Has spring arrived in your neck o’ the woods? Where I live (New York’s Hudson Valley, zone 5-b), February departed in record warmth, while March has arrived amid piercing cold. But my garden is slowly waking, as evidenced by the Galanthus (“snow drops”) pictured above. It’s too early to open the swimming pool. But we can get down and dirty with the following house and garden chores:
TIP: For more details about the various subjects in this post, just click the highlighted (i.e., purple) text.
Winter-Sowing. No matter the frigid weather, plant perennials and hardy annuals (including spinach) outdoors in make-shift greenhouses. Wait until later this month or early next to sow tender annuals and vegetables.
Play “Pick-Up-Stix.” Is your lawn littered with twigs and branches that broke loose during winter storms? Then do what I’m currently doing, and spend a few minutes each day picking up the debris. You’ll be glad to have the job completed before it’s time to fire up the lawn mower.
Gather and Shred Leaves. Shredded leaves make a terrific — and free — mulch for all veggie and flower beds. I shred mine with this light-weight machine.
Save Your Newspapers! I rely on the New York Times and a layer of mulch to keep my garden beds weed-free for an entire season. Here’s the how-to.
Arborvitae. If heavy, wet snow has flattened branches, lash them into place with twine. Stems should regain their upright habit over the course of spring and summer. More details.
Roses. Wait until the end of the month to uncover shrubs (you remembered to mulch them, right?). Prune the shrubs at your convenience but before the leaf buds break. (I prune my David Austin roses back by half; I do not prune my climbing roses, except to relieve them of dead wood.) Don’t try to prepare new beds until the ground is well thawed and the soil is workable.
Grab Your Pruners. Cut out all dead wood from trees and shrubs. Also, prune for shapeliness your Peegee hydrangeas, Rose of Sharon, and other shrubs that bloom in late summer. Cut Buddleja (the common “Butterfly Bush”) back to ground-level now, unless you want a monster-size shrub (like mine, pictured above).
Iris. Examine these and other rhizomes for signs of heaving. Especially if your garden has not been mulched, you will need to go over plantings and firm back roots dislodged by frost.
Spring-Flowering Trees & Shrubs. Want flowers for the house? Cut dormant stems of forsythia, pussy willow, crab apple (above), and quince. Give the stems water, light, and warmth (65°F max), and they will bloom for you in only two weeks time. More ideas.
Houseplants. These are growing rapidly now, due to lengthening hours of daylight. Reward them with extra food and water.
African Violets. Are yours refusing to bloom? Better read this post.
Forced Tulips & Other Dutch Bulbs. Only some of these are worth keeping for future planting outdoors. For details, be sure to read this fascinating post: Forced Bulbs: What to Keep, and What to Toss.
Clean Your Bedroom. Or, just watch me clean mine.
Make Almond Butter Cookies. As a reward for your garden and household work, treat yourself to these gluten-free delights. As cookies go, they’re actually healthy. My step-by-step recipe.
Bake a Seasonal Tart. Grab some fresh asparagus spears, and turn them into a tart. Check out my recipe for The Best Asparagus Tart in the World.
Make Polpettine! These old-world Italian meatballs (which we should never confuse with American meatballs) are flavored with Parmesan cheese, fragrant herbs, and a big burst of lemon. They’re perfect for a March dinner party. The easy recipe.
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Beverly, zone 6, eastern PA says
Around here, earliest spring is synonymous with selling excess belongings on Craigslist, which ultimately makes cleaning and organizing easier. We are drowning in junk yet it appeals to others who drive over and pay me for it.. Garden beds are waking up and pushing off the plastered debris trying to get to the light. I am delicately removing the sheets of leaves and needles and composting them. Snowdrops have spread in a most enchanting manner and are utterly delightful today, despite the wind. And look! Here comes Chionodoxa, all 4 patches of them, ‘Glory of the Snow’. Won’t be long now and we’ll all be exhausted, a “good kind” of tired, at the end of a productive gardening day.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Beverly – Glad you mentioned Chiondoxa. I can’t have enough of this blue-flowered wonder!
Jerry Miller says
I really enjoyed reading this article. It had a little bit of everything.
I’ve purchased 5 bare root roses this week. It is still too early to plant them but I have a little bit of “spring fever” and I wanted to get the roses before the selection was picked over.
I also got 40 sets of strawberries and 4 rhubarb crowns. I love rhubarb and haven’t grown any since I lived in Spokane. I tried growing it in Sacramento but it doesn’t get enough cold time there. It’s the same with lilacs; there winters are too warm for them and the blooms aren’t that big.
I’m planning on making some raised planters but I still need to get the lumber.
We had a couple of nice, sunny days and I could smell spring in the air. Then, we had an inch of snow two days in a row. The snow is gone but it has tempered my enthusiasm for getting things in the ground. I guess I’ll have to be patient. The average last day for frost is April 15.
I will start some seeds indoors in a couple of days.
Your garden looks great.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Jerry – You are lucky to be in a warm(ish) zone. Average last frost here is May 10!
Joan says
Thank you for last year’s advice on how to force forsythia. I was never able to do it before as I didn’t know to smash the bottom of the branches. Currently have 2 vases filled with the flowering branches and plan to cut another few this afternoon. Great way to prune a shrub and get a bouquet at the same time.
Mary in Iowa says
Just seeing those few snowdrops in the vinca perked me up. I have spinach in jugs, but planted some in a raised bed a few days ago to get a faster start. Will be pruning fruit trees today and forcing some of the branches, and the roses will also get haircuts. Got out seeds for tender annuals yesterday and will be seeding them indoors. Transplanted alpine strawberries, which were germinated in flats inside, into 4-packs, and have them under lights along with 42 pelargonium seedlings, 12 rosemary, 16 Lady in Red salvia to partner with winter sown chard, and some rooted cuttings of plectranthus and fuchsias. Played Pick up stix a few days ago and stored them to put through the chipper later. It’s good to simply get out in the crisp, fresh air and pretend that the domestic chores will somehow magically be taken care of without my assistance. That hasn’t happened in the past, but I’m always up for new and unexpected surprises.
Elizabeth says
Hi Kevin,
I am late to greenhouse planting & I wondered if it is too late to start spinach, peas, kale, lettuce etc outside now? I am in zone 5b in Ontario so we have similar conditions I think. I know I can wait a few weeks for zinnias, asters & till April for tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini & such.
Thanks
Mariann says
I have no garden and have been prevaricating on balcony plants for many years already.
My reaction is sparked by the polpettine which I made last night nearly unchanged. Turkey replacing chicken due to allergies. Huge success! Many thanks.
Linda A says
I’m going to try your newspaper idea to smother potential weeds
this year, Kevin. With all the rain we’ve had here in (now drought-free!)
Northern California, the weeds are taking off like crazy. I pull them and
they’re back practically before I turn around.
Would love to see a tutorial on how to trim rose bushes and climbers.
I don’t know what I’m doing!!
Carol says
I’m so sorry you are iced in! Here in Texas it will be 80 degrees and raining. We really enjoy our warm winters. There are bushes and flowers in bloom. We hope there will not be a late freeze. It has been known to snow in April… my grand daughter was Easter egg hunting back in
2008. She found them by tracking our footsteps in the snow. There was a blizzard March 2, 1971 the night my daughter was born and 80 degrees the day before. Our weather is always a surprise. This year was the warmest February in history. So enjoy your cold weather and have a wonderful spring!
Leisa Joan says
Hi Kevin,
I was wondering if you have started Lavender seeds in your milk jugs? thanks,ljp
Barb says
Hi Kevin,
Thank you so much for your lovely and informative blog. Greetings from North Vancouver, BC, Canada …normally zone 8a but this year has been unusually cold (it is snowing again today but thankfully not sticking to the ground – not a normal March for us at all). Sadly, we’ll have lost some of our more tender plants this year due to the extreme cold we had off and on for a about two months. On the positive side, I can see snowdrops and Hellebores in bloom in the front garden. A quick exploration around the garden today also revealed the tips of Chiondoxa, Fritillaria Meleagris, and Tete-Tete Daffodils breaking through the earth. I hope the weather warms up so these babies bloom soon. I’m absolutely itching to get back into the garden!
Just heading out to the store to buy ingredients for Polpettine. These look delicious!
Lauren says
hi kevin, when will you start your tender perennials and annuals? i’m in chicago, so roughly your same zone. thanks! LAUREN