Planting March 2020 Planting Guide and Chat

[packyderms_wife]

Planting Calendar - Gardening by the moon

This planting calendar helps you pick the best days for gardening tasks based a 200-year-old formula. Our readers swear by it! Learn more.

www.farmersalmanac.com

1st - 2nd
Seeds planted now tend to rot in ground.
3rd - 5th
Excellent for sowing seedbeds and flower gardens. Best planting days for above ground crops, especially peas, beans, cucumbers, and squash where climate permits.
6th - 9th
A most barren period, best for killing plant pests or doing chores around the farm.
10th - 11th
Fine for sowing grains, hay, and forage crops. Plant flowers. Favorable days for planting root crops.
12th - 13th
Start seedbeds. Good days for transplanting. Excellent time for planting root crops that can be planted now. Also good for leafy vegetables.
14th - 15th
Barren days, do no planting.
16th - 17th
Any root crops that can be planted now will do well.
18th - 20th
Barren days, do no planting.
21st - 22nd
Good for planting cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, and other vine crops. Set strawberry plants. Good days for transplanting. Favorable days for planting beets, carrots, radishes, salsify, turnips, peanuts, and other root crops.
23rd - 25th
Cultivate and spray, do general farm work, but no planting.
26th - 27th
Favorable for planting crops bearing yield above the ground.
28th - 30th
Seeds planted now tend to rot in ground
31st
Excellent for sowing seedbeds and flower gardens. Best planting day for above ground crops, especially peas, beans, cucumbers, and squash where climate permits.

 

[packyderms_wife]

I bought a bunch of new seeds yesterday, potting soil specifically for seedlings, and a new starter tray. I had a low rate of germination last year so decided to start over from scratch, I have no idea if the weather had a roll in that failure or not. We plan to redo two of our raised beds as soon as the weather allows us to do so, probably mid March.

 

[Sherrynboo]

My seed starting has not gone well this year, nothing like last year. I got a six pack of beefsteak tomato plants and a six pack of peppers and will set them out after I see how the weather is going to be for the next week or so. It is still early for my area but the extended forecast is showing much warmer temps than usual and no frost in sight. I went ahead and repotted the 12 plants I bought into larger containers so they can start growing anyway.

 

[AlaskaSue]

Well, I'm a bit behind you folks in the Lower 48 (or "Outside" as we say)...but this month I do get to start some seeds inside the house - since I no longer have a greenhouse. Last year's garden was a huge success and I hope for more of the same this season. I STILL can't get onions to grow (YET) but I finally got both green beans and pinto beans....the rest of the garden was lovely and I had a lot of happy little bees around all summer due to the veg and the flower beds. I do want to create a new bed next to the long raised bed...maybe one more potato tower added to the two last year. The herb garden did well too and I might make one of those Celtic knot gardens just cuz.... This past weekend I attended a fun day-long Peony seminar. Apparently Alaska does Peonies really, really well. My first attempt last year went pretty well...so I guess I'll expand that too. Meanwhile, on I plod thru the snow

 

[Sherrynboo]

Today is a planting day so i will get the Swiss Chard, potatoes and carrots in the ground! My onions are looking great after using old chicken manure, compost and wood ash on them. This weekend they will get a dose of fish emulsion.

 

[ginnie6]

well shucks! Put out a bunch of seeds yesterday. Guess we will see if they come up. I'll start more in a few days to be safe.

 

[packyderms_wife]

well shucks! Put out a bunch of seeds yesterday. Guess we will see if they come up. I'll start more in a few days to be safe.

I'll be starting seeds this weekend, he's home for spring break. I need to go to the local greenhouse and buy some mulch for the front flower gardens and then with his help remove last years fencing/trellises from the raised beds and clear those off.

My Naked Lady lilies are coming up!

 

[Sherrynboo]

I got a lot done today, the last planting day for a few days. I bought some tomatoes and peppers then put them in larger pots when I got them home. Still a bit skeered to put them in the ground just yet Then I planted two rows of potatoes and a bed of carrots.

 

[ginnie6]

well I have lettuce mix coming up already! Kale planted week before is up too. Now to figure out how to get my garden plowed since I think dh will be working. Can't handle the big tiller since my hernia and the man child has a broken arm.......

 

[summerthyme]

If anyone is stuck with older seeds and must get what they can from them...

Soak them in 3% hydrogen peroxide for 30 minutes, then plant. For really tiny seeds (petunias, carrots) that will clump together when wet, you could try planting them by sprinkling them on the soil surface, watering well with hydrogen peroxide, then (if necessary) covering with whatever depth of soil they need and watering with peroxide again.

Or, I think (haven't tried it!) you might be able to make the homemade seed tapes using paper towels, and soak them fairly well after rolling them out on your prepared beds. I did use H2O2 to soak my rolled paper towels for presprouting my squash, pumpkin and melon seeds. I also tried a few with plain water. For the oldest seed (6 years), H2O2 increased germination by many times. Plain water pack might have had 2 weak seedlings. The same seed, in the H2O2 pack, had a couple dozen.

Of course, the damned rabbits ate 400 plants! I could have saved the peroxide!

Summerthyme

 

[Orion Commander]

Try lead shot pest control. Or are you saving the bunnies for fall harvest?

 

[hammerhead]

I was going through the old seeds, and found some tomato and pepper varieties from 2008-2010. I'll be curious to see if they germinate using this method. I'm expecting very poor results, of course, but this is interesting. (ref to summerthyme's post about hydrogen peroxide)

 

[packyderms_wife]

I was going through the old seeds, and found some tomato and pepper varieties from 2008-2010. I'll be curious to see if they germinate using this method. I'm expecting very poor results, of course, but this is interesting. (ref to summerthyme's post about hydrogen peroxide)

Same here, OC asked me if I saw her post and I said yes... gonna work on this this coming weekend.

 

[homecanner1]

Stark Bros announced their Elderberry are on sale! They have some lovely apple varieties, 200 yrs in business.

We still have another 2 months till we can plant up in this zone. I envy everyone who has slicing tomatoes by July 4th. Greenhouse may be necessary from here on out!

Stark Bro's Nurseries & Orchards Co - Since 1816

Stark Bro's offers quality nursery products, and helpful advice, for the growing enthusiast. Order trees, plants, and supplies online now.

www.starkbros.com

 

[PJM]

I started several elderberries yesterday. I found a nice bush, took several small branches and soaked the ends in water for 24 hours. Then powdered them with Stim-root, the rooting hormone powder and planted in well watered pots of soil. Now, I just have to wait and hope.

 

[Farmgal]

I started several elderberries yesterday. I found a nice bush, took several small branches and soaked the ends in water for 24 hours. Then powdered them with Stim-root, the rooting hormone powder and planted in well watered pots of soil. Now, I just have to wait and hope.

That's a great idea. You know, by golly, I think I am going to try that too; got several wild elderberry bushes growing.

 

[Farmgal]

I'm hoping to get some potatoes, onion sets, lettuce/greens planted by Easter. Over the winter put composted cow manure on garden....need to till it. It's pretty wet here, can't just yet.

 

[PJM]

I'm hoping to get some potatoes, onion sets, lettuce/greens planted by Easter. Over the winter put composted cow manure on garden....need to till it. It's pretty wet here, can't just yet.

Sounds just like my garden! Can’t wait to get the tiller out.

 

[packyderms_wife]

Sounds just like my garden! Can’t wait to get the tiller out.

We have raised beds and they are wet, very wet, otherwise I'm hoping to get my peas, lettuce, chicory, and arugula planted and soon!

 

[PJM]

I couldn’t wait anymore. It’s a beautiful, sunny day so planted some spinach and lettuce, a few radishes and kale seeds. I have a couple of potatoes starting to sprout on the counter and might tuck them into the flowerbed.

 

[parsonswife]

How do you know when to take veggies out and plant in a raised bed, or to re pot into next size? I've always wanted to buy my plants from the local nursery later in the year but didn't want to change e everything would be gone. (Southern Oregon )

 

[greenhart]

How do you know when to take veggies out and plant in a raised bed, or to re pot into next size? I've always wanted to buy my plants from the local nursery later in the year but didn't want to change e everything would be gone. (Southern Oregon )

If the plant is requiring you to water it often then the plant is probably to big for the pot. I would "harden off" the plant by exposing them to outside conditions a little at a time.