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What's New
Tomatoes 2008
Composting.ppt
Iris with music.ppt
Flowers and
bulbs in garden.ppt
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March in
the garden
This is your chance to clean up the garden without suffering from the cold. It
is also an excellent time to rebuild the compost pile or build a new one if
needed. Shredding all the materials in the compost will make the compost work
faster and it may be ready to spread by the time the rest of the garden is ready
to be planted.
There is probably a goodly supply of early weeds such as the London rocket,
dandelions, salsify and other cool season weeds. If the soil is moist they are
easily pulled and the roots and tops can be put into the compost pile to provide
needed nitrogen for the compost. Most of those weeds are also edible if you
savor their bitter flavors.
It is also a good time to remove grass that has grown into the flower or
vegetable beds as the roots are now starting to send out new below ground
growth.
Pull (do not cut) the dried up leaves of the iris and daylilies. Cut back the
dead chrysanthemums foliage to the ground and divide them. Pot up the extras to
give to friends or bring to the April plant sale at the Garden Center on the
last Saturday of the month.
Pussy willow (Salix
caprea), bulbous Iris, Forsythia, Crocus, redbud (Cercis), are
flowering. Bulb displays include daffodils, snowdrops (Galanthus),
Triteleia (Ipheon), hyacinths (all kinds including grape hyacinths (muscaria)),
paperwhites* and tulips. Also in bloom are creeping Phlox (P. subulata),
Iceland
poppies (Papaver nudicaule). Most fruit trees will be in bloom: apricot,
plum, pear, peach, nectarine, crabapple, cherry, and quince. For the hay fever
sufferers the junipers, silver maples and elms may cause torment. Allergy shots
should be considered for you.
Ground covers that
appear this month may include: Pink soapwort (Saponaria ocymoides), Thyme
"Pink Chintz," Turkish speedwell (Veronica pectinata), and woods violets.
Watering. Increase watering to three to four times a month if
temperatures are consistently over 50 degrees and there is no natural
precipitation; otherwise, continue watering as in February. After the heavy
winds which we usually have in the spring and which may continue into May,
irrigate to replace lost moisture. Hardy transplants can be put in now but be
sure to keep them watered if there is no rain or snow. Wall of water or other
season extenders can be used for some of the more tender plantings.
Pruning.
Finish pruning fruit
trees and summer-flowering shrubs if you have not already done so.. Start
pruning roses and grape vines* late in the month. Prune Santolina native plants
(chamisa, Apache plume and buffalo berry (Shephardia)), hard. Prune Mahonia,
forsythia and winter jasmine after flowering. Crape myrtles bloom on new growth,
so frost damage if any can be cut away once new growth appears. Prune
raspberries and other fruit-bearing bramble bushes, except for "Heritage"
raspberries, which may be cut back in the fall if you are willing to forego the
first crop. Often that first crop will suffer in the heat of the summer and lack
of water so it may not be much of a loss.
Planting.
• Continue bare-root planting.
• Plant balled and burlapped shrubs and trees.
• Pansies, snapdragons, hollyhocks, Dianthus, carnations, statice, and stocks
can go in the garden now. Most perennials can be put out this month in settled
weather. Young plants from the nursery or your own seed-starting operation
should be hardened off outdoors for a week or two before planting.
In the
vegetable garden,
• set out
plants of the cabbage family: Broccoli and cauliflower are at risk in the
spring, as they are sensitive to extreme heat fluctuations which may come in May
and will bolt before the plants have developed fully.
• Some of the early spring lettuces can be allowed to reseed or be planted in
the fall for the earliest salad crops. Continue seeding or transplanting salad
greens and greens for cooking. Plant seeds of cool season growers: radishes,
carrots, beets, turnips, onions, kohlrabi, parsnips, and peas.
• Plant Irish potatoes mid-March to mid-April. Start cuttings of sweet potatoes
in the window or greenhouse so they will be ready after the frosts are over.
• Plant hardy herbs: parsley, sage, thyme, dill, and tarragon plants. Small herb
plants from the nursery are usually quite tender and must be hardened off before
planting.
• After the first day of spring, begin planting some gladiola bulbs every other
week for continuous color during the summer. Dahlias can also be planted for
summer bloom. If you have a protected location many other summer flowering bulbs
can be planted. In such a location some can even be left in the ground over the
winter with some added mulch for the extra protection from freezing.
Houseplants.
The days are longer
and your houseplants are beginning to wake up and grow. About mid-month, begin
fertilizing houseplants. If needed, repot before you begin fertilizing. Trim
roots lightly and spread them out, especially if the roots are crowded and
encircling the pot. Discard old potting mix, clean the pots, and disinfect them
with a 10% bleach solution before reusing. This is also the time to take
cuttings of the tender bedding plants that you will want to have for planting
out in May. Coleus, impatiens, plectranthus, geraniums* (pelargoniums) and
similar herbaceous plants root quickly in water and can be potted up in just a
few weeks time. If you have windowsill or greenhouse room pot up color bowls for
placing around the house or garden when the weather is warm.
*The foliage of paperwhites will probably be badly damaged
by the cold winter but the blooms will be just as fragrant and beautiful as
anywhere else and superb for cutting and bringing inside.
*Most grape varieties require severe pruning in order to
produce a heavy crop. Save the prunings for wreaths or make them into cuttings
if you have friends who need to start new vines. See Propagation Section for
how-to.
*Geraniums (pelargoniums) cuttings will root more readily
if allowed to dry at least overnight before placing them in water or rooting
medium.
I had an interesting discovery this afternoon as I was working in my Iris
garden. As I tried to remove the left over leaves and other debris from last
years plant growth ( well, they really were weeds) I saw a pile of what
appeared to be snail shells. I have had snails in my front patio over the
years that had arrived with plants shipped in from California or brought in
from plants purchased or given to me by some of my other gardening friends.
Every year the snails become more abundant and it is either snail or slugs
that eat some of the foliage in the early spring. Many years ago I had let a
volunteer hackberry grow next to the fence in the back yard but when it grew
too big and threatened the power line above it we decided to remove it. The
trunk of that tree stayed and the large roots that spread out from the stump
became infected with the mycelium of Coprinus Atramentarius better known to
some gardeners as the Inky Cap and each year large clumps of the mushroom
would develop from the buried roots. Last summer we had had an especially
large crop of the fungus and in the fall all the snails and slugs were
attracted to them as a much desired food source. Apparently cold weather
arrived before the snails had the opportunity to find more hospitable quarters
for the winter. So there they were. Their little empty shells bleached white
over the winter. I wonder how many of them had laid their eggs in that soil
and how many babies will hatch from them? Will they devour my Iris plants
when they hatch? I shall watch that flower bed very carefully this spring.
Wouldn't you?
You may be interested to know that those mushrooms are edible for humans too
as long as you don't drink anything alcoholic. That trait led to the discovery
of Antabuse which is now used for treating alcoholism. How interesting.
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