As March gets started, we can’t be sure if it’s going to snow or be mud season. We have seen some brave sprouts peeking up from bulbs such as irises, lilies, snow drops, and early crocuses.  Some would call this “Fool’s Spring”.  Nevertheless, there are some garden preparations we can be doing, including planting onions, petunias, and coffee!

If you haven’t yet pruned your fruit trees (apples, pears, cherries, etc.) these mild days might be your last chance to get the pruning done before the trees break dormancy.  After pruning them, give them a first spray coating of Dormant Oil to smother the over-wintering eggs left by last year’s pests.

This week (March 7-9) I planted my onion seeds (3 varieties: Ailsa Craig, Redwing, and Patterson) along with four varieties of Wave Petunias (blue, purple, pink, & silver).  These plants are slow to start and require a long head start before transplanting out in late May.  Onion seedlings produce better final onions and are much cheaper than sets so are worth the extra effort.  You can also buy onion seedlings ready to plant from many seed companies and garden stores later in the season.  Most other seeds can wait a bit longer before starting.  More on this in the next article.

Looking for a fun project?  Try growing your own coffee!  I have just planted a flat of selected Honduran Arabica coffee seeds and will be looking for adoption outlets when they are ready.  Coffee plants naturally prefer to grow in shade so make a nice house plant with their dark green leaves and are a great topic for conversation.  Coffee trees are small so will get to only 2-4 ft tall in a pot.  They are not winter hardy and will need to come inside for the winter.  For the adventurous, I still have a supply of coffee seeds available for free that you can plant for yourself.  Contact me through the comments section below.