Guides / What to plant
What to plant in May
The last frost passes in most of Britain this month, and tender plants can go outside. Basil, pelargoniums and lavender can all be planted now, and damask roses are close to flowering.
These are Northern Hemisphere months. If you garden in the Southern Hemisphere, the equivalent month is November.
In the garden
Baikal Skullcap
Scutellaria baicalensis
How to grow Scutellaria baicalensis, the huang qin of Chinese medicine. A hardy dry-slope perennial with blue hooded flowers, and the yellow root behind the name baicalin.
Boneset
Eupatorium perfoliatum
How to grow Eupatorium perfoliatum in a damp border. The joined leaves that name it, the fever it was named for, and telling it from the white snakeroot that poisoned milk.
Clematis montana
Clematis montana
How to grow Clematis montana. Why it belongs in pruning group one, the size it reaches, why it shrugs off clematis wilt, and why hard renovation can kill it.
Columbine
Aquilegia vulgaris
How to grow aquilegia, Aquilegia vulgaris. Self-seeding, cultivar variation, cutting back after flowering and keeping the foliage fresh.
Common Bamboo
Bambusa vulgaris
How to grow Bambusa vulgaris. The tropical clumping bamboo behind most of the world's bamboo construction, why it will not survive a temperate winter outdoors, and what to grow instead.
Cow Parsley
Anthriscus sylvestris
How to identify cow parsley, Anthriscus sylvestris. The plain green downy stem that separates it from hemlock, when it flowers, growing it in a wild garden and keeping it in check.
Damask Rose
Rosa damascena
How to grow the damask rose, Rosa damascena. Pruning a once-flowering old rose, the difference between summer and autumn damasks, and where rose oil comes from.
English Lavender
Lavandula angustifolia
How to grow English lavender, Lavandula angustifolia. Drainage, the pruning cut that keeps it alive, telling it apart from lavandin, and why it is toxic to cats and dogs.
Ground elder
Aegopodium podagraria
How to identify and control ground elder, Aegopodium podagraria. The Roman import that never leaves, why forking it spreads it, and the one method that works.
Lilac
Syringa vulgaris
How to grow lilac, Syringa vulgaris. Deadheading straight after flowering, why a shaded lilac never blooms, dealing with suckers, and renovating an old leggy bush.
Lily of the valley
Convallaria majalis
How to grow Convallaria majalis. Planting the pips, giving it the dry shade it wants, keeping it in bounds, and telling it from wild garlic before anyone eats it.
Mexican Orange
Choisya ternata
How to grow Mexican orange blossom, Choisya ternata. The trifoliate leaves that identify it, twice-yearly flowering, why it sulks in cold wind and the pruning that gets a second flush.
Oleander
Nerium oleander
How to grow oleander, Nerium oleander. Overwintering it under cover in a cold climate, pruning after flowering, and why it is among the most poisonous plants sold in Europe.
Oriental poppy
Papaver orientale
How to grow oriental poppy, Papaver orientale. Huge silk flowers in May, what to do with the gap it leaves in July, and propagating from root cuttings.
Perennial Flax
Linum perenne
How to grow perennial flax, Linum perenne. Sky blue flowers that open at dawn and fall by lunchtime, a wiry plant for dry chalk, and a rare British native at one edge of its range.
Perennial ryegrass
Lolium perenne
How to grow perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne. The grass in almost every cool-climate lawn, choosing a hard-wearing cultivar, and overseeding worn patches.
Red Sage
Salvia miltiorrhiza
How to grow Salvia miltiorrhiza, the red sage of Chinese medicine. A hardy border salvia with brick-red roots, and why it interacts with warfarin.
Sunn Hemp
Crotalaria juncea
How to grow sunn hemp, Crotalaria juncea. A fast nitrogen-fixing green manure with a fibre history, the rattling pods that name the genus, and why it is never grazed.
Sycamore
Acer pseudoplatanus
How to identify sycamore, Acer pseudoplatanus. Telling it from field maple and Norway maple, the seedlings that kill horses through atypical myopathy, and managing it in a garden.
White Jute
Corchorus capsularis
How to grow white jute, Corchorus capsularis. The fibre that built Dundee and Bengal, how retting turns a stem into thread, and the round pod that names the species.
Zonal Geranium
Pelargonium zonale
How to grow zonal geraniums, Pelargonium zonale. Overwintering, deadheading, why they are not geraniums at all, and the watering habit that causes blackleg.
Herbs and edibles
Adzuki Bean
Vigna angularis
How to grow adzuki beans, Vigna angularis. Sowing, spacing, summer warmth, drying the seed and using the red beans for sweet paste.
Angelica
Angelica archangelica
How to grow angelica, Angelica archangelica. The two-metre biennial for candied stems, sowing the seed fresh, and stopping it flowering to keep the plant another year.
Anise
Pimpinella anisum
How to grow anise, Pimpinella anisum. Why the seed needs a long hot summer to ripen, sowing it direct in May, and the aniseed flavour it shares with three unrelated plants.
Arrowroot
Maranta arundinacea
How to grow arrowroot, Maranta arundinacea. The starch that thickens clear, its family connection to the prayer plant on your windowsill, and the island that still supplies most of it.
Asparagus
Asparagus officinalis
How to grow asparagus, Asparagus officinalis. Waiting three years before the first cut, stopping cutting on midsummer's day, and dealing with asparagus beetle.
Australian Round Lime
Microcitrus australis
How to grow Australian round lime, Microcitrus australis. The Queensland rainforest citrus that was a bushfood before it was a crop, its place beside the finger lime, and the thorns it comes with.
Bael
Aegle marmelos
How to grow bael, Aegle marmelos. The Indian fruit with a shell you break with a hammer, its place in Shiva worship, the sherbet made from it, and the thorns on every branch.
Banana
Musa acuminata
How to grow banana, Musa acuminata. The giant herb that is not a tree, why every Cavendish is the same plant, Panama disease, and which bananas survive a cool winter.
Bearberry
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
How to grow bearberry, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi. The evergreen acid-soil carpeter, its red berries and glossy leaves, and where it grows wild on Scottish moorland.
Bitter Gourd
Momordica charantia
How to grow bitter gourd, Momordica charantia. The two shapes it comes in, how to take the edge off the bitterness, and why anyone on diabetes medication should read the safety section first.
Black-Eyed Pea
Vigna unguiculata
How to grow black-eyed peas, Vigna unguiculata. The heat-loving bean that fixes nitrogen on poor soil, picking young pods, and drying the seed.
Borage
Borago officinalis
How to grow borage, Borago officinalis. Sowing, self-seeding, bee-friendly blue flowers and cucumber-flavoured young leaves.
Bottle Gourd
Lagenaria siceraria
How to grow bottle gourd, Lagenaria siceraria. The oldest cultivated plant in the world, how to dry a hard shell, and the bitter-fruit rule that has to be followed every time.
Brazil Cherry
Eugenia brasiliensis
How to grow grumichama, Eugenia brasiliensis. The Brazilian cherry that tastes like a real one, how it differs from its resinous cousin the Surinam cherry, and the slow growth that comes with it.
Brazil Nut
Bertholletia excelsa
How to grow the Brazil nut, Bertholletia excelsa. Its rainforest pollination, agouti seed dispersal, selenium content and limits as a crop.
Buckwheat
Fagopyrum esculentum
How to grow buckwheat, Fagopyrum esculentum. Sowing, fast growth, bee forage, harvesting seed and using it as a green manure.
Butter Bean
Phaseolus lunatus
How to grow butter beans, Phaseolus lunatus. The heat they need in a cool summer, climbing and bush forms, and why they must always be boiled hard.
Butternut Squash
Cucurbita moschata
How to grow butternut squash, Cucurbita moschata. The heat it needs to ripen in a cool summer, choosing a short-season cultivar, and curing the fruit so it stores until spring.
Canistel
Pouteria campechiana
How to grow canistel, Pouteria campechiana. The egg fruit whose flesh has the texture of a hard-boiled yolk, why it divides people so sharply, and how to eat one properly.
Cashew
Anacardium occidentale
How to grow cashew, Anacardium occidentale. Warmth, the cashew apple, shell oil hazards and why raw cashews need processing.
Cassava
Manihot esculenta
How to grow cassava, Manihot esculenta. The root that feeds hundreds of millions, why it has to be processed before it is safe, and the difference between the sweet and the bitter kinds.
Chayote
Sechium edule
How to grow chayote, Sechium edule. Planting the whole sprouting fruit, why a short season ends before it flowers, and the parts of the plant nobody sells you.
Cherimoya
Annona cherimola
How to grow cherimoya, Annona cherimola. Warm days, cool winter rest, hand pollination, fruit ripening and seed safety.
Chickpea
Cicer arietinum
How to grow chickpeas, Cicer arietinum. A plant that sweats acid onto its own leaves, the difference between desi and kabuli, and the water you should stop pouring away.
Coconut
Cocos nucifera
How to grow coconut, Cocos nucifera. Sprouting one on a windowsill, the three eyes, coconut water, coconut milk and the limits of an indoor palm.
Cos Lettuce
Lactuca sativa var. longifolia
How to grow cos lettuce, Lactuca sativa var. longifolia. The upright heart that stands heat better than a butterhead, tying up for a tight head, and beating tipburn.
Courgette
Cucurbita pepo
How to grow courgettes, Cucurbita pepo. Why two plants are plenty, hand pollination, powdery mildew, and the bitterness that can make a home-saved fruit dangerous.
Date Palm
Phoenix dactylifera
How to grow date palm, Phoenix dactylifera. Sprouting a stone from a packet of dates, the male and female trees that have been hand-pollinated for five thousand years, and the desert heat a temperate summer cannot supply.
Ethiopian Mustard
Brassica carinata
How to grow Ethiopian mustard, Brassica carinata. A second natural brassica hybrid, the leaf vegetable behind gomen, and the oilseed being turned into aviation fuel.
Fenugreek
Trigonella foenum-graecum
How to grow fenugreek, Trigonella foenum-graecum. Methi leaves in six weeks, ripening the seed in a cool summer, and the compound that makes it smell of maple syrup.
Fig-Leaf Gourd
Cucurbita ficifolia
How to grow fig-leaf gourd, Cucurbita ficifolia. The cold-tolerant squash used as a cucumber rootstock, the black seeds, and the fruit that keeps for years.
Finger Millet
Eleusine coracana
How to grow finger millet, Eleusine coracana. The clenched fist of seed heads, more calcium than any other cereal, and a grain that keeps for a decade.
Foxtail Millet
Setaria italica
How to grow foxtail millet, Setaria italica. The bristly head that gives it its name, a domestication as old as rice, and the weed it was made from.
French bean
Phaseolus vulgaris
How to grow French beans, Phaseolus vulgaris. Dwarf against climbing, why they must not be sown cold, picking to keep them coming, and drying the pods for haricots.
Garlic Chives
Allium tuberosum
How to grow garlic chives, Allium tuberosum. Flat leaves with a garlic flavour, the white flowers worth eating, and stopping it seeding itself across the garden.
German Chamomile
Matricaria chamomilla
How to grow German chamomile, Matricaria chamomilla. The annual behind chamomile tea, picking and drying the flowers, and the hollow flower centre that identifies it.
Great Millet
Sorghum bicolor
How to grow sorghum, Sorghum bicolor. Heat, drought tolerance, grain heads, harvest timing and cyanide risk in stressed plants.
Guava
Psidium guajava
How to grow guava, Psidium guajava. The smell that fills a room, pink flesh against white, the seeds you can and cannot chew, and why it is a weed across half the tropics.
Horned Melon
Cucumis metuliferus
How to grow the horned melon, Cucumis metuliferus. The orange spiked fruit with lime-green jelly inside, how to tell when it is ripe, and how to eat something that resists being eaten.
Hyacinth Bean
Lablab purpureus
How to grow hyacinth beans, Lablab purpureus. Purple pods on a garden climber, an African staple, and a bean that has to be boiled twice before anyone eats it.
Jabuticaba
Plinia cauliflora
How to grow jabuticaba, Plinia cauliflora. The Brazilian tree that fruits all over its trunk, the grape-like berries that last three days, and the fifteen-year wait from seed.
Jack Bean
Canavalia ensiformis
How to grow jack beans, Canavalia ensiformis. A cover crop with a sword-shaped pod, the bean that gave chemistry its first crystallised enzyme, and seed that needs hours of boiling.
Jackfruit
Artocarpus heterophyllus
How to grow jackfruit, Artocarpus heterophyllus. The largest fruit that grows on a tree, the latex that glues your hands together, and why green jackfruit ended up in vegan burgers.
Japanese Millet
Echinochloa esculenta
How to grow Japanese millet, Echinochloa esculenta. A crop made from barnyard grass, ready in forty-five days, and the fastest cereal there is to sow.
Jute
Corchorus olitorius
How to grow jute mallow, Corchorus olitorius. The leaf that becomes molokhia, why the soup is slippery, and the same plant's second life as a fibre crop.
Loofah
Luffa aegyptiaca
How to grow loofah, Luffa aegyptiaca. Eating the young fruit, growing the bathroom sponge, and why a short season is only just long enough for one of the two.
Loquat
Eriobotrya japonica
How to grow loquat, Eriobotrya japonica. An evergreen that flowers in winter and fruits in spring, which is exactly the wrong way round for a cool temperate garden.
Lovage
Levisticum officinale
How to grow lovage, Levisticum officinale. The two-metre celery-flavoured perennial, cutting it back for a second flush of leaf, and how little of it a recipe needs.
Love-Lies-Bleeding
Amaranthus caudatus
How to grow love-lies-bleeding, Amaranthus caudatus. Crimson ropes hanging to the ground, a Victorian border favourite, and an Andean grain crop under another name.
Macadamia Nut
Macadamia integrifolia
How to grow macadamia, Macadamia integrifolia. The hardest shell in the nut trade, the only Australian native grown as a world food crop, and why it must never reach a dog.
Mamey Sapote
Pouteria sapota
How to grow mamey sapote, Pouteria sapota. The salmon-pink flesh behind a Cuban batido, the single huge glossy seed, and the scratch test that tells you whether one is ready.
Mango
Mangifera indica
How to grow mango, Mangifera indica. Telling a ripe one by smell rather than colour, cutting the hedgehog, why the skin can raise a rash, and what a stone on a windowsill will and will not do.
Maprang
Bouea macrophylla
How to grow maprang, Bouea macrophylla. The plum mango of Thailand and Java, a small orange fruit that tastes of mango and behaves like a plum, and the family it shares with mango and cashew.
Millet
Panicum miliaceum
How to grow proso millet, Panicum miliaceum. The fastest cereal there is, ready in sixty days, and the grain that fed northern China before rice arrived.
Moringa
Moringa oleifera
How to grow moringa, Moringa oleifera. One of the fastest-growing trees there is, the seed that clears muddy water, and why the leaves and the root bark are treated so differently.
Naranjilla
Solanum quitoense
How to grow naranjilla, Solanum quitoense. The Andean lulo with orange skin and green pulp, the hairs that rub off the fruit, and the cool highland conditions it insists on.
Niger Seed
Guizotia abyssinica
How to grow niger seed, Guizotia abyssinica. The Ethiopian oilseed in every goldfinch feeder, a daisy that flowers into October, and the reason your birdseed never sprouts.
Oil Palm
Elaeis guineensis
How to grow the oil palm, Elaeis guineensis. The two different oils one fruit produces, the reason it yields more per hectare than any other oil crop, and why that is the argument in both directions.
Orach
Atriplex hortensis
How to grow orach, Atriplex hortensis. The spinach that stands summer heat, growing the red form for colour, and cutting it before it seeds itself everywhere.
Papaya
Carica papaya
How to grow papaya, Carica papaya. The fastest fruit tree there is, why most seedlings turn out male, green papaya salad, and the latex that tenderises meat.
Plantain
Musa paradisiaca
How to grow plantain, Musa paradisiaca. The cooking banana that is starchy rather than sweet, how to tell it from a dessert banana, and why the lawn weed of the same name is a different plant entirely.
Pot Marjoram
Origanum onites
How to grow pot marjoram, Origanum onites. The hardy marjoram that survives a cold winter, how it differs from sweet marjoram and oregano, and why most Greek oregano sold as dried herb is this plant.
Prickly Pear Cactus
Opuntia ficus-indica
How to grow Opuntia ficus-indica. Why the invisible bristles are worse than the spines, how to prepare the pads and fruit, growing it in a cool climate, and the moth that saved Australia.
Quinoa
Chenopodium quinoa
How to grow quinoa, Chenopodium quinoa. A fat hen relative from the Andes, the soap coating you have to wash off, and a crop that grows better in a cool summer than a hot one.
Radish
Raphanus sativus
How to grow radish, Raphanus sativus. The fastest crop in the garden, why they go woody or all leaf, and sowing winter radishes for storage.
Red Amaranth
Amaranthus cruentus
How to grow amaranth, Amaranthus cruentus. A grain the Spanish tried to ban, seeds that pop like tiny popcorn, and leaves that cook like spinach.
Red Mombin
Spondias purpurea
How to grow red mombin, Spondias purpurea. The jocote sold on every Central American street corner, the living fences it is grown as, and how a branch stuck in the ground becomes a tree.
Runner Bean
Phaseolus coccineus
How to grow runner beans, Phaseolus coccineus. Building the support, why the flowers drop without setting, picking to keep them coming, and why you must never eat them raw.
Safflower
Carthamus tinctorius
How to grow safflower, Carthamus tinctorius. A spiny thistle that dyed Egyptian cloth, the fake saffron in a spice jar, and a taproot that goes down three metres.
Sapodilla
Manilkara zapota
How to grow sapodilla, Manilkara zapota. The fruit that tastes of brown sugar and malt, the latex that made chewing gum, and why an unripe one turns your mouth to felt.
Sesame
Sesamum indicum
How to grow sesame, Sesamum indicum. Why the pods split and scatter the seed, growing it under glass in Britain, and the phrase that comes from that habit.
Snake Gourd
Trichosanthes cucumerina
How to grow snake gourd, Trichosanthes cucumerina. The metre-long fruit that needs weighting straight, the night-opening lace flower, and the wild form nobody eats.
Soya Bean
Glycine max
How to grow soya beans, Glycine max. The most valuable legume in agriculture, why most of it is eaten by animals, and the day length that stops it cropping at high latitude.
Spearmint
Mentha spicata
How to grow spearmint, Mentha spicata. Containing the runners, telling it from peppermint, mint rust, and cutting back for a second flush of clean leaf.
Star Apple
Chrysophyllum cainito
How to grow star apple, Chrysophyllum cainito. The purple fruit that shows a star when cut across, the golden leaf undersides that name the genus, and the rind you must not eat.
Stuffing Cucumber
Cyclanthera pedata
How to grow caigua, Cyclanthera pedata. The hollow fruit that comes ready to stuff, the gourd that will crop outdoors in a cool summer, and the seeds shaped like tiny turtles.
Sugar Cane
Saccharum officinarum
How to grow sugar cane, Saccharum officinarum. The giant grass that carried the slave trade, how a cane is planted lying down, and what a heated greenhouse can do with it.
Summer Savory
Satureja hortensis
How to grow summer savory, Satureja hortensis. The bean herb, sowing it direct in May, and how it differs from the woody winter savory.
Surinam Cherry
Eugenia uniflora
How to grow Surinam cherry, Eugenia uniflora. The ribbed red fruit with a resinous edge that people either love or spit out, the hedge it makes, and the invasion it has caused.
Swede
Brassica napus var. napobrassica
How to grow swedes, Brassica napus var. napobrassica. The long season they need, telling them from turnips, beating powdery mildew and clubroot, and why neeps are not turnips.
Sweet Basil
Ocimum basilicum
How to grow sweet basil, Ocimum basilicum. Warmth, morning watering, pinching to delay flowering, and how to rescue a supermarket pot.
Sweet Cicely
Myrrhis odorata
How to grow sweet cicely, Myrrhis odorata. The perennial that sweetens rhubarb, its green seeds eaten raw, and why the seed needs a winter outdoors before it germinates.
Sweet Granadilla
Passiflora ligularis
How to grow sweet granadilla, Passiflora ligularis. The Andean passion fruit with an orange shell and grey pulp, sweeter than the purple kind, and the tapping test that tells you it is ready.
Sweet Marjoram
Origanum majorana
How to grow sweet marjoram, Origanum majorana. Why it is a tender annual wherever frost comes, telling it from oregano, and the knotted flower buds that give it its other name.
Sweet Potato
Ipomoea batatas
How to grow sweet potatoes, Ipomoea batatas. Starting slips, the warmth they need in a cool summer, growing under fleece or in a tunnel, and curing the roots to sweeten them.
Sweet Wormwood
Artemisia annua
How to grow sweet wormwood, Artemisia annua. The tall feathery annual behind artemisinin, sowing it in spring, and why the plant should not be used as a home malaria treatment.
Tamarind
Tamarindus indica
How to grow tamarind, Tamarindus indica. The African tree with an Indian name, the sour pod behind Worcestershire sauce and pad thai, and why it makes a better bonsai than an orchard tree outside the tropics.
Taro
Colocasia esculenta
How to grow taro, Colocasia esculenta. Why every part of it has to be cooked, how the same plant became the elephant ear in a garden centre, and the crop that fed the Pacific.
Tartary Buckwheat
Fagopyrum tataricum
How to grow Tartary buckwheat, Fagopyrum tataricum. The bitter buckwheat of the Himalaya, self-fertile where its cousin is not, and the highest rutin content of any crop.
Tea plant
Camellia sinensis
How to grow tea, Camellia sinensis. A hardy evergreen camellia for acid soil, picked as two leaves and a bud, and processed at home into green or black tea.
Vanilla
Vanilla planifolia
How to grow vanilla, Vanilla planifolia. Warmth, humidity, hand pollination, flowering and curing the pods.
Wax Gourd
Benincasa hispida
How to grow wax gourd, Benincasa hispida. The white bloom that lets it keep for a year, why it has almost no flavour of its own, and the fuzzy melon sold as the same plant.
West Indian Gherkin
Cucumis anguria
How to grow the West Indian gherkin, Cucumis anguria. Sowing, heat, picking small spiny fruits and growing it when cucumbers struggle.
Wonderberry
Solanum retroflexum
How to grow wonderberry, Solanum retroflexum. Telling ripe berries from unripe, the Burbank controversy of 1909, and why only fully black fruit is worth picking.
Indoors
Heartleaf Philodendron
Philodendron hederaceum
How to care for Philodendron hederaceum. How to tell it apart from pothos for certain, why climbing gives bigger leaves than trailing, and how it behaves around pets.
Staghorn fern
Platycerium bifurcatum
How to grow staghorn fern, Platycerium bifurcatum. Mounting it on a board, why the brown shield fronds must be left alone, and watering by soaking.