May always finds me scrambling to squeeze everything I need and want to do at this time of year into one short month. The biggest push me--pull me is dividing my "leisure" time between nature activities and the garden. Birding and wildflower hiking is never better than in May, which is exactly the time I need to be tending my seedling farm and preparing the deck garden for all the vegetables and fruit plants that will grow in containers there.

This year I'm going to attempt to grow Tristar strawberries, an everbearing variety, in a large half-wine barrel given to me by neighbors who spend most of their year living in Long Island next to a large commercial vineyard. It's supposed to be easy to grow strawberries?? Our fields are also chock full of wild strawberries. Last June they were on the verge of perfection when seven inches of rain fell. When the deluge ended, I went out in mud boots and discovered they had all turned to a bland strawberry mush!

My Concord grapes did not come through the winter too well. The loads of April snow from two huge snowstorms came tumbling off our metal roof and not only sheared our second-floor balcony off the house but also crashed our fledgling grape arbor. Fortunately the arbor was new and didn't involve the loss of vines in their prime. Now we know where not to put the arbor.

New blueberry plants are coming any day now as well. Then there's all the squashes, cucumbers, tomatoes, and peppers I'm growing in the furnace room under lights. And Ken and I are planning other outdoor yard and garden improvements, though we won't be planting anything other than what's on the deck. Who can beat the incredible display of wildflowers that bloom in our fields from June until October? All my gardening effort goes into food production and I let Mother Nature provide the flower show.

And how do you manage everything there is to do outdoors in May... and get your regular work done? If you have strategies, please share them by posting a comment.