May is the most spring month. Folk calendar for the month of May

Herbalist, light bloomer, rose flower, pollen, all these are the names of the fifth month of the year. The month of May is last month spring. The month when all living things come to life and bloom. The month of May was named after the Greek goddess of fertility, Maia.

The month of May is popularly considered unlucky. More on ancient Rus' The peasant had a lot of work, so May was considered not suitable for weddings and matchmaking. There are even proverbs: “Getting married in May means toiling for a century.” “Whoever is born in May will miss the whole century.” Plutarch also wrote that “Romans do not marry in May, but wait for June”

May has its own signs:

May is cold - a grain-bearing year.
If it rains in May, so will the rye.
There are two cold periods in May: when the bird cherry blossoms and when the oak blossoms.
Fogs in May promise fertility, thunderstorms - abundance, hail - a hail-blasting summer.
The best honey is May honey. In May, milk is the most healing. In May, birch sap is collected. The first spring rain wets the hair so that it grows as quickly as May grass.
A good start to May can turn into a cold month at the end of the month: “To plow in shirtsleeves, to sow in fur coats.” If the birch tree opens its first leaf before the alder, the summer will be dry. If it's alder, then it's rainy. A lot of May beetles - for the millet harvest.
When the birch leaves in front of the alder, the summer will be dry; if the alder is in front - wet.

The month of May is rich in holidays.

1st of May- The day of the worker's solidarity. That’s what it’s called now, but we remember that throughout the history of its existence, the name of the holiday has changed several times. One of the last is Spring and Labor Day. The memory is still fresh when everyone took to the streets on May 1, walked in orderly columns with portraits and slogans, shouting “Hurray.” We were children then, and did not quite understand the meaning of this holiday, but we were incredibly happy from the general atmosphere of the holiday! What about lollipops and cotton candy? Once upon a time, these sweets were a luxury and were sold only in holidays! IN Soviet time May 1 was the main public holiday.

May 3, Since 1993, World Press Freedom Day has been celebrated. It all started in Africa, where the Windhoek Declaration was adopted. It called on governments around the world to ensure freedom of the press. The holiday idea is good, but, alas, impossible. All media are dependent, only to varying degrees and on different leaders, circumstances, etc. Free information platform, perhaps, only the Internet. Now here's who's at it!

May 3 The day of the sun is also celebrated. The Sun is the closest star to us. The Earth, as we know, revolves around the Sun. We need the sun. This is a powerful source of cosmic energy; without its light we could not live. Planet Earth was formed near the sun and life on it also arose largely thanks to it.

This holiday was decided to create a European branch international society solar energy, in order to attract public attention to the possibilities of using renewable energy sources.

5 May this year we will celebrate the great bright holiday of Easter, main holiday Orthodox calendar. Easter does not have a fixed date. The celebration begins on the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs after the day spring equinox. If the full moon falls on Saturday or Sunday, then Easter is celebrated on the following Sunday. Easter usually falls on March 22/April 4 to April 25/May 8.

They say that Easter night is the most silent and quiet night of the year. On Saturday, on the eve of the bright Resurrection of Christ in Jerusalem, the Holy Fire descends on the Holy Sepulcher of the Lord. This obvious miracle is broadcast on all channels and many wait with bated breath for this miracle every year. It is repeated for many centuries and is a living fulfillment of the Savior’s promise given to His disciples after the Resurrection: “And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

On the third day after the burial, several women went to the tomb to bring spices intended for the body of Jesus. The huge stone that blocked the entrance to the tomb was rolled away. The coffin was empty. The Angel of the Lord sat on this stone and said: “ Do not be afraid, for I know what you are looking for: Jesus crucified. He's not here. He has risen as he said." With fear and joy, the women hastened to tell the Apostles about what they had seen. “And behold, Jesus met them and said: Rejoice! And they came, grabbed His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus says to them: Do not be afraid; go, tell my brothers, so that they go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

Easter ends on the holiday Lent. Therefore, we will set the tables, treat ourselves to delicious bread, sweet dishes with cottage cheese and raisins, lit in the church. Before Easter we clean up the house and outside. On Easter, a person must throw away all bad thoughts, forget evil and resentment. Good traditions, isn't it?!

I will definitely write about Easter in more detail in another article. In the meantime, next May holiday- Day of St. George the Victorious, which is celebrated the 6th of May. Educated, brave, handsome, he achieved high military ranks and was one of those close to the emperor. But George was burdened by his position under Diocletian, the persecutor of Christians. George called on Diocletian to stop the cruel torture of Christians. The angry emperor ordered George to be subjected to various tortures. First, he was thrown into prison, where his feet were put in stocks and his chest was pressed with a heavy stone. George endured suffering steadfastly and thanked God.

Diocletian tried to convince George to renounce Christianity, but his attempts were in vain. Then the courageous warrior was tied to a wheel and quartered, then his head was cut off with a sword. Thus the holy sufferer departed to Christ in Nicomedia in 303.

May 7 Radio Day is celebrated in Russia. Today, when we get into a personal car, we cannot imagine our life without a radio. We tune the receiver to our favorite radio wave - and listen to cool music, not always good news, announcements of upcoming events. Plus, competitions entertainment programs... Human thoughts and souls unite on radio waves!

9th May Russia celebrates Victory Day in the Great Patriotic War. This holiday is worthy of special respect and attention, so we will talk about it separately.

Let me just remind you that on May 8, 1945, in the suburbs of Berlin, an act of unconditional and complete surrender of the Wehrmacht was signed. On May 9, 1945, at 2 a.m. Moscow time, Soviet radio announced the surrender of Germany.

May 14 - Radonitsa is celebrated, the day of special remembrance of the dead, the first after Easter. It is on Radonitsa that it is customary to visit the cemetery, and not, as most people do, on Easter. There is a custom of celebrating Easter at the graves of the departed. Easter dishes are brought there. There a funeral meal is served and part of the food is given to the poor to commemorate the soul.

May 14- a holiday for many! Freelancer's Day. In 2005, on this day, a freelance exchange was created in our country - the Free-lance portal. Then other venues appeared, but the first one was organized on May 14th. A freelancer is a person who works remotely. He can choose his own customers and sets his own work schedule. By the way, this word first appeared in Walter Scott’s novel “Ivanhoe.” In the Middle Ages, mercenary soldiers had this nickname. Every year there are more and more freelancers, this is facilitated by the increasing availability of the Internet.

May 15 International Family Day. The holiday was created to attract public attention to family problems, which are increasing every day.

May 27 Library Day. Statistics show that people are visiting libraries less and less often. Does this mean that people are reading less? Or is it just that now all books can be read without leaving the sofa, on the computer? How do you think?

An international anti-smoking campaign is held all over the world on this day. The holiday was established by WHO in 1988. Over the past 20 years, the number of smokers has increased. At the same time, prices for tobacco products in Russia remain the lowest. It is cheaper to buy a whole block of cigarettes than one good book.

Time of nightingales and thunderstorms May is the last month of spring, the threshold of summer.

May is rich in signs and superstitions that allowed our ancestors to find out what the coming summer would be like. For example, there is still a belief that if the beginning of May is warm, then cold weather should be expected at the end of the month, and vice versa.

To appease the coming summer, to bring real warmth closer, housewives made sure to bake pies in the first days of May, “treat the summer” so that the harvest would be good and no natural disasters would happen.

The upcoming summer weather was also determined by the flowering of bird cherry trees. Everyone knows that the traditional May cold occurs during its flowering period. But few people know that the earlier the bird cherry blossoms, the hotter the summer will be. So if you suddenly see flowers on a bird cherry tree at the very beginning of May, get ready for the heat.

However, in spite of everything, May is a capricious month, and at the beginning of May you can still easily “meet” late frosts. In this case, we noticed the number of frosts - if on May 5th - we should expect at least 40 more cold mornings throughout the summer.

But if the frost fell on May 6 and later, they expected a warm and gentle autumn. Most often, the first thunderstorms occur in May.

And where there is a thunderstorm, there is, of course, rain, and, as a result, a rainbow. A tall and steep May rainbow promised good weather soon, while a low and flat one made one think about imminent bad weather. Closer to mid-May, on the 11th, they began collecting birch sap.

It was believed that this sap, which absorbed the power of the tree, could cure many diseases. However, you had to collect it correctly, and first of all, you need to apologize to the birch tree from which you want to take sap. Otherwise, her gift will not have any healing power.

Our ancestors did this:

On May 12, at noon, after drinking the magic juice, they went out onto the road to expose their faces to the warm wind. This little ritual promised the person who performed it health for the whole year ahead.

May is the nightingale month. Who doesn’t love this wonderful gentle singing, followed by real warmth! Hearing the nightingale before the cuckoo is considered a good omen: the year promises to be successful in terms of romantic relationships.

May 23 was revered as “Earth Day”, a land holiday. All work was stopped so that there was an opportunity to go into the forest and collect there medicinal herbs- it was believed that it was on May 23 that they possessed special, magical powers.

The weather indicator for the whole summer is Mokea Day, May 24th. If Mokey is rainy, then so be the summer. If it’s cloudless, wait for the hot sun all three summer months. Among the many interesting signs We can highlight one more, very accurate one.

According to it, in May there are two real periods of cold weather - when the bird cherry blossoms and when the oak blooms its leaves. So, when you see an oak tree awakening from sleep, be prepared for cold weather. Despite the fact that May can often be cold and windy, this month remains a favorite of many. After all, immediately after it comes the sunny, long-awaited summer.

In May, astrologers note many upcoming changes. The most important of them is the fateful transition of Uranus from the Sign of Aries to the Sign of Taurus on May 15. This is an incredible event, since this planet stayed in Aries for about a year. You shouldn’t think that this will last long, because Uranus will go retrograde in the summer and return to the Sign of Aries in the spring or winter.

Taurus will not greatly, but quite noticeably weaken the planet. This means that a period of emotional freedom, but mental stagnation, will begin. Conclusion - start thinking about vacation. The influence of the planets will not be lightning fast, not spontaneous, but very noticeable already from the 15th. On May 17, Mars will move into the Sign of Aquarius, but will remain as strong as possible. On the 19th, Venus will become moderately active due to its move into Cancer.

This will increase the overall energy reserves of each person. On May 15, Mercury will be in Taurus, but will remain moderate in strength. As for the Sun, it will also remain stable, despite the standard transition to Gemini on the 21st. The moon will be strong from May 7 to May 19, and will experience weakness the rest of the time.

Aries

Aries will be able to get rid of illnesses and establish harmony in May. This will be a very important time for those of you who know how to pull yourself together. Visits to doctors will be very productive. This is especially true for dentists. This will be a great time for diets, for giving up bad habits. This is all a consequence of the strengthening of Venus, which gives you self-confidence, but is generally negative towards you. Your intuition may completely disappear, and you may become very susceptible to fatigue. Your incontinence will also play a cruel joke on your luck.

Taurus

Taurus needs to pay attention to the weakness of the Moon at the beginning and end of May. This situation can only mean one thing for you - you should not plan important things for these periods. In mid-May, your productivity will be increased. Life principles leave it alone - you won't have to change anything. Uranus, which will weaken on May 15, will make you feel the negative energy of this world. You will become a little less nervous and nervous. You will want justice, but you will not be able to find it. At least not now, but a little later.

Twins

It will be possible to fulfill the desire that is your priority in May, but only until the 15th. Of course, then you will also be capable of this, but Uranus will become weak, which will affect your fortune. The fact is that the weakening of this unusual planet entails a decrease in your communication skills. Unfortunately, you will have to solve many issues alone. Meeting new people will be much more difficult because your positive qualities will be less visible. If you are now looking for your soulmate, then the search will not bring the desired result with the same level of return. We'll have to raise it.

Cancer

Use your favorite talisman stones to normalize the energy flows around your aura. Silver jewelry will also come in handy. If you don’t have amulets, you will have to purchase them. Try to do this in the first half of May. They will help you become more secure and successful. Uranus will loosen its grip, increasing your curiosity and intelligence. The “speed” of thoughts will be slightly higher. Adoption important decisions will speed up a little. Don't be afraid of difficult tasks because your time is beginning. Be on the front line from May 15th.

a lion

Leos will have luck in their creative endeavors. This is how Uranus will influence you, because from the 15th it will weaken, expanding your horizons. Don't be shy about starting new things and looking for new hobbies. In love, this will also have a positive response - you and your partner will be able to find out if you are suitable for each other. On the other hand, Venus will become stronger on May 19th. This will result in a loss of diplomacy on your part. Life will be a little more difficult for those of you who do not know how to make concessions. Those who do not know how to spend it correctly will begin to have problems with money. Don't borrow, don't lend - it's dangerous at the end of May.

Virgo

Your main advantage is prudence. You can flare up, but you rarely go beyond what is permitted. To keep everything in its place, do not rely on luck alone. Try to remember that Uranus will not be able to support you as much as before. From May 15th, its power will decrease, so random luck will not come to you as often. Accidents will become less positive for you, so you shouldn’t count on all problems going away on their own. In mid-May, a strong Moon will allow you to double your chances of winning in any area of life. Until May 15th, Uranus will still be positive for you in every way.

And many feathered flocks sing in the sky -

The cheerful month of May rings louder than all the months!

A. K. Tolstoy

The month of May is the eve of summer, the final month of spring. If it is considered the “spring of water,” then May is the “spring of greenery.” This is the month of the first thunderstorms, renewal, green noise. May is the end of spring, the beginning of summer.

Traven is the Old Russian name for the month of May; Indeed, everything around is covered with grass, flowers, trees with greenery. The Romans called the third month of the year Maius, in honor of the goddess Maia, the mother of the god of trade Mercury.

People have a lot of different sayings and proverbs about the month of May. “May is cold - you won’t be hungry,” says one of them, “May will deceive, and will go into the forest,” echoes another, and the third narrates, “No matter how nice May is, it’s still cold.” in the month of May it is often changeable, not constant, which is why these proverbs and sayings appeared.

The average monthly temperature in Russia is 11-13 degrees Celsius; Due to frequent intrusions of arctic air, frosts in the air and on the ground are not uncommon. In some years, mainly in the first ten days, the air temperature at night dropped to minus 8-10 degrees (1952 and 1969). Sometimes, mainly in the third decade, days with air temperatures of plus 33-35 degrees are observed (in 1954, 1955, 1957, 1966, 1967 and 1972). Air temperature transition from 10 degrees Celsius to more high values usually occurs in the second five days of May. Monthly precipitation is 36-40 mm.

In the month of May, thunderstorms are a common occurrence and are often accompanied by hail showers and gusty winds.

May colds and rains are considered favorable, since cool weather prevents the proliferation of crop pests and conserves moisture. It’s not for nothing that people say: “Cold May is a harvest year.”

In the folk calendar, May 13: a warm evening and a starry, quiet night - for a windy, dry summer. Nightingale holiday - May 15th. The nightingales begin to sing. May 18 - cabbage is planted in the beds. May 22 - it’s warm, the first rains have passed, the grass is growing and the horse can be fed. May 24 is a wet day - it's like that all summer. On May 27 the Siverko blows - the summer is cold. May 31 - the last oak leaf unfurls. “The oak is getting dressed, the cattle are eating.” They continue to sow flax and plant cucumbers.

The spring trees died down and filled the earth with life-giving moisture. The best, joyful time of spring has come, when everything turns green, blooms, fills with the juices of life and has fun in nature.

The affectionate rises higher and higher, warming the earth and filling everything around with shine. Washed by warm spring rains, the grass in the meadows turned green. The velvet carpet of winter crops shines like emerald.

In the fields we are greeted by the chime of larks, the cries of rooks, and the whistling of starlings. Over the swamps with a plaintive cry “Whose are you? Whose are you?” Broad-winged lapwings hover, and long-billed lamb snipe swoop down from above. This is how they mating and conduct their spring mating games.

The month of May is popularly called the “fun” month. This month the last ones will arrive to us migratory birds: at the beginning of the month, cuckoos, nightjars, rollers, swallows, nightingales (usually at night), then quails, corncrakes, robins and, later than all, swifts and orioles. Forests, meadows and fields become much busier.

Orioles arrive to us from May 3 (1936) to May 22 (1967), females 4-7 days later. Caterpillars, including hairy ones, play an important role in the diet of this extremely cautious, brightly colored bird. The oriole willingly nests in forest belts of low density, or in light, sparse deciduous forests.

Who among you has not watched the swift flight of black swifts? They are often confused with swallows. However, in flight, swifts can be easily recognized by their characteristic sickle-shaped wings, narrower than those of swallows, and by their peculiar cry in flight - “squealing”. In terms of flight speed, swifts take first place among birds. They are currently numerous in cities, where they nest in crevices on the eaves of stone buildings.

It is known that swifts do everything in the air: they feed, collect material for the nest, and even swim. They spend almost their entire lives flying. The weak legs, with all four toes pointing forward, serve only to hold onto eaves, walls and tree trunks. On the ground, these birds are almost helpless: the wings are long and narrow, and the legs are too short and do not allow them to take off easily. The constancy of the swifts speaks for itself: they arrive and fly away at almost the same times. Our swifts appear in mid-May, when all the birds have already arrived and there are enough insects, and they fly away, as usual, in the second half of August, when a light gilding adorns the first leaves.

Black swift chicks have an unusual feature. In the event of a cold snap, when insects - the only food for these birds - disappear, the body temperature of the chicks becomes unstable and sometimes drops even to 20 degrees. The chicks fall into temporary torpor and can survive hunger for nine or even twelve days.

Why do swifts bring food to the nest less often than other birds? It turns out that the parents are not able to fly up to the nest with every midge they catch. In their mouths they have numerous glands with a sticky secretion. Birds take a mouthful of insects, cover them with saliva and fly with this lump to their nest.

At dawn, the first voices from the swamps are heard by frogs. Clouds of mosquitoes are dancing in the air. May beetles fly buzzing from birch to birch. Rooks, starlings, thrushes, woodcocks, grouse, gray partridges, ducks and other birds sit on the nests. All of them persistently incubate their eggs themselves, except for our common cuckoo, which lays its eggs in the nests of small insectivorous birds(usually white wagtails, redstarts, warblers) and the latter, willy-nilly, have to feed the foundling, which always has an enviable appetite.

It blooms on hills and slopes yellow coltsfoot, in the forest - violet-purple lungwort, yellow goose onion, golden anemone, lilac corydalis, blue scilla, dark purple dream grass, yellow rams (primrose or primrose). Blue violets are blooming, dandelions are everywhere, small rosettes of marigold are turning yellow along the gentle banks of small reservoirs and in meadows, along the banks of spring streams and in damp forest clearings the leotard is blooming - the yellow balls of its flowers stand out brightly in the spring forest. White strawberry flowers appeared in the dry clearings on the sunny side, and everyone’s favorite forest bells, lilies of the valley, with a delicate but strong aroma, began to bloom. Lily of the valley is very good for bouquets, and is used in medicine in the treatment of heart diseases, and in perfumery for making original perfumes. It should be noted that trade in all types of wild plants is prohibited in our republic; lungwort, anemone, swimwort, spring adonis and a number of other plants, which will be discussed later, are subject to full protection throughout the territory.

“The lily of the valley is blooming” - for many people, the blooming lily of the valley is spring. Its graceful white flowers, like pearls, can be found under shady trees, in ravines, on the edges of roads. Take care of the lily of the valley! Do not pull it out by the roots, which will contain buds for flowering next year.

The buds on the trees burst, oily, fragrant leaves unfurled, filling the spring air with their aroma. The white-trunked birches, aspens, maples, alders, poplars, lindens, elms, ash trees turned green, and the mighty oaks only slightly sprinkled their carved leaves. And green smoke hung in the forests, parks and gardens. Trees and shrubs become covered with leaves especially quickly after an early May thunderstorm with warm rain. There is a popular belief: it is expected dry summer, if the birch becomes pubescent before the maple, and if it’s a maple, then it’s wet.

The earliest appearance of birch leaves in Kazan was observed on April 11 (1975) and the latest on May 17 (1965). By the beginning of greening of the warty birch, one can judge the characteristics of the temperature regime. The sooner leaves appear on a birch tree, the more heat can be expected during the period of plant growth and development.

And after the leaves unfold, one can judge how the leafing of most tree species began, how the fruit buds are opening in a number of varieties of pears, apple trees, plums and cherries.

After the birch greens up, usually in one or two days, some types of poplars (sweet, sedge and others), ash-leaved maple, and after another three to four days - Norway maple, the best spring honey plant, bloom.

Golden currants and shadberry are blooming in the gardens, and common lilac is blooming.

A spicy aroma wafts through the forest from the blooming bird cherry. Its flowering usually coincides with cold weather.. How beautiful she is in a snow-white outfit! And she gets a lot from soulless people who don’t value beauty and aroma, who are ready to break off all the bird cherry trees. But this causes great harm to the tree. Following the bird cherry, lilac blooms, apple and pear trees are dressed in white, then rowan is dressed in cream inflorescences. The sweet scent of flowers hangs in the air.

By the time the bird cherry blossoms, the cherry blossoms begin to bloom, and it’s time to plant potatoes.

In the forest thickets you can hear the melodious, perky whistles of finches, the musical melodies of a song thrush, the flute trills of a chiffchaff, and the loud voice of a cuckoo. The short and gentle trill of the Robin - a graceful red-breasted bird - is heard. Warblers and redstarts are singing, and the nightingale's singing can be heard from the bushes all night. The forest rings with bird songs from morning to morning. The most unsurpassed soloist is the nightingale. A small, sparrow-sized, simple grayish-brown bird with large black eyes, and how it sings, how many unique “knees” there are in its song. The “knees” of the nightingale’s song are composed of “strophes” in certain combinations. You can listen to the wonderful songs of the nightingales endlessly, how much joy they bring to people!

“The height of nightingale singing usually occurs in mid-May, when the leaves on the bushes unfurl; They sing in the thicket of branches.

The whole forest listens to the nightingale's singing. Like the first violin in an orchestra, so the voice of a nightingale leads in a forest choir. Its crystal clear trill is touching and vibrant. The people noticed: “The nightingale sings when it can drink dew from a birch leaf,” which means that the birch tree has put out a leaf, and “The nightingale began to sing in mid-May - spring will come together.” The nightingale begins to sing a week or two after arrival. The average start date for nightingale concerts, according to our phenologists, is May 11.

Nightingales sometimes sing during daylight hours, falling silent for a short time only in the middle of the day. Sometimes this inconspicuous and rather cautious bird sings so selflessly that while singing it forgets about danger. You can come almost close to her and see the nightingale’s characteristic pose at this moment - drooping wings and a slightly hunched back.

Kursk and Kyiv nightingales have long been famous for their art of singing, which have up to 40 “knees” in their songs - characteristic whistling, clicking and rumbling sounds, either gently fading, or gaining extraordinary purity and strength of sound. It is unlikely that there is another bird on the whole earth that can sing as loudly and beautifully as our nightingale sings.

Nightingales are widespread throughout our land, where there are gardens, groves, fields and water. Favorite places The nightingale's habitats are thickets of bushes in damp forest ravines in deciduous forest, parks, gardens and overgrown cemeteries. The nightingale especially likes to nest near water. And he never lives in hollows. The nightingale places its nest on the ground in a depression in the soil at the roots of a bush, covers the nest on the sides with a layer of leaves, and hides it from human eyes. And already at the end of the month of May - beginning of June, you can see in the nest four to six medium-sized olive-brown eggs with absolutely no pattern. Until mid-June you can still hear the nightingale singing, but as soon as its chicks hatch, there is no time left for songs; they must be fed with click beetles, leaf beetles, weevils, as well as caterpillars, flies and spiders - forestry pests.

In autumn, when the nightingale family wanders along the river floodplains and forest edges, they sometimes have to feed on berries and various seeds.

It is no coincidence, apparently, that from time immemorial poets have composed poems about the nightingale, and composers have composed music. It is enough to recall the famous Russian composer A. A. Alyabyev, the author of the world famous romance “The Nightingale”, poets N. A. Nekrasov, A. K. Tolstoy, A. A. Fet and others.

Only male birds sing, especially during the nesting period, in order to announce to the entire area that a nesting site has already been chosen. In addition to regular singing, many birds have peculiar “cries” that express the bird’s mood - alarm, calling, etc.

Of the thrushes, in addition to the warbler, we have the black one (also a wonderful warbler), the white-browed thrush, the fieldfare and the mistletoe.

In the second half of May, capercaillie and grouse currents stop. And as soon as the evening dawn fades, red-brown woodcocks continue to “pull” over the tops of small forests. On the fly, they make characteristic “grunting” and “tutsing” noises. This wood sandpiper flies smoothly, lowering its head with a long beak and calmly working with its rounded wings. Hunting for woodcock in the spring is the most beautiful, most poetic of all hunts. In the works of L. N. Tolstoy, I. S. Turgenev and S. T. Aksakov, many beautiful pages are devoted to it. In the past, we have repeatedly and successfully hunted woodcock in the spring very close to the city, in the so-called Bishop's Forest.

A moose cow has one or two large-headed, long-legged calves. Bears eat off after hibernation. Little bear cubs wander through the forest together with their mother. Juveniles appear in foxes (usually 4-8 blind cubs), beavers (3-4 sighted cubs), forest polecats, and stoats.

It's a busy time for collective farmers to sow and plant potatoes. Usually in the first half of May, sowing of early spring crops is completed: wheat, barley, oats, peas, annual grasses, sugar and fodder beets, then potatoes are planted, corn is sowed, and cereal crops are sowed: buckwheat and millet. All this must be done in a short time, at the earliest best time and with high quality. It’s not without reason that they say: “If you’re an hour late in the spring, you won’t be able to make it up in a year,” “If you miss deadlines, you’ll lose bread,” and “If you sow in bad weather, you’ll produce more.”

The first dew is falling. The collection of the first spring mushrooms - morels and strings - continues in the forests; they are tasty and nutritious. The spruce is blooming. Nettles, garden herbs, and sorrel are growing. Sorrel is a perennial plant. Garden sorrel is used for food; It grows in meadows in river floodplains, as well as in dry meadows. Pleasant to the taste, contains vitamin C and carotene. Young leaves and stems are eaten. They are usually collected before flowering. It is used to prepare cabbage soup, sauces for meat dishes, filling for pies. They also eat it raw and add it to salads.

The traditional “month of forest and garden” is underway. Every year the planting of forests and gardens is growing more and more. But still, we still have very few forests - they occupy only 15.6% of the territory of the republic. People say: “If there is a lot of forest, don’t destroy it, if there is not enough forest, take care of it; if there is no forest, plant it,” “It takes five minutes to destroy a tree, but it will take years to grow it.”

Amateur fishermen catch fish with summer fishing rods. Pike is caught with live bait, with worms - ide, roach, perch. Experienced fishermen have an old sign: when the birch tree turns green, the spawning of perch and small bream begins; the bird cherry blossoms - the medium-sized bream spawns, and then the largest one. Pike perch, roach, and gudgeon spawn. Catfish lay eggs during rosehip flowering, and ide - when birch buds swell.

Red forest ants, who are forest nurses, provide very valuable help to our green friend. It is known, for example, that only one ant family destroys several thousand harmful insects during the day. It has been noticed that trees and shrubs grow better around anthills, the grass is juicier, and the flowers are brighter. Now all anthills in our republic have been registered and artificial resettlement of ants is being carried out in those forests where they did not exist, the so-called “Operation Ant”. Ruining anthills and collecting ant larvae is considered a kind of poaching.

The month of May is the end of spring, the threshold of summer. According to the calendar, spring ends with the last May leaf. And the people have their own sign: spring ends when the wild rose hips bloom.

The great writer and hunter Mikhail Prishvin called the wonderful, quickly passing time of the year between the snow and the first greenery “naked spring.”

Folk signs about the weather and sayings: Rain in May raises the grain. Spring is red with flowers, and autumn with sheaves. Whoever does not try in the spring will miss the harvest in the fall.

April with water, May with grass. The finch is drinking - it will rain.

March is dry, but May is wet - there will be porridge and loaf.

The swallow has arrived - soon the thunder will thunder.

The birch tree changed its winter hairstyle - the warmth has settled.

Jackdaws fly in flocks - to the rain.

If the lark is not heard from dawn, it will rain.

Cranes scream - it means rain.

A decrease in the river means rain, a gain means good weather.

The sandpiper leaves the swamp and flies across the field - to clear weather.

It's the month of May, give the horse some hay, and climb onto the stove yourself.

In the spring, whatever the river sheds, you won’t see a drop; in the fall it will be sifted with chintz, and you can even scoop up the water with a bucket.

The leaf on the tree is full, so you must sow it fully.

Ay, ay, the month of May is both warm and cold.

May decorates the forests, summer invites you to visit.

The May frost will not squeeze out tears.

There are two cold periods in May: when the bird cherry blossoms and when the oak blossoms.

Before a thunderstorm, the forest becomes quiet.

If the rain cloud makes noise, there will be hail.

If thunder booms continuously, there will be hail.

A hail storm is followed by cold weather.

In the cold spring there is a hail-damaging summer.

May dew is better than oats for horses.

May grass feeds the hungry.

A beautiful and never unforgettable time for the May renewal of nature.

May is the month of inconstancy, the month that connects the hot and cold seasons. May, as a rule, is rich in warmth, but poor in precipitation, because the meltwater has already dried up. This month is considered the shortest and busiest for gardeners. Short not because of the number of days, but because they fly by too quickly.

There are a lot of things to do in the garden and vegetable garden, and all of them are urgent: sowing and planting, watering and fertilizing, loosening and mulching the soil, weeding and thinning seedlings, spraying against pests and diseases.

Late, return frosts at the end of May or even at the beginning of June are a threat to the entire harvest. Unopened buds can withstand frosts down to -8 degrees, but those that have blossomed only down to -3 degrees. Blooming flowers can die at -1.5 degrees, and ovaries even at -1 degree. Fruits from ovaries damaged by frost will be non-standard. Prepare for spring frosts in advance. Prepare smoke piles or bombs. During frosts, the garden becomes smoky in the second half of the night and for an hour and a half after sunrise. Before freezing, cover the plants with lutrasil or other material, place paper or dry rags under plastic wrap. Place containers of water under trees and bushes. The planted seedlings can be covered with film, paper caps, matting, mats, burlap, sawdust or a tent made of spruce branches. Early potato seedlings are covered with soil, covering the tops.

Plantings and transplants

At the beginning of the month, it is necessary to finish sowing root vegetable crops, onions (including planting onion sets), planting and replanting garden plants. At the beginning of May, plant potatoes, in the middle - plant seedlings of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants in a film greenhouse. And at the end of the month - sowing all pumpkin crops and planting in open ground seedlings of heat-loving plants - both vegetable and ornamental.

By the end of the month, you need to plant white and red cabbage of late-ripening varieties, and then mid-ripening ones, in open ground. And at the most last numbers May plant seedlings of tomatoes, physalis, corn, basil, and cucumbers in the garden, preferably under temporary shelter. Two-week-old mini-cucumber seedlings grown to two cotyledon leaves in a box with sawdust take root well. Mature compost or humus can be scattered around young plants - this will help them take root.

Tomatoes in film greenhouses

love tomatoes wet soil and dry air: relative humidity should not exceed 60-70 percent. Otherwise, the plants become infected with brown spot and the flowers begin to fall off. Tomatoes are not afraid of drafts, so they can be ventilated in greenhouses by opening the film on both ends.

Crop care

After rain or watering, you should shallowly, only 1-2 centimeters, loosen the soil between the rows of vegetable crops. This will help the sprouts emerge from the ground as quickly as possible. It is a good idea to mulch the green rows with a one-centimeter layer of sifted compost so that the soil does not dry out. Shoots that are too dense can be thinned out immediately.

How to water

Regular watering, even at the end of May and in dry weather, is only necessary for some vegetable plants. For example, radishes must be watered at least every other day, otherwise the root crops will be small and woody. And on hot days, even in humid weather, cabbage would benefit from a refreshing shower with cold water (sprinkling). Loves moisture and winter garlic. Its roots are shallow, so if a layer of soil of 12-15 centimeters dries out, the leaves of the plants will immediately begin to turn yellow.

In May, cabbage is constantly and abundantly watered. It is useful to combine watering with organic and mineral fertilizing.

Cucumbers in a film greenhouse are watered with warm water until sunny days in the morning or evening. In hot weather, cucumbers with their shallow root system need watering every other day. And 7-8 days after the next watering or fertilizing, add mulch from fresh soil, compost or humus (1:1) to the roots of the plants. Ventilate the cucumber greenhouse carefully, avoiding drafts that are harmful to cucumbers.

For tomatoes, peppers and eggplants, the mode is different. Until the fruits set on the first cluster, the tomatoes are watered after 5-7 days, but abundantly, moistening the soil to a depth of 30-35 centimeters. The next day, the ground is loosened and the bushes are mounded low. After two such events - mulching with half-rotted compost. Loosening is no longer necessary. Peppers and eggplants are watered after 3-4 days, the soil around the plants is loosened shallowly, not hilled up, and mulched only once - shortly after planting.

Mulching the soil

Mulch the ground under the gooseberry and currant bushes as soon as the threat of severe night frosts disappears. Forest crops like raspberries and blackberries prefer a permanent layer of mulch. Do not rush to mulch strawberries, otherwise they may suffer from return frosts. But as soon as the ovaries appear, it is advisable to cover the soil under the plants with a layer of mulch.

Tree trunk care

Green manure plants sown under trees will save you from some pests and diseases, for example, nasturtium from aphids, garlic from fungal diseases and voles. To avoid shedding of flowers, trees should be provided with the correct watering regime.

Insects - harmful and beneficial

During the swelling of the buds, the apple weevil, cherry weevil, fruit sawfly and raspberry beetle are shaken off the trees and bushes onto the litter. It is best to do this in the morning, when the air temperature is no higher than +10 degrees. At this time, the beetles have a slow reaction and usually do not fly away. The procedure is repeated after five days 2-3 times, and with a larger number of beetles - up to four times.

Picking the raspberry beetle must begin before it begins to lay eggs, otherwise the larvae will subsequently damage the fruit. Early in the morning, insects numb from the cold are shaken off the branches onto an umbrella or plywood coated with Vaseline.

The garden flea beetle often appears on plants of the cruciferous family in warm spring. During the flowering period of bird cherry and cherry, cabbage and onion flies lay eggs on the stems of plants at the root collar or near the plants under lumps of earth. To combat these pests, seedlings are pollinated with pyrethrum, tobacco dust or ash.

Attract pollinators to your garden, especially bees. To do this, sow nectar-bearing plants along fences and in other places: dill, mustard, clover, herbs. They will also attract lacewings, hoverflies, riders, and ladybugs to the garden.

Decorative garden

Cold-resistant plants are planted first when stable heat sets in: Shabot carnation, ornamental cabbage, gillyflower, lobelia, lobularia, chrysanthemum. Provided they are pre-hardened, they can withstand night frosts down to -4 degrees. Still, if there is a threat of frost, it is better to cover the planted plants. A few hours before planting, the seedlings are watered abundantly. They are planted in well-watered holes (in the mud), trying not to destroy the lump of earth with roots, pressed with their hands and sprinkled with dry soil or mulched on top.

When the threat of May frosts has passed, you can begin planting heat-loving summer plants in open ground. After planting, young plants need to be shaded until they take root and stop wilting during the day.

Propagation of perennials by division and cuttings

If spring turns out to be long and cold, at the beginning of the month they continue to divide and replant rhizomatous perennials: astilbe, phlox, delphinium, pyrethrum, chrysanthemum.

The page was prepared by Anna Gamzina.