedom Lawns USA and Freedom Franchises, Inc.