There are many things we can do in our gardens in late February and March. Here are some tips from our friends at Central Texas Gardener.
Plant: ornamental & wildlife Annual transplants: pansies, violas, calendula (wildlife plant), snapdragon, stock, larkspur, ornamental kale and cabbage, bluebonnet transplants, poppies. Transplants are preferred over seeds at this point.
Evergreen perennials and vines. Trees, shrubs, roses. Evergreen groundcovers like monkey grass, liriope, creeping germander, frogfruit.
Plant: herbs Calendula, chervil, cilantro, chives, dill, parsley, feverfew, oregano, sorrel, thyme, garlic chives.
Protect cilantro and chives in below freezing weather.
Plant: food crops Artichokes, asparagus, onions, greens, lettuce, spinach, radish, carrots, beets, bok choy, collards, kale, peas, turnips, leeks, broccoli, shallot bulbs, cabbage.
Potatoes. Get tomatoes and peppers to move to pots. Late month: plant if well protected from late freezes.
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Vegetable Planting Guides (Central Texas) http://aggie-horticulture. tamu.edu/travis/home-landscape/edible-gardens/growing-vegetables/.
Plant: fruit
Apples, peaches, pecans, pears, pomegranates, persimmons, figs, almonds, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries.
Prune:
Roses.
Prune dormant perennials and ornamental (clumping) grasses.
Prune grapes, fruit trees, blackberries.
Cut asters and chrysanthemums to rosettes.
Prune woody salvias as much as 2/3 to encourage new growth.
Trees: DO NOT prune red oaks and live oaks unless damaged. Spray immediately with clear varnish.
No need to apply pruning paint to other trees.
Avoid topping crape myrtles: simply remove sprouts or entire limbs at the trunk.
Prune rosemary and oregano.
Prune evergreen shrubs as they start to set new growth.
Divide/Move: Dormant perennials, roses, shrubs
Dormant perennials, roses, shrubs and trees. This is the best time to move plants.
Prep:
Add compost to vegetable gardens along with organic fertilizer in prep for another round of winter vegetables.
Soil test.
Fertilize: Roses.
Roses.
Iris. Use a fertilizer with a higher middle number (phosphorus)
Add compost to beds as you cut back dormant perennials. Fertilize with slow-release granular late in the month or as dormant perennials leaf out.
Add compost around trees and fertilize. Be sure to dig out grass several feet from the trunk, ideally to the drip line of the tree canopy.
Other tasks:
Keep floating row cover available; avoid covering plants with plastic.
Spray fruit trees with dormant oil to control overwintering scale, plum curculio and other pests.
Weed:
When planting, dig hole twice as wide as root ball but no deeper than where it sits in the pot.
Backfill and water until it sinks in. Continue filling in.
Water again until it sinks in and pack the soil down.
Mulch.
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