Most House Plants will be in their growing phase as will be pests and diseases. Pinch multi branched plants to make these look compact. Look out for diseases such as leaf spot, powdery mildew, and rust. All gardeners should fertilize heat-resistant flowers and foliage such as coleus, hibiscus, Melampodium, Pentas, Plumbago, and  Zinnias. It’s your last chance to repot, replenish the top soil and fertilize other house plants. Go through your plants. COMBINE PLANTS AND DECLUTTER. Do plant cuttings of any ground covers, philodendrons, coleus , jade, etc before it gets too warm. Spray NPK 20:20:20 once a week. Take out as much as you can in a pinch, between your thumb and index finger, and add it to a litre of water. Water regularly and look out for pests and diseases. Turn the soil of the plants at least once in two weeks. Add any organic manure and water thoroughly. 

All fruit trees should be provided with deep basins for irrigation during the hot summer months ahead. 

Move indoor plants away from the draft of air conditioners, coolers and fans. Be careful of sunning the indoor plants in the midday sun. Its time to put the plants out after sundown, leave them out the entire night and let them get the gentle morning sunshine, And be sure to bring the plants in before the burning heat of the mid-day sun. This is also a good time of the year to add to your indoor plant collection since the nurseries are well stocked with them this time of the year. The plants will need a little more watering than they did in the summer but please stick to the GOLDEN RULE OF WATERING PLANTS. Touch the soil with your finger. If it feels dry then drench the soil so water comes out of the drainage hole at the bottom. Best to water with a sprinkler, so the plants feel its raining on them. If you are in doubt as to whether the soil is wet or dry, then wait another day before you are completely sure and only then water. Spray the plants everyday. Wipe the leaves gently with a soft cotton cloth or sponge, while supporting the leaves with the palm of your hand. One can create and INDOOR GARDEN JUNGLE. Keep the humidity up round the plant and make sure plants are kept away from the draft of ACs or fan. 

Roses: Prune the long branches and remove root suckers. 

Chrysanthemums should be transplanted from 4’ pots to 6’ pots. Pinch the chrysanthemums and water regularly. 

There is still time to plant Caladium and Cana. Look out for Alocasia and Elephant ears growing at friends and neighbours and beg, borrow or steal a small root or two. Caladium Easter lilies too are hardy and the leaves look fresh all the way upto winter. For a garden, one can mix-and-match of spider lilies and zephyr lilies (also called rain lilies for their spectacular show of flowers during the rains), ginger lilies, elephant’s ears, bird of paradise and canna. For a potted version, plants that lend well to a container can be handpicked, such as begonias, blood lily also called football lily, amaryllis, and tuberose.. Whether growing in a ground garden or pots, abundance works from the aesthetic point of view. It is ideal to grow a few or more bulbs together; it puts on a much more pleasing spectacle than lone warriors growing out of the soil. When choosing a bulb, less marks and injuries, big size and more weight is the key. An injured bulb has more chances of rotting in the soil, while a big size indicates a mature bulb and ensures more flowers. Winter bulbs would have all finished flowering by now. Some varieties of winter bulbs like Lilliums are hard to keep in Delhi for the next season, unless you can send them to a home in the mountains, where they will happily dormant and sprout the next season. 

Spinach, Coriander can be grown. Bittergourd, Bottlegourd, Tinda, Cucumber,Frenchbeans, Okra and Watermelon seedlings can be sown this month. Also capsicum saplings can be planted. Ginger and Haldi can be grown in ridges .

Winter season flower beds should be cleaned and made ready for the summer flowers. Saplings for summer flowers can be planted. Since I am a big fan of flowers that grow easily and last the longest, please grow Sada Bahar and portulaca. Can also sow Cosmos, Gallardia. Gompherna. Kochia. Zinnia.

Move Parsley, Celery and Rocket in a shaded area for these to last longer. The only herbs that do well in the Delhi summer are varieties of Basil, Tulsi ( which is also called Holy Basil) Chives and Rosemary. Its best to grow Tulsi and Basil in big open mouth pots. So the seeds fall in the soil and sprout in the monsoon. You will never be short of any plants.

Feed the lawn with 1 kg of Neem khali and half kg of bonemeal for 12’x12’ lawn. A great time to take care of any bald patches or to plant new grass. If you have bald patches, loosen the soil, and take some grass roots out of the overgrown edges of the lawn. Plant it with a 2’ gap and watch the bald patch fill out in no time. Feed it with neemkhali and bonemeal and/or finely crushed Okhla khaad or Sieved patti khaad. Water and mow regularly. A note of caution: do not leave an open pipe on the lawn. Always sprinkle. An open pipe will nourish the deep rooted dreaded motha and other weeds and will also make the grass grow needlessly long. Trim the hedges once in 2 weeks and always err on the side of cutting less than more. It prevents the plants from looking beheaded, and leads to a fuller, greener plant growth. Maalis know only how to behead heartlessly.. and it’s the worse thing to do specially in the summer. It takes at least a couple of years for the plants to grow back. 

 

Please move your succulents in the semi shade as the strong summer sun is sure to discolor these. There is still time to multiply succulents. Divide by root or by cuttings, these will all grow. The sun is getting warm so water once a week. Please water from below and not from the top of the succulents as it leads to rot.