🌿Fruit Care Tips For May!🍓🍏

May is a crucial time to nurture fruit plants and set them up for a great season ahead:

🍓 Strawberry Protection – Keep fruits clean and rot-free by laying down straw or strawberry mats.

🌱 Hardening Off– Gradually introduce tender plants to outdoor conditions by placing them outside during the day and bringing them in at night. Coldframes work well, too!

🍓 Alpine Strawberries – Start hardening them off now, ready for planting out by mid-May.

🦜 Net Soft Fruit – Protect ripening fruit from hungry birds, but be sure to remove the netting once fruiting is finished in late summer.

🌿 Weeding & Maintenance – Keep strawberry beds and areas around fruit trees clear of weeds for healthier plants.

💧 Watering Wisely – Ensure developing fruit plants—especially those near walls or on dwarfing rootstocks, get a deep soak if dry weather lasts more than two weeks. Newly planted trees need extra care!

🌳 Training Growth – Tie in new shoots on trained apples and pears to help shape and support healthy growth.

🍇 Harvest Time – Enjoy the first tastes of the season by picking gooseberries and early strawberries!

A little effort now means a bigger, better harvest later! 🌞