April

• Reseed bare areas in lawn, over-seed thin areas.
• Treat for leaf blight diseases on dogwood, sycamore, and flowering trees.*
• Prepare garden soil for spring planting if it is dry enough.
• Plant vegetables; cucumbers, carrots, onions, radishes.
• Treat diseases on fruit trees like apple scab, brown rot and blossom blight on cherry trees.*
• Check trees for leaf feeding caterpillars and treat if needed.*
• Control slugs by baiting or beer traps.

May

• Fertilize lawns. Also apply weed control if necessary.*
• Fertilize rhododendrons and azaleas.*
• Control moles by trapping.
• Inspect and treat plants for aphids, use insecticidal soap, for leaf-feeding insects use B.T. or pyrethrins.*
• Plant warm season vegetables; corn, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, pumpkin, squash.
• Place pheromone traps in apple and pear trees to detect codling moth. Plan a control program of sprays, traps or predators.*
• Aerate lawns to improve rooting, relieve compaction, improve uptake of nutrients, and better water infiltration.*

June

• Treat for adult root weevils in rhododendrons, azaleas, primroses, viburnums, and other ornamentals.*
• Use composted mulch to conserve moisture and prevent weeds around plants.
• Lawn mowing: set blade height for 1.5 to 2.5 inches for most lawns. “Grass cycle” by returning grass clippings back to the lawn with a mulching mower.
• Prune spring flowering shrubs like azaleas, rhododendrons, forsythia, and lilacs after blooming.*
• Shear hedges like arborvitae, boxwood, and laurel after spring flush of growth.*
• Trees infected by spring diseases will begin dropping foliage. Prune out infected branches. Rake up and destroy fallen infected leaves. Fertilize to encourage new growth.*

*Services provided by Collier Arbor Care