Columns
Kidnocker: It’s March in the garden
The Green Valley Gardeners will have their semi-annual Cactus & Native Plant Sale on March 11, 12, and 13 at Continental Shopping Plaza. Hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and location is in front of Coldwell Banker Realty, just north of McDonalds. Available will be low-water easy-maintenance plants, including a wide variety of large and small cacti such as Texas bicolors, senita, golden and red-thorn barrels, claret cup hedgehogs, bishop’s cap, and mammillarias, plus plumeria, lobelia, kalenchoe, adeniums, and agave.
March is the month for which we are told to wait. Wait for the mid-month average-last-frost date to pass. Wait to trim off any dead and damaged branches. Wait to purchase new plantings. Wait to plant. A week of this long-awaited March has already passed, and it is time to get busy!
If not already cut back, it is time to attack the brown branches of cold- sensitive plants such as lantana, bougainvilla, turk’s cap, Arizona bells, Mount Lemmon marigold, cape honeysuckle, chuparosa, and Russian sage.
Cholla and prickly pear may be cut back and trimmed up from the ground now. By the end of the month they will be growing rapidly and showing new pad buds and flower blossoms. There is still time to carefully trim Texas rangers, not into funny “green meatballs” but into a smaller version of their natural shape.
This is a perfect time for planting cacti, agave, fairydusters, Arizona yellow and orange bells, birds of paradise, desert ruellia, cactus, and the desert legumes or other desert-adapted trees and shrubs. Citrus may be planted during mid to late March. Keep in mind the cold hardiness of citrus, with limes being most frost sensitive followed by lemons, grapefruit, tangelo, sweet oranges, mandarins, and kumquat.
Vegetable growers can get busy preparing plots and readying transplants for the upcoming season. This is the time to plant tomatoes, peppers, squash, lettuce, and greens such as spinach and kale. If you are new to the area, stop by the Allen J Ogden Community Garden off Santa Rita Road in Sahuarita and see how these seasoned growers “farm” their plots.
With the warm and dry days we have been having, aphids, spider mites, thrips, and other undesirable insects have begun to show. These can be dislodged from the plants by a strong jet of water from the garden hose, or by use of a soap spray.
Spider mites seem drawn to hot, dusty areas, so spray leaves with water regularly to remove dust and raise the humidity around plants.
Monitoring insects now helps control their numbers in months to come.
While planting, watch for grubs, especially around roots of cactus and herbaceous plants. Because of the past mild winter, these larva have not moved far down into the earth, and in some cases have shown up near the surface throughout the cold season. Grubs will need to be eradicated with a commercial insecticide. Unfortunately, a general product can also kill beneficial insects, so read the package carefully and follow instructions closely.
Fields of wildflowers should soon start showing their breathtaking colors. Already we have seen purple lupine, African daisies, golden poppies, red and pink penstemon, desert marigold, globe mallow and clumps of beautiful lavender verbena along roadsides. During the next month, this scene should enlarge into a spectacle!
Such sights are motivation for adding new plants of all kinds to our own gardens. Great sources for healthy, new plants are a number of March fundraising plant sales in the area. Check Web sites for dates of sales at Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tohono Chul Park, Boyce Thompson Arboretum, and Desert Survivors among others.
So you can see what a busy month March can be in the garden. It is also a glorious time to be alive… enjoying the soft warmth of the spring sun, listening to the many happy songbirds, and witnessing the freshness of new beginnings in the landscape. Enjoy!
Mary Kidnocker is a Master Gardener who writes frequently about the subject from a local perspective. Her columns are featured each Sunday.
March is the month for which we are told to wait. Wait for the mid-month average-last-frost date to pass. Wait to trim off any dead and damaged branches. Wait to purchase new plantings. Wait to plant. A week of this long-awaited March has already passed, and it is time to get busy!
If not already cut back, it is time to attack the brown branches of cold- sensitive plants such as lantana, bougainvilla, turk’s cap, Arizona bells, Mount Lemmon marigold, cape honeysuckle, chuparosa, and Russian sage.
Cholla and prickly pear may be cut back and trimmed up from the ground now. By the end of the month they will be growing rapidly and showing new pad buds and flower blossoms. There is still time to carefully trim Texas rangers, not into funny “green meatballs” but into a smaller version of their natural shape.
This is a perfect time for planting cacti, agave, fairydusters, Arizona yellow and orange bells, birds of paradise, desert ruellia, cactus, and the desert legumes or other desert-adapted trees and shrubs. Citrus may be planted during mid to late March. Keep in mind the cold hardiness of citrus, with limes being most frost sensitive followed by lemons, grapefruit, tangelo, sweet oranges, mandarins, and kumquat.
Vegetable growers can get busy preparing plots and readying transplants for the upcoming season. This is the time to plant tomatoes, peppers, squash, lettuce, and greens such as spinach and kale. If you are new to the area, stop by the Allen J Ogden Community Garden off Santa Rita Road in Sahuarita and see how these seasoned growers “farm” their plots.
With the warm and dry days we have been having, aphids, spider mites, thrips, and other undesirable insects have begun to show. These can be dislodged from the plants by a strong jet of water from the garden hose, or by use of a soap spray.
Spider mites seem drawn to hot, dusty areas, so spray leaves with water regularly to remove dust and raise the humidity around plants.
Monitoring insects now helps control their numbers in months to come.
While planting, watch for grubs, especially around roots of cactus and herbaceous plants. Because of the past mild winter, these larva have not moved far down into the earth, and in some cases have shown up near the surface throughout the cold season. Grubs will need to be eradicated with a commercial insecticide. Unfortunately, a general product can also kill beneficial insects, so read the package carefully and follow instructions closely.
Fields of wildflowers should soon start showing their breathtaking colors. Already we have seen purple lupine, African daisies, golden poppies, red and pink penstemon, desert marigold, globe mallow and clumps of beautiful lavender verbena along roadsides. During the next month, this scene should enlarge into a spectacle!
Such sights are motivation for adding new plants of all kinds to our own gardens. Great sources for healthy, new plants are a number of March fundraising plant sales in the area. Check Web sites for dates of sales at Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tohono Chul Park, Boyce Thompson Arboretum, and Desert Survivors among others.
So you can see what a busy month March can be in the garden. It is also a glorious time to be alive… enjoying the soft warmth of the spring sun, listening to the many happy songbirds, and witnessing the freshness of new beginnings in the landscape. Enjoy!
Mary Kidnocker is a Master Gardener who writes frequently about the subject from a local perspective. Her columns are featured each Sunday.
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