March Garden: Planting Guide, Zone 10

Each season announces its arrival with different smells, tastes and sounds. The scent of orange blossoms and jasmine perfumes warm March nights. 

If you grow Jasmine or other night blooming flowers, you are bound to encounter the enigmatic hummingbird moth! Hummingbird moths are mature tomato hornworms, that look like tiny furry hummingbirds, with a long tongue instead of a beak and they are not shy.

March is exciting, gather your seeds, visit the nurseries, spring planting time is here! All winter we wait for the last frost date to pass, so we can get to the fun part, seed starting!

March Chores

1. Weed around the base of fruit trees, berry bushes and flowers;
2. Sprinkle marigold and calendula seeds around the base of all fruit trees;
3. Keep an eye on weather, rain forecast and water fruit trees accordingly;
4. Turn and work cover crops into the soil in empty garden beds;
5. Spread mature compost in garden beds and the base of trees and blueberry bushes;
6. Cultivate garden beds and work in compost
7. Harvest peas;
8. Start seeds for fruits and vegetables you hope to enjoy this summer;
9. Place tomato cages, in garden beds, to protect seedlings from cats and other pests;
10. Fertilize your citrus trees;
11. Fertilize fruit trees;
12. Fertilize blueberries with cottonseed-meal;
13. Fertilize areas where you plan to grow heavy feeders with blood and bone meal or mature compost;
14. Transplant fruit trees in containers, above soil, water 2-3 times in first week;
15. Check the smell of your compost bins, add more brown matter (dried leaves and sources of carbon) if they smell bad.

SEEDS TO START IN MARCH, ZONE 10

Find your Zone by entering your zip code at the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map here. 

Keep an eye out for a rain forecast and sow seeds a day before. In March, the weather ranges from 40F to 80F, so you still have a little time to plan your garden if you haven’t already done so. However, March is usually too cold to sow warm weather crops like corn, peppers, and sweet potatoes.

Plants started inside will need to be acclimated gradually before being ready to be transplanted outside. Therefore, I prefer sowing outside over starting seeds inside. 

• Arugula
• Asparagus
• Basil
• Beans
• Beets
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Cilantro
• Cucumber
• Leeks
• Lettuce
• Mustard
• Oregano
• Parsley
• Pumpkin
• Radish
• Rosemary
• Shallots
• Squash
• Thyme
• Tomato
• Zucchini

March Seasonal Harvest

March is when you can expect an abundant lemon harvest. Lettuces are crunchy and the peas are in full production mode. The herbs are lush and beautiful, chives, sage and blue flowered rosemary are buzzing with activity.

• Arugula
• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Celery
• Chive
• Cilantro
• Jalapeño
• Kale
• Lavender
• Lemons
• Lettuce
• Mustard
• Onion
• Oregano
• Parsley
• Peas
• Sage
• Scallions
• Spinach
• Thyme

Happy gardening,

Laura

…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23, NABRE)