Credit: The Center for Agriculture Food & Environment, UMass Amherst
March is the Month to.....
Inspect trees in the landscape for gypsy moth egg masses. Egg masses are tan and approximately 1½ inches long. If egg masses are safely and easily accessible, they can be scraped into a container of soapy water to reduce the number of caterpillars emerging later. However, for larger infestations, consultation with a professional to plan gypsy moth management is recommended.
Dig and transplant small trees and shrubs that need to be moved as soon as the soil is workable, since significant new root growth can occur in spring. Furthermore, soils dry quickly as the weather warms and it can be difficult to keep the soil ball around roots together when plants are handled. Store any bareroot tree and shrub seedlings in cool, moist conditions until they can be planted.
Pay attention to pruning chores. Cut back damaged tree branches, remove suckers sprouting from the base of fruit trees, and take out about 1/3 of the oldest stems of multi-stemmed shrubs such as forsythia, weigela, beautyberry, and spirea to rejuvenate them. Remember to prune blueberries and raspberries, too, as a lack of pruning is a common cause for poor fruit yield.
Cut branches of trees and shrubs for indoor forcing. In addition to the commonly used forsythia and pussy willow, shadbush, redbud, fruit trees, magnolias, and spireas are good candidates for forcing into bloom. The closer plants are to their normal bloom time, the more rapidly they force.
Take stock of seed starting materials if this hasn’t been done yet. Seed-starting containers range from commercially available plastic trays and Jiffy pots to recycled household packaging such as clementine crates, egg cartons, yogurt and cottage cheese cups (cut drainage holes in these). There are also plenty of online instructional videos (and even a nifty wooden tool) for creating containers from sheets of newspaper. Regardless of what containers are used, they should be scrupulously clean, and if recycled, sanitized in a solution of 1 part bleach to 9 parts water, to rid them of seedling disease-causing organisms. Growing medium should also be sterile--usually a soilless combination of peat and vermiculite. Other supplies include a light source (cool white fluorescent or LED bulbs), a heat source (germination mat or warm location such as a sunroom or greenhouse), and moisture source (nonchlorinated water and clear plastic lid or bag to maintain high humidity prior to germination).
Start seeds of lettuce and cabbage indoors. Seedlings will be ready for transplanting into the garden in 4 to 6 weeks’ time. Experiment with growing various types of cabbage: green for coleslaw, red for salads and braising, and Savoy for cabbage rolls. Look for early, midseason, and late-maturing varieties to guarantee an ample supply of this nutrient powerhouse. It’s also a good time to start transplants of cabbage’s cole crop cousins such as broccoli, kale, Chinese cabbage, and bok choi. Once germinated, seedlings of these vegetables like it cool, around 60-65 degrees F.
Check houseplants near windows to make sure they are not getting sunburned. Most tropical houseplants prefer low light environments. Now, that sunlight is more intense as the sun rises higher in the sky, these plants should be shaded or moved back from the windows. Additional tasks: begin increasing water and fertilizer to houseplants as they start to show signs of renewed growth; check to see if dividing and repotting is needed.
Avoid compacting soil by keeping off lawn areas as much as possible as the soil thaws. Compaction reduces the ability of water to infiltrate the soil, which in turn limits the amount of water available to plants. Air supply to plant roots is also reduced in compacted soil, leading to death of those roots and potentially loss of the entire plant.
Incorporate organic matter into garden soils in preparation for planting. (Wait a few weeks if soils are poorly drained and still wet.) Bolstering soil organic matter is insurance against drought during the growing season.
Jennifer Kujawski, Horticulturist