Community ClicksSpring is coming and “This Week’s Garden” column begins again.
This year, the Master Gardeners of Clallam County will share some of the tasks that are to be done in the garden each month.
We have many microclimates in Clallam County.
Growing conditions can be very different between nearby houses and even within your own property.
The amount of sun your garden receives, elevation and exposure to the wind are a few of the variables that make your growing conditions unique.
The Monthly Gardening Calendar is a guideline only.
It provides a general idea of when to perform some of the common tasks that need to happen at different times of the year.
You will have to adjust for local conditions.
Each monthly calendar will be divided into sections: general gardening, flowers, shrubs, trees, fruit trees, veggies, ground covers and lawns.
This format will allow you to focus on the tasks of greatest interest to you.
Information in these calendars comes from various publications and from our experience.
We encourage you to keep a journal of what you do, when you do it and how it worked.
Your journal will become your own personal calendar next year.
March Gardening Calendar:
General: Fertilize rapidly growing plants, such as perennials, with a low nitrogen fertilizer.
Do not over fertilize.
Pull annual weeds or cutoff flowers to prevent reseeding.
Flowers: Complete pruning of roses begun in late February and fertilize.
Divide and transplant summer blooming perennials such as Shasta daisies, coral bells, astilbes, daylilies and asters.
Shrubs: Apply acidifying fertilizers, such as ammonium sulfate, to camellias, azaleas, heaths, heathers and rhododendrons.
Use fertilizers in moderation and only if there are signs of nutrient deficiencies.
Prune after blooming. (Pruning spring blooming shrubs too late in the year can remove this year’s flower buds.)
Trees: Wait until next month to prune landscape trees not pruned at the beginning of their dormant period.
Pruning encourages growth and unexpected cold weather can damage new growth.
Fruit trees: Spray with dormant oils before bloom if aphids and other pests have been a problem in the past.
If scab has been a problem, apply fungicides to apple trees as the leaves separate and again at seven- to-10-day intervals.
Veggies: Dig garden beds when they are dry enough to be worked; add compost and fertilizer.
Sow cool season vegetables including beets, chard, lettuce, onions, peas, potatoes, radishes and spinach directly into the garden.
Start tomatoes, peppers and eggplant indoors under lights.
Transplant cabbage family starts from the cold frame.
Ground covers: Cut back vines to the ground or reshape them, including wisteria, purpleleaf grape, honeysuckle and kiwi.
Clematis that bloom early should be pruned after they bloom. Those that bloom in summer should be pruned in late winter/early spring before they put on new growth.
Lawns: Dethatch and aerate when the lawn is moist but not soggy.
Sow bare spots with new seed and a little compost to settle the seed in and give it a good start.
Install new lawns.
Janet Oja and Marilyn Stewart are certified WSU Clallam County Master Gardeners.
The Master Gardener Program of Clallam County is located at the WSU Extension Office in the courthouse in Port Angeles.
For help with gardening questions, phone the Clallam County Master Gardener Help Line at 417-2514 or visit clallam.wsu.edu/mg/index.html.
