WEEK 1

Still lots of time to start a vegetable garden. Plant some tomatoes and squash. Remember that food gardens are exempt from watering rules.

Craneflies are common around outdoor lights. They look like giant mosquitoes but are harmless. Hang a sticky fly trap nearby if they bother you.

Huge black ants are carpenter ants. They excavate rotten hollows in trees and window frames. They do not eat fresh wood like termites, but their presence in a house indicates problems.

Is your lawn struggling? Maybe it needs nutrients. The only way to know for sure is with a soil test. Call 1-800-275-8421 for details.

WEEK 2

Time for a second fertilization for Bermuda, Zoysia, Centipede and St. Augustine lawns. To save water, don't fertilize again until early August.

To prevent lawn weeds, it's best to alternate patterns of "straight ahead," "at right angles" and "diagonally" with successive mowings, thus avoiding soil compaction.

If you've had blossom end rot on your tomatoes in other years, spray plants with calcium chloride (Stop Rot, etc.) when the fruit is marble-size.

It's normal for a cyclamen to go dormant after it blooms. Turn the pot on its side so it gets no water. When temperatures cool off in fall, put it in the brightest but coolest spot you can find indoors.

WEEK 3

Look for onion aphids on chives, garlic and onions. Use a hose to wash them from the stems.

Be gentle when harvesting vegetables. The safest way is to use a knife or scissors to clip the stem a half-inch above the vegetable. More details at xrl.us/HARVEST

Divide Siberian iris after they bloom. Crowded clumps may need dividing every couple of years or else flower production will diminish.

Fertilize water lilies in your backyard pond, using special fertilizer tablets inserted in the pot. Feed them every three to four weeks in summer.

WEEK 4

Control mint and lemon balm plants now, before they crowd out everything nearby. Their pleasant leaf fragrance is matched by their aggressive nature.

Pick and enjoy your backyard raspberries. You don't have raspberries? Make a note to plant a few of this problem-free fruit next September.

Tie up the rambling vines of Confederate jasmine, Carolina jessamine, and 'Lady Banks' rose. A little maintenance now makes a lot of difference to their neat appearance. Clip dahlia flowers as they fade to get blooms through summer.