Saturday, March 1, 2008

March Gardening To Do List

Zone 1

Order indoor seed starting kits and seeds
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Water indoor cymbidium orchids weekly until they bloom
Sow seeds indoors for tender perennials and annuals
Clean, oil and sharpen tools
Zone 2

Order seeds and seed starting systems
Sow seeds indoors or cold frame
Remove mulch from early bulbs
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Sow seeds for cool-weather vegetables
Sow frost-tolerant perennials indoors
Clean, oil and sharpen tools
Order or construct a cold frame for starting vegetables outdoors

Zone 3

Order seeds
Sow seeds for hardy spring-blooming plants
Remove mulch from early bulbs
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Sow seeds for cool-weather vegetables
Sow frost-tolerant perennials indoors

Zone 4

Plant bare root trees
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Sow seeds for cool-weather vegetables
Sow frost-tolerant perennials indoors


Zone 5

Plant dormant, hardy container and balled and burlapped plants
Sow seeds of warm-season annuals indoors
Remove winter mulch, lightly cultivate soil if thawed
Prune out winter damage
Apply dormant spray to fruit trees
Plant or transplant frost-tolerant perennials
Sow seeds for tender perennials indoors
Plant bare-root roses
Plant bare-root trees, shrubs, and vines
Prune winter-blooming shrubs and vines just after bloom
Plant bare-root perennial vegetables (asparagus, rhubarb etc.)
Plant seedlings of cool-season vegetables
Sow seeds for cool- and warm-season vegetables
Protect tender plants from frost


Zone 6

Sow seeds of warm-season annuals indoors
Prune out winter damage
Feed cool-season lawns
Remove winter mulch, lightly cultivate soil if thawed
Sow seeds for cool-weather vegetables
Sow frost-tolerant perennials indoors
Divide and replant summer- and fall-blooming perennials
Plant bare-root and container roses
Prune roses (when temperatures remain above freezing)


Zone 7

Sow seeds of warm-season annuals
Set out summer-flowering bulbs
Plant fall-blooming bulbs
Plant balled-and-burlapped, container, and bare-root fruit trees
Apply dormant spray to fruit trees before buds swell
Spray apples, peaches, and pears that have been affected with canker problems
Plant bare-root perennial vegetables
Plant seedlings of cool-weather vegetables
Sow fast-growing warm-season vegetables
Sow seeds for frost-tolerant perennials
Sow seeds for tender perennials
Plant container and bare-root roses
Plant balled-and-burlapped, container, and bare-root trees, shrubs, and vines
Plant summer-blooming shrubs and vines
Plant frost-tolerant trees
Plant conifers and broad-leaf evergreens
Zone 8

Prune winter-flowering shrubs and vines after bloom
Plant summer- and fall-flowering bulbs
Spray for peach leaf curl, peach leaf blight, and canker
Plant permanent ground covers
Plant or repair lawns
Plant ornamental grasses
Plant bare-root and container roses
Plant or transplant warm-season annuals
Plant fruit trees
Feed houseplants that are growing or blooming
Plant heat-loving perennials
Plant ornamental and evergreen trees, shrubs, and vines
Prune spring-flowering or tender shrubs and vines during or just after bloom
Plant warm-seasoned vegetable seedlings

Zone 9

Set out warm season annuals
Plant summer-flowering bulbs
Plant container fruit trees
Prune fruit trees after bloom and fruit setting
Spray for peach leaf curl, peach leaf blight, and canker
Repair or plant lawns with warm season grasses (Bermuda, St. Augustine etc.)
Plant ornamental grasses
Plant fall-blooming perennials
Prune tender deciduous shrubs and vines
Prune spring-flowering shrubs and vines during or just after bloom
Prune flowering fruit trees during or just after bloom
Sow seeds for warm-season vegetables
Plant seedlings of warm-season vegetables

Zone 10

Get ahead of the bugs by hand-picking or spraying with organic preparations
Fertilize oleander, Bauhinia, hibiscus and citrus while in bloom with a low-nitrogen plant food
Mulch with at least two inches of decomposed hardwood material such as pine bark, pine needles, or cypress bark to conserve moisture in flower and vegetable beds
Plant avocados, papaya, breadfruit and mango, tababuia and tibuchina trees
Plant seed, seedlings, or rooted starts of herbs and vegetables such as peppers, okra, cantaloupe, watermelons, peanuts, sweet potatoes, luffa, chayote, lemon grass and mint
In drought-prone areas, install simple drip-irrigation systems to take care of summer watering needs


Zone 11

Get ahead of the bugs by hand-picking or spraying with organic preparations
Fertilize oleander, Bauhinia, hibiscus and citrus while in bloom with a low-nitrogen plant food
Mulch with at least two inches of decomposed hardwood material such as pine bark, pine needles, or cypress bark to conserve moisture in flower and vegetable beds
Plant avocados, papaya, breadfruit and mango, tababuia and tibuchina trees
Plant seed, seedlings, or rooted starts of herbs and vegetables such as peppers, okra, cantaloupe, watermelons, peanuts, sweet potatoes, luffa, chayote, lemon grass and mint
In drought-prone areas, install simple drip-irrigation systems to take care of summer watering needs.


article courtesy of http://www.backyardgardener.com/article/zonemar01.html