What to plant in May in Melbourne
May is an ideal month for planting winter vegies in well prepared beds. Continue to water well through any dry spells and install dripline for brassica family vegies and garlic.
Plant seeds in punnets
- broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Florence fennel, kale, kohlrabi, leek, lettuce, onion family excluding garlic, silverbeet, spinach
Plant seedlings into soil
- American upland cress between plants of broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower (this is a dead end trap plant that protects these plants from white cabbage butterfly, the eggs of which develop into green caterpillars); broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower, Florence fennel, kale, kohlrabi, leek, lettuce, rocket, other salad greens, silverbeet, spinach
Plant seeds direct into the soil
- Asian greens, broad beans, carrot, daikon, mustard greens, parsnip, peas, radish, rocket, turnip and herbs including coriander, chervil and dill
Plant garlic direct into the soil
- separate cloves from the garlic head and plant large outer cloves 15cm x 15cm apart at a depth that allows 2 – 3cm of soil coverage above the pointy tip. Plant with base down and pointy tip upward.
Netting
Use exclusion netting on Asian greens, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage.
Succession planting
Plant seedlings every few weeks so that they will not all be ready for harvest at the same time.
Watering
Water soil (not leaves) deeply at least twice per week. (Rainfall less than 10mm per day does not count). Install dripline if possible.
Useful links
How much sun do my vegies need?
Preparing for an autumn/winter garden
Planting in punnets and soil preparation for direct sowing
Instructional video on how to use a pH kit
Written by Robin Gale-Baker