Ticks have arrived and are waiting to drop from shrubs and trees onto you. Thoroughly treat clothing with tick spray. Wear light-colored long pants and long sleeve shirt, and hat. Tuck pants into socks, and gloves over sleeve cuffs. Check clothing before entering the house after working in the yard.
Daffodils – Daffodils are rapidly fading. Snap off spent blooms at the base of the stem. Allow foliage to die back 2/3rds before cutting it or tucking under other plants. Never fold or braid the foliage as that restricts nutrients to the bulbs to form buds for next year. Plant daylilies in front of daffodils to hide the dying foliage. To divide, wait until mid-June to mid-August.
Houseplants – House plants make a house attractive and comfortable. Too often pets are attracted to them and can be toxic. The following are pet friendly, easy to grow and inexpensive: African violet, Boston fern, banana, gloxinia, and phalaenopsis. Air plant and spider also purify the air. WARNING: Easter Lilies are poisonous to cats.
Trees and shrubs – Wait to cut back bush honeysuckle and early blooming spirea until after they cease blooming. They set their buds for next year on this year’s growth. (Please note that tartarian honeysuckle, Morrow’s honeysuckle, and amur honeysuckle are all invasive in Kentucky and should be removed completely.) Tulip magnolia sets its buds by July. For thick hedges top to bottom, prune at an outward angle creating a slightly wider base to allow sun to reach the bottom branches. Before trees leaf out, check for hanging broken limbs and remove.
