IN THE GARDEN
Gardening jobs for May
1. Harden off tender plants such as tomatoes and bedding plants, but bring indoors or cover them with fleece if there’s a risk of frost. 2. Plant tender perennials at the end of the month after the last frost. 3. Pinch out the tips of bedding plants to encourage strong, bushy growth. 4. Sow dwarf, French and runner beans directly in the garden once soil has warmed. 5. Put plant supports in borders to support herbaceous perennials and climbers such as sweet peas and Spanish flag.
birches, the short female catkins are erect before pollination and hang down after pollination. The oak ( Quercus robur ) has long, thin, string-like, yellow-green male catkins and small, red female flowers, while the aspen ( Populus tremula ) has distinctly downy, pendulous catkins. In all wind-pollinated trees, each individual catkin carries either male or female flowers, but a tree may have both male and female catkins (monoecious), or may have male and female catkins on separate plants (dioecious). The pollen grain of these catkin-bearing plants is very tiny and produced in large amounts on the anthers so that it can be carried in the wind and ultimately deposited on the female stigmas of another flower. While less conspicuous than petalled flowers, these plants add interest during the winter months – though be warned as they can also act as an allergen, causing
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