KJFM NEWS –  Garden Talk is produced monthly at the Adair County University of Missouri Extension Center in Kirksville, Mo.

Ornamentals

• Apples, crabapples and hawthorns susceptible to rust disease should have protective fungicidal sprays applied beginning when these trees bloom.
• Pinch azaleas and rhododendron blossoms as they fade. Double flowered azaleas need no pinching.
• If spring rains have been sparse, begin irrigating, especially plants growing in full sun.
• Fertilize azaleas after bloom. Use a formulation which has an acid reaction.
• Canker worms (inch worms) rarely cause permanent damage to ornamentals. Use Btif control is deemed necessary.
• Don’t remove spring bulb foliage prematurely or next year’s flower production will decline.
• Continue monitoring pines, especially Scotch and mugo, for sawfly activity on new shoots.
• Begin planting gladiolus bulbs as the ground warms. Continue at 2-week intervals.
• Plant hardy water lilies in tubs or garden pools.
• Scale crawlers are active now. Infested pines and euonymus should be treated at this time.
• Plant summer bulbs such as caladiums, dahlias, cannas and elephant ears.
• Begin planting warm-season annuals.
• Begin fertilizing annuals. Continue at regular intervals.
• Trees with a history of borer problems should receive their first spray now. Repeat twice at 3-week intervals.
• Bulbs can be moved or divided as the foliage dies.
• Pinch back mums to promote bushy growth.

Lawns

• Keep bluegrass cut at 1.5 to 2.5 inch height. Mow tall fescue at 2 to 3.5 inch height.
• Mow zoysia lawns at 1.5 inch height. Remove no more than one-half inch at each mowing.
• Apply post-emergence broadleaf weed controls now if needed.
• Zoysia lawns may be fertilized now. Apply no more than 1 pound of actual nitrogen per 1000 square feet.
• Watch for sod webworms emerging now.
• Place cutworm collars around young transplants. Collars are easily made from cardboard strips.
• Growing lettuce under screening materials will slow bolting and extend harvests into hot weather.
• Slugs will hide during the daytime beneath a board placed over damp ground. Check each morning and destroy any slugs that have gathered on the underside of the board.
• Plant dill to use when making pickles.
• Keep asparagus harvested for continued spear production. Control asparagus beetles as needed.
• Begin planting sweet corn as soon as white oak leaves are as big as squirrel ears.
• Isolate sweet, super sweet and popcorn varieties of corn to prevent crossing.
• Thin plantings of carrots and beets to avoid overcrowding.
• Control caterpillars on broccoli and cabbage plants by handpicking or use biological sprays such as t.
• Set out tomato plants as soils warm. Place support stakes alongside at planting time.
• Place a stake by seeds of squash and cucumbers when planting in hills to locate the root zone watering site after the vines have run.
• Remove rhubarb seed stalks as they appear.
• Watch for striped and spotted cucumber beetles now. Both may spread wilt and mosaic diseases to squash and cucumber plants.
• Set out peppers and eggplants after soils have warmed. Plant sweet potatoes now.
• Make new sowings of warm-season vegetables after harvesting early crops.

Fruits

• Mulch blueberries with pine needles or sawdust.
• Don’t spray any fruits while in bloom. Refer to local Extension publications for fruit spray schedule.
• Prune unwanted shoots as they appear on fruit trees.

Miscellaneous

• Birds eat many insect pests. Attract them to your garden by providing good nesting habitats.
• Herbs planted in average soils need no extra fertilizer. Too much may reduce flavor and pungency at harvest.
• Take houseplants outdoors when nights will remain above 50 degrees. Most prefer only direct morning sun.
• Watch for fireflies on warm nights. Both adults and larvae are important predators. Collecting may reduce this benefit.
• Sink houseplants up to their rims in soil or mulch to conserve moisture. Fertilize regularly.