You don’t have to have a green thumb to be a successful gardener. Plant just about any type of vegetable or flower in May for great summer results.

Plant a herb garden: Buying herbs in the supermarket can be expensive. The cost of cut basil can cost more than a basil plant. Plant your favorite herbs in your garden and enjoy their fresh taste during spring and summer. Dry them and use them throughout the year. This is your chance to experiment with herbs while you cook. Plant coriander, dill, parsley, thyme, mint, basil, sage, fennel, and oregano.

Plant flowers for long-lasting color: Many of the most beautiful flowers only last one season. Now is the time to plant these annuals so you can enjoy them for as long as possible. Plant begonia, chrysanthemum, geranium, calendula, petunia and verbena. Your garden center will have many more varieties to choose from. Do you want something more permanent? Perennials including Russian sage, asters, purple coneflower, yarrow, peonies, blanket flowers, Siberian irises, daffodils, pincushion flowers, African daisy, delphinium, fuchsia, and lavender.

Solve pest problems naturally: One of the benefits of planting your own garden is the ability to keep it chemical free. Instead of putting harmful chemicals in your garden to keep insects away, try natural and safe options. Ladybugs can control aphid outbreaks. Buy them from your local nursery and release them after dark so you won’t be tempted to fly into your neighbor’s garden. To prevent snails and slugs from eating the plants, place crushed eggshells around the plants. Snails will not step on them.

Time to prune the bushes: Prune (thin and shaped) spring-blooming shrubs as soon as the flowers are finished.

Thin fruit trees: Fruit trees produce more fruit than they can ripen. Some of the immature fruits will fall naturally during May. Thin the remaining smaller fruit from the branches. That way, the strongest fruit will grow longer and tastier, and the smallest fruit will not weigh on the tree branches.

Cut down your lawn: The water needed to keep medium-sized lawns green accounts for about 32 percent of outdoor water use. With increasing water rates, consider reducing the size of your lawn. Drought-tolerant, low-maintenance groundcover such as lantana and ornamental grasses, including fountain grass and deer grass, can easily fill a spot where grass used to grow.

Mulching issues:Add a two to three inch layer of mulch in flower and vegetable beds and around trees and shrubs. Make sure that the mulch does not touch the stems of the plants or the trunks of the trees. Mulch maintains weeds, retains moisture, and prevents disease.