March...Time to Prep for The Summer Garden
By Jos Van Hage
Sunday, March 01, 2009 09:51 AM
The time to plant begonia bulbs for summer results like this, is now.
The month of March is a time for gardeners to get busy, maybe not outside but certainly indoors. There are seeds to be sown, cuttings to be made and bulbs to be planted.
Many of the flowers need to be sown now because they require a longer time to grow and flower. Because our Prince George season is short you want to get the most out of it so by transplanting flower plants that are ready to bloom or that are already in bloom will give you a beautiful garden throughout the summer. Some flower varieties require a longer time and should be planted now. Geraniums, impatiens, alyssum, asters, fibrous begonias, gazania, lobelia, marigold, pansies, petunias, snapdragon, and many perennials require that longer growing period.
Vegetable seeds such as tomatoes, and peppers should also be started in the beginning of March. Always read the information on the seed package as it will tell you how and when to plant. Other varieties of seeds do not need as long of a growing period and so they should be started in late March and April. If they are started too early they will be too large for their small containers and will go into stress. Most vegetables such as cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, onion seed, leeks, corn, lettuce squash, can be started indoors in April and transplanted outside in late May.
Geranium and Fuchsia cuttings are made now from the old plants that were brought inside last fall. If you haven’t already done so take last years geranium and trim the stems to one third of their original height then place it in a warm south facing window. Water it and fertilize with 12-36-12 which will get the plant to start growing. Take the plant out of the original pot and replant it into another pot just large enough to hold the root ball. Use new, high quality potting soil if you have to re-top the soil. The plant will produce new shoots and it is these new shoots that you will use to make the cuttings with. When the shoots are 3-4 inches long snip them off the plant at an angle just below the leaf node. Remove the bottom leaf and dip the cut end into a rooting hormone and then into a starter mix soil. Keep the soil evenly moist and fertilize with 10-52-10 for the next couple of weeks until the roots form and then switch fertilize to 20-20-20 an all purpose fertilizer.
Tuberous begonias are the type that have large rose like flowers, large leaves and are shade loving. They are available in the garden center and should be started now. Use peat pots and a light, airy, high quality potting soil. Fill the peat pot (usually a 4 inch) with the soil and then place the tuber in the top ¼ inch of the soil with the hollow part facing up so that it is above the soil line. Moisten the soil around the tuber, being careful not to get water in the tuber as this could cause it to rot. Place the pot in a south facing window sill, or a grow light giving it a warm temperature of 17-20 Celsius. If you saved your tuberous begonias from last year you should be re-planting these now.
-Jos
Jos Van Hage owns and operates two Art Knapp Garden Centres in Prince George
- Highway 16 West at Kimball road
- Highway 97 North at Northwood Pulpmill Road
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Posted by: hammy on March 2 2009 9:09 AM