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The main priority at the beginning of May is to apply shading to ensure that no strong sunshine reaches tender cuttings or young seedlings because they will shrivel up in no time at all. Check daily, several times if possible, and apply temporary shading with shade netting or use newspapers and old net curtains. Remember to remove it though when the sun disappears again! As time progresses and the sunshine gets stronger the permanent shading (coolglass e.g.) needs to be applied. However, the exact timing will vary from year to year - last year I still did not put on any coolglass on my small greenhouses or indeed put up the green net shading in the larger one until mid May as we were rather unfortunately devoid of sunshine in Scarborough last Spring. This after we shared with the rest of Great Britain in suffering a very dull April with the greatest rainfall for years!! Trust we'll fare better in 2003!!
The phenomenon we are suffering with at the East Coast is locally known as 'sea fret' and is mighty annoying especially when your relatives on the other side of the North Sea are basking in a heatwave!!
Our beloved fuchsias are not keen on being baked in strong sunshine though, they much prefer dappled shade and especially to the roots.
The thin plastic pots provide very little protection from the strong sun rays and roots literally can get cooked. A good way to avoid this is to heel one pot into another pot a size or two larger with the void between the pots filled with moist sand.
Here in England the growing season is well on it's way now and the warm dry days will bring new problems to deal with. The message in previous months was very much to take care NOT to splash water about needlessly, as cold and wet is such a killer, now the plea is to do just that, damp down the gravel benches and/or the floor of your greenhouse well, several times on really hot days if possible, to ensure a more ambient temperature for fuchsias, couple this with good ventilation to keep a boyant air circulation. Yes, the dry summers of the last few years have brought an unwelcome upsurge in the appearance of the red spider mite, which thrives in hot dry conditions and can so easily get a damaging strong hold before it is noticed. (See also articles for 'Gremlins in the Greenhouse')
If you have taken some early cuttings or bought some in, pot them on as soon as the roots fill the pots. Potting on a little at a time gives the plantlets a continuous boost of nutrients in the fresh compost and keeps the growth rate going nicely.
Those enthusiast who are dedicated to growing for showing have some important jobs to see to now to get their plants in tip-top condition and full flower for their shows, like giving the plants a quarter turn every other day to obtain an evenly balanced shape. To ensure no pots are missed out insert a label in each pot and check that they are all facing the same way. Space your plants out to get some airflow around them. Continue your training programme - remembering to always pinch for shape, even if you are growing only for your own pleasure e.g. a few baskets to adorn your porch or a few tubs on the patio it is still good practise to stop your plants for shape rather than rigorously going for stopping at one or two pairs of leaves as often recommended. Each stopping will increase the size of your plant considerably, but it also delays flowering by about 7 -12 weeks, so time to apply that last stop, unless growing for autumn shows! (More detailed information about on stopping and stopping times)
When your plants have been potted on for the last time this season (check your show schedule to ensure your intended show plants are indeed in the correct size pots) they will need supplementary feeding as normal potting compost only contains enough food for 3 to 6 weeks. Remember that, depending on which brand you use, especially the cheaper multi-purpose composts don't contain much by way of nourishment, though other composts might on the other hand contain slow-release fertiliser and sustain growth for a much longer period.
Late Spring/early Summer can still be a tricky time as far as the weather is concerned. The sunshine can be very strong and raise day time temperatures dramatically, especially in a small greenhouse, however in contrast we usually also still experience very cold nights around this time. So, having brought out your plants from their winter dormancy keep a good eye on the weather forecasts and take protective measures when late frosts are forecast so you don't loose your plants now!!
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