Guides / What to plant
What to plant in May
The last frost passes in most of Britain this month, and the tender plants can finally go out. Basil, pelargoniums and lavender all want planting now, and the damask rose is a fortnight from its one spectacular flowering.
These are Northern Hemisphere months. If you garden in the Southern Hemisphere, the equivalent month is November.
In the garden
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. Granny's bonnets that seed themselves everywhere, why named cultivars never stay true, and cutting back for fresh foliage.
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 British 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 in a British conservatory, 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 ryegrass
Lolium perenne
How to grow perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne. The grass in almost every British lawn, choosing a hard-wearing cultivar, and overseeding worn patches.
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.
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
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.
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.
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.
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 Britain, and the moth that saved Australia.
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.
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.
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.
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.