Jobs to do this month

Flowers​

• Prune spring shrubs, such as forsythia and chaenomeles, after flowering to keep them compact

• Plant out dahlia tubers and cannas after all risk of frost has passed

• Tie in the new shoots of climbing plants, including clematis, wisteria and honeysuckle, to their supports

• Continue sowing annuals, such as California poppies, into gaps in borders for colour from August into autumn

• Plant up hanging baskets, but keep in a greenhouse or porch for a few weeks to establish, before putting outside

• Apply liquid feed to tulips, daffodils and other spring bulbs to encourage a good display next year

• Plant out summer bedding and tender annuals, including sunflowers, cosmos and nasturtiums, after the last frost

• Remove faded spring bedding, such as wallflowers and forget-me-nots, once faded and add to your compost bin

• Check lilies and fritillaries for scarlet lily beetles and their larvae, as they can rapidly strip plants of all foliage

• Harden off tender plants raised indoors, but bring them back in at night to protect from late frosts

• Pinch out the shoot tips of bedding plants and young annuals to encourage bushier growth

• Add interest to shady borders by planting a selection of hostas and ferns

Fruit and veg

• Earth up potatoes, covering the shoots with soil as they appear

• Sow sweetcorn in deep pots, so the young plants are ready to transplant into the garden in June 

• Reduce snail populations by going on regular evening hunts, especially during damp weather

• Start sowing dwarf and climbing French beans, as well as runner beans, directly outdoors in warm weather

• Pick rhubarb stems as they develop, and water plants with liquid feed

• Start hardening off tender young plants, such as tomatoes and courgettes, ready for planting out in mild areas

• Sow batches of salad leaves and stir-fry crops every few weeks to provide continuous pickings

• Hang pheromone traps in apple and plum trees from May to July, to control pests

• Thin out seedlings from earlier sowings to ensure you get healthy, strong-growing plants

• Open fruit cage doors or lift some of the netting to ensure pollinating insects can get access to the flowers

• Remove all strawberry runners, so plants put their full energy into fruiting

• Keep plenty of fleece handy to protect young seedlings or fruit blossom, if late frosts are forecast

Greenhouse

• Water thirsty crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers and courgettes regularly as the weather starts to warm up

• Tie the stems of indoor tomatoes, cucumbers and aubergines to canes as they grow

• Plant heat-treated freesia corms in pots for fragrant flowers this summer

• Check plants regularly for pests, on shoot tips and the underside of leaves, and treat with biological controls

• Put up shading to lower daytime temperatures and reduce scorching

• Open doors and vents on warm days, but close them in the evening as nights can still be cold

• Take cuttings of woody herbs such as hyssop, rosemary and thyme, and root in pots of gritty compost

• Keep pricking out seedlings as soon as they get their first true leaves, to avoid overcrowding and fungal diseases

• Repot any houseplants that have become top heavy or pot bound into larger containers

• Start to harden off tender plants and bedding, ready for planting outside after the last frost

• Take cuttings from fuchsias, dahlias and pelargoniums

• Transplant tomatoes into growing bags or large pots, and tie their main stem to a cane or vertical wire for support

With thanks to BBC Gardeners' World.