mesclun in the greenhouse
Have you been paying attention? Slender shoots of green are poking up everywhere – crocus, chives, daffodils, even tulips have decided to chime in early this year. After last year’s miserable string of spring, summer, and autumn seasons gardener’s in the Clark County area are all holding their breaths for a good growing season.
March is the magic month when the pruning has been finished and those seeds that came in the mail can finally go in the ground. Sweet, snow, and sugar snap peas, brassicas, cold lettuces, and root crops can all be put in the is month. Keep the mulch on the garden to suppress weeds and protect from those surprise frosts. Watch the weather and look for windows of temperatures over 40 degrees and those magical stretches of overcast without serious rain.
This is not the time of year to be tilling or prepping the entire garden. Place single transplants and early seeds without disturbing the majority of the garden. Use cloches or row covers when frost threatens and to protect from long periods of rain. Remember, cool weather + rain + early season = slugs. Waking up to transplants eaten to the ground is a disheartening way to start the year.
Be patient, just because March is that first possiblity for planting outdoors doesn’t necessarily mean planting will happen. As always, mother nature and the weather will rule when and what can be planted.
