March Gardening Tips From The CCCEC

LENOIR, NC (March 3, 2021) — Here are the October Gardening Tips from the Caldwell County Cooperative Extension Center.

Plants in Flower
• Saucer Magnolia, Bradford Pear, Flowering Cherry, Forsythia, Star Magnolia, Breath-of-Spring (Winter Honeysuckle), Spirea, Flowering Quince, Carolina Jessamine, Periwinkle, Thrift, Violets, Crocus, Daffodil, Hyacinths and Tulips

Fertilizing
• Fertilize shrubs.

• Fertilize your important shade trees.

• Fertilize asparagus beds early in March before spear growth begins.

• Lime peonies, clematis and boxwood per soil tests.

• Ponds should be fertilized starting this month and continuing through October.

• Before planting your vegetables, fertilize your garden as recommended by your soil test results. Apply the recommended amount of lime if this was not done in the fall.

Planting
• Plant a tree for Arbor Day! Arbor day is always the first Friday after March 15.

• Plant your small fruit plants, grape vines and fruit trees before the buds break.

• March is a good month to transplant trees and shrubs.

• New shrubs and ground covers can be planted the entire month of March. Be sure to follow your planting plan.

• Plant seeds of the following perennials: columbine, hollyhock, coreopsis, daisy and phlox. Sweet William can also be planted this month.

• New rose bushes can be planted this month.

• Plants of broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower should be set out in the garden in mid-March.

• The following vegetables can be planted this month: beets, carrots, Chinese cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, Swiss chard, turnips, potatoes, cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower.

• Start any annual flowers or warm-season vegetables inside your home that are not commercially available in early March.

Pruning
• Prune fruit trees.

• Prune spring flowering plants like breath-of-Spring (Winter Honeysuckle) and flowering quince after the flowers fade.

• Prune roses late in March.

• Prune shrubs like abelia, mahonia and nandina this month if needed.

• Pick off faded flowers of pansy and daffodil. Pansies will flower longer if old flowers are removed.

• Overgrown shrubs can be severely pruned (not needled evergreens).

Spraying
• Spray the following landscape shrubs for the following insect pests: euonymus-scale, juniper-spruce spider mites and hybrid rhododendron-borer.

• Start your rose spray program just prior to bud break. Check new leaves for blackspot.

• Spray your apple and pear trees with streptomycin for control of fireblight while the trees are in bloom.

Lawn Care
• Cool-season lawns may be fertilized with 10-10-10, but NOT with slow-release fertilizer.

• Apply crabgrass herbicides to your lawn late this month to help control crabgrass in the turf.

• Mow your tall fescue lawn as needed.

• Seed fescue and bluegrass if not done in September.

Propagation
• Continue to divide perennials like daylily, shasta daisy, gaillardia and coreopsis this month.

Specific Chores
• Check garden supplies like fertilizer, insecticides and fungicides to see if you have adequate amounts.

• Check all garden equipment, lawn mowers, tillers, hedge trimmers, tools, hoses and sprayers to see if they are in working order before they are needed.

• Be certain that old plantings of perennials like peony, hollyhock and phlox are clean of last season’s growth.

• Clean up under bird feeders to prevent unwanted weeds.