Wilson County News
Wilson County News • 1012 C St • Floresville • TX • 78114 • Ph: 830-216-4519 • Fax: 830-393-3219 • Email:
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Login
Not a subscriber? Click here.
Are you a WCN subscriber?
Set up your password.

 
E-Mail
Password
  Remember me
 
  Forgot password?
La Vernia News
Google
Google

Preview the Paper
Preview this week's Paper

Agriculture Today

March 2013 Gardening Calendar




E-Mail this Story to a Friend
Print this Story

March 1, 2013 | 652 views | Post a comment

This is an occasional column available to all users. Watch for Calvin Finch's weekly column, South Texas Gardener, every week in the Wilson County News. Subscribe today! https://wilsoncountynews.com/subscribe-today.php?

It is too early to fertilize the lawn. After you mow real grass twice, then fertilize. That is usually after April 15. It is time, however, to apply a pre-emergent herbicide to prevent crabgrass and sandburs. Apply Crabgrass Preventer, Amaze or XL the first of March and at the end of May.

There is also still time to aerate and top dress your lawn.

Most of the fruit trees bloom in March. For peaches and apples, you begin your spray program when the petals have fallen off two thirds of the flowers.

There are fruit spray mixes that include both an insecticide such as Seven or Malathion and a fungicide such as captan or you can obtain and spray them separately.

Organic gardeners can spray sulfur products, neem oil and/or spinosod.

Spray once per week for best results.

It is also time to begin the spray program on hybrid tea roses. The usual fungicide is triforine (fuginex) and the insecticide for roses is acephate. Organic gardeners can spray their roses with the same products used as organic pesticides on fruit trees.

It is not too late to prune roses early this month. Remove the dead or diseased wood and open up the middle by removing stems that grow to the middle. Reduce height to about 3 feet. There should be 3 or 4 stems left arising from the base at about a 60⁰ angle. A properly pruned rose can look pretty stark. Don’t worry; it will quickly fill with foliage and bloom.

Fertilize fruit trees once with slow release lawn fertilizer if you did not fertilize in February. Apply 1 cup per inch of diameter over the roots under the crown.

Fertilize roses once every four weeks with 1 cup of the same slow release lawn fertilizer (19-5-9).

Late in the month zinnias can be planted if you have the space. Snapdragons, pansies and the other cool weather flowers should be showy for another two months.

March is the month we can plant green beans and summer squash in the garden. Sometimes if it is warm, tomatoes planted at about March 15 will prosper but April 1 is the usual date.

Bluebonnets start blooming in March. Remember that if wildflowers are going to reseed for next spring, the flowers must be allowed to fade and the seeds mature before they are cut down.

If your live oak leaves did not fall in February, they will fall in March. Live oak leaves make great mulch. It is especially good as mulch in the vegetable garden because it is easy to move and is made up of small pieces. Use live oak leaves for garden paths. If you do not need the mulch, use the leaves for the compost pile or let one of the neighbors use it. Live oak leaves are too valuable to discard into the landfill.

Texas columbines and crossvine bloom in March. Watch for the first hummingbird of the year on their blooms. It is also a good time to put up your sugar water feeders. Use 5 parts water to 1 part sugar by volume.

The purple martins begin nesting in March; put your martin houses up early in the month if you forgot to do so in February.

Harvest greens, brussel sprouts, carrots, beets, lettuce, and turnips as you need them. Quality often remains high through April.

Calvin Finch Ph.D. is a Horticulturist and Director with the Texas A&M Water Conservation and Technology Center.
 


Your Opinions and Comments
Be the first to comment on this story!

You must be logged in to post comments:



Other Agriculture Today
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. April report forecasts tight corn, soybean supply (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Bee swarms, some low insect populations may... (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Deer gear more toward nursery plants (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Farmall receives new life, despite difficulties (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Floresville FFA Team Roping (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Gray, Marble to meet ‘Down on the Farm’ (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Groups ‘COOL’ off about Canadian tariffs threat (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Hay & Forage report for May 10 (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Local livestock market reports (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. RODEO & AG VENTURES (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Roundup of EC FFA’s winning ways (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Texas Cash Market recap, May 4 (May 15, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Annual Luling Foundation Field Day (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Beef cattle field day May 24 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Cattlemen unite to remove remnants of former... (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. East Central’s ag student teachers (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Farm Bureau addresses Capitol Hill (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Feral hog workshop in Floresville (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Grass-fed beef conference (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Hay & Forage report for May 3 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Jack Frost continues to take bites out of... (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. La Vernia CDE teams head to state (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Local livestock market reports (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Much of state’s warm-season grass pastures... (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Posse playday May 18 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Rainwater harvesting May 18 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Rodeo & AgVentures (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Save the monarchs — plant more blooms (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Social media training May 15 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Texas Cash Market recap, April 27 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Texas ranchers meet in Washington, D.C. (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Wanted: riders (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Wilson County … home of the ‘closed range’ (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Worm-composting event May 11 (May 8, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Busy Beavers win big in San Antonio, Houston (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Comment period nears for food safety rules (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Freeze may crop bounty for peaches (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Hay & Forage report for April 26 (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Local livestock market reports (May 1, 2013)
May 2013 Gardening Calendar (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. RODEO & AG VENTURES (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Texas Cash Market recap, April 20 (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. The best time to harvest root crops (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Water Quality field day May 9 (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. Water-well owner training set for May 9 (May 1, 2013)
Full article available to Wilson County News subscribers only. Click here to subscribe. ‘Where does your water shed?’ (May 1, 2013)


WCN Your Ad Here AG
Coupons ag-right
 
^Top
  Copyright © 2013 Wilson County News. All rights reserved. Web development by Drewa Designs.
^Top