May Gardening Tips

Trees with black leaves from a recent frost?

Don’t worry trees can leaf out 3x in one season. They’ll look ugly for awhile but they’ll leaf out again. The trick is to not over water them while they’re trying to leaf out and catch back up to the other plants that might not have reacted to our false Spring weather. Basically, plants only need as much water as it takes to stay hydrated and keep up with the loss of moisture through their leaves. So, the first set of leaves this Spring got frozen and turned black. Some folk’s first reaction is to give it more water or they keep that plant/tree on the same schedule as the other fully leafed out plants that are around the ‘frozen leafed tree.’ It might be the right amount of water for the other plants and could be the right amount of water for that tree when it is fully leafed out, but it will be too much water while a tree is trying to “re-leaf out.” The excessive water can actually slow the tree way down.

Generally the roots have to stay moist at all times; during the winter that is easy since for deciduous plants there aren’t any leaves that are perspiring and there is free water during the winter. But during the summer when there are not only lots of leaves but it is also warmer and windy so the plants perspire significantly more and that is why it takes more water in the summer. I only point out the obvious, sorry, to make watering your frozen leafed tree easier to figure out.

As that tree starts leafing out more and more then you will gradually give it more water to keep up with the new increased perspiration leaving from the increasing number of new leaves.

Keep Feeding

Apply a second application of lawn fertilizer (usually a green bag).

Just a Pinch

Pinch tips of chrysanthemums, asters, sedum ‘Autumn Joy’, perennial sunflowers, coreopsis, sages, and other bush forming perennials to make them fuller, more compact and self supporting

Time to Mulch

Mulch 1” to 3” of bark under shrubs and trees and around flowers and vegetables. This will save water, smother weeds, and keep soil cooler. Keep mulch away from stems and trunks.