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What to Plant This Month- March
 
BARE-ROOT: We're nearing then end of bare-root season.You might still be able to find some bare-root bargains, but many nurseries will be potting up their remainders. Plant your bare-root purchases as soon as possible.
IN THE NURSERIES: Check nurseries this month for a wide selection of blooming lilacs, deciduous magnolias and camellias. Look for low-chill lilac varieties like 'Lavender Lady' that bloom well even in mild climates.
SEEDS: Start seeds of summer vegetables and annuals indoors. Many seeds can be started indoors now (see seed package for best planting dates). Don't have a greenhouse for starting seeds? Use a domed seed-starting kit like the one pictured at left. Summer bulbs are starting to show up in stores. For an even wider selection, try mail-order.
BULBS: Plant summer-flowering bulbs (and tubers) like dahlias, canna, lilies, tuberous begonias, sparaxis, watsonia, gladiolus, ranunculus and allium, which should be well-stocked by most nurseries and mail order companies.
ANNUALS: Last chance to plant cool-season annuals for instant color. Look for pansies, primrose, Iceland poppies, ornamental kale, forget-me-nots, snapdragon, sweet peas, stock and more. These should add color through early spring. But you might be better off waiting until warm-season color like petunias and marigolds start showing up in stores. Planted in early spring, many warm-season annuals (i.e. summer color) will last for several months, especially if deadheaded regularly.
PERENNIALS: Plant hardy perennials like: alstroemeria, catmint, coral bells, scabiosa and more. Lots of fun stuff at the nursery to try...

VEGETABLES: Plant beets, brussel sprouts, carrots, chard, sweet corn (repeat plantings), leeks, lettuce, bulb onions, white potatoes, & radish. Want to know which veggie seeds you can start indoors now? Print out this handy UC Vegetable Research & Info SEED-STARTING WORKSHEET, grab a calendar and start calculatin'... You'll need the avg. last frost date, coverwhich VictorySeeds.com lists as March 23 for Sacramento and April 13 for Auburn.

Start tomato and pepper seeds indoors.

More Resources:
Yearly Vegetable Planting Calendar
UC VRIC Table 2: Vegetable Gardening at a Glance: How to Plant and Store (pdf file, requires Adobe  Reader)
Vegetable Gardening

LANDSCAPE TREES: While not the ideal time (early fall is ideal), you can still plant landscape trees, weather permitting. Visit the Sacramento Tree Foundation's website for the lowdown on Sacramento area trees. Also see my picks and the City of Sacramento's Tree Planting Guide. If you're a SMUD customer, you may qualify for free shade trees! Click here to see what trees are being offered the Sacramento Shade Program and how to get them.

Wait until frost danger has passed to plant citrus.
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