Season Tips – Wisconsin May Lawn & Garden Tips
Early May
Shrubs, Care & Planting
Spring is a good time to prune out any frost damage to your shrubs, trees and other plants, which may have occurred from the harsh winter. In spring, you can prepare your yard for summer landscaping by thinning or removing deadwood and/or removing the unwanted parts of your existing landscaping. This will help prevent damage to any new landscaping.
- After the Ground has dried, thoroughly water shrubs that may have suffered from deicing salts. This will help wash the chemicals into the ground and away from the roots
- Look for and prune out any signs of tent caterpillars.
- When temperatures stay above 40 degrees but before new growth appears, apply dormant sprays of lime, sulfur, or dormant oil to control overwintering scale on mugo pines and deciduous shrubs.
- Transplanting shrubs should be completed after the soil thaws but before new growth appears. If you missed that time frame, wait until the fall when the plant goes dormant before attempting to move.
- If adding new plants to landscape, write down space requirements and look for new plants that develop fall and winter interest as well.
- Apply fertilizer in the spring if needed. New plantings will come already fertilized so hold off until the next year or two.