March...
Planting Tips, Money-Saving Ideas & More!

March offers great opportunities for planting – And some of the best money-saving ways to create your garden, including bareroot and starter size plants. Take a look at these tips, then visit your Fred Meyer Garden Center!

• It's bareroot rose planting time. Much of the Northwest is ideal for growing roses, and now's prime time to plant bareroot roses. These ready-to-grow plants are a great way to save money over planting potted roses later in the spring. Click into our rundown of the 2004 AARS Award-Winning Roses plus our 3-Step-No-Fail-Way To Planting Bareroots".
• March is a great time to plant perennials. You get a lot more for your money by planting many perennial varieties now, rather than when things have really warmed up. That's because right now you'll find your the starter size 4" pots or mini flats of 3-6 plants. They're far less costly than the larger perennials available later this spring. And be sure to click into our Perennial Guide for Northwest Gardens – which is full of suggestions on varieties to try and what grows best where.
• It's also time to plant most hardy trees, shrubs, and ground covers. Make sure your selections are in containers or ball-and-burlap if you're planting anytime from late March on through summer.
• Consider the lilies. A favorite of many gardeners is the lily – a highly underrated star of the garden. If you haven't tried lilies yet, check out the bulb bins and starting with some asiatic and oriental varieties. Then as you garden from year to year, always be on the look-out for varieties you haven't tried yet.
• Start flowers from seeds. March is great for starting these annuals from seeds: bachelor's buttons, marigolds, nasturtium and zinnias. All you need is a flat, seeds and some good seed-starting soil, or get everything you need in a seed-starting kit. Click for a few simple steps to seed-starting success.
• Fertilize. Your existing bedding plants, trees, ground covers, shrubs and vines generally need fertilization in March. If extreme cold has caused unusual damage, wait for new growth to appear before fertilizing.
• Get your mower runnin'. Once the grass really starts to grow, you'll want your lawn mower ready to go. Here's how to get it ready to perform at its peak: sharpen the blade, tighten all bolts, drain and replace gas and oil, check the spark plug and replace if necessary, and check/replace oil and air filters. And remember, the repair shop always gets busy during spring, so plan ahead for any mower maintenance you want them to do. Or click here for some do-it-yourself tips.
• Slug patrol. As warmer weather visits us, so too do slimy little garden pests. You need to get out and control them either by hand or with slug bait placed around newly emerging plants. If you're working the garden soil, squash any things that look like little white BBs – those are likely slug or snail eggs.

Here's to a March full of gardening joy!

While much of the information in these tips is applicable in several gardening zones/climates, some of the plants and timing suggested are best suited to the Northwest, generally in the mild/wet growing regions found along the I-5 corridor. You should make appropriate adjustments or consult local gardening experts in regions whose climates differ from this area of the Northwest.