PATCH PICKS: Premature Green Thumb or Prime Planting Time?

March is a tease. Sunny and pleasant one day, blustery and cold the next. The first bulbs have thumbed their noses at gravity, bursting up through the ground toward the sun in defiance. Here and there, trees blossom into soul-soothing pinks and whites.

Local vegetable gardeners start to get an itchy green feeling in their opposable thumbs. Well-worn seed catalogs sit on coffee tables and the backs of toilet seats. Is it time yet?

Patience is the key to successful gardening this time of the year. Even the most hardy of plants are slow to germinate and grow in our maritime Northwest gardens. Today’s Patch Picks will set you up for late winter/early spring success whether you have a back 40 or a couple of pots on the deck.

Relevant Resource: Typing “garden books” on the Google search bar will net you three-quarters of a billion results. Let me narrow it down for you. Successful gardens depend on choosing species that will grow in a specific climate. Seattle Tilth published a great booklet called Maritime Northwest Garden Guide tailored for our finicky part of the globe. Order it online or pick it up at PCC for something like $10.

Construct a Cloche: Basically a temporary greenhouse, a cloche is generally constructed out of plastic hoops and covered in clear plastic or glass. Seeds planted under a cloche are protected from extreme cold temperatures and therefore germinate and grow more quickly. It can extend the spring growing season by a few weeks on the front end.

Start Indoors: A sunny southern- or western-facing windowsill is a great place to germinate seeds. Assuming your house is heated, no bottom heat is required. If you lack the proper window location, a propagation box, including bottom heat and a supplemental light source, can help you get a jump start on the growing season.

Select Appropriate Species: Sowing tomato seeds directly in the garden this early will yield nothing but disappointment. This time of year, it’s best to think “green.” Peas (snap, snow and shell), green onions, arugula, spinach and miner’s lettuce are a few varieties that work well throughout March.

In late March, gardeners can think about planting some spuds including Yellow Finn, Peruvian Blue and Cinnabar as well as several varieties of Jerusalem Artichokes. If you make the effort to construct a cloche, baby carrots, beets and broccoli are good contenders.

Windowsills will support all manner of herbs like chives, lemon balm, marjoram and parsley. And this is the best place to start the summer favorites like peppers and tomatoes.

Join a CSA: Even if your suburban garden produces a bumper crop, chances are it won’t provide for all of your produce needs. This is where a CSA comes in. Community Supported Agriculture is a way for a local farm to produce directly for customers who pay an upfront fee at the beginning of the growing season for 15 to 25 weeks' worth of food. Delivery points vary with the CSA. Some deliver to seasonal farmer’s markets. For a list of local CSA’s, check out ecovian.com or call the Seattle Tilth office at 206-633-0451.