March News 2005 

What's happening in our garden for March: Wow! February was the most incredible month that I can remember for this time of year. In fact we have set an all time record for the most sunshine ever recorded for the month of February. Today I was out gardening in just a t-shirt. The blossoms are just ready to burst. With a little rain they will be out in no time. As I am now babysitting my grandson I have had to cut down on my gardening as there just isn’t enough hours in a day to get everything done. I much rather have a neat and tidy garden and be able to keep up with everything than to have too much that ends up looking untidy and neglected. Therefore, I have only planted 3 varieties of tomato seeds, basil, leeks and red onions so far. I am determined to not ‘over plant’ this year. Before my grandson came along I used to sow tons of seeds which was actually a waste anyway as we really did not need all of the seedlings. I would give away plants every year. This year I am cutting down and planting only my favourites. These are: Tomatoes – Roma, Sweet 100, and Beefsteak Basil – Genovese Leeks – no preference really Onions – Red Burgermaster (an incredible red sweet onion that I find also stores well even though it is not a recommended winter keeper.) It remains to be seen whether I can hold myself to the promise of cutting back on some plantings. 

March "To Do" List:
-divide perennials, lifting clumps and cutting them into 2 or more pieces. Replant immediately and water in well.
-aerate lawn or sow seed.
-trim ornamental grasses and clean up dead leaves.
-do final pruning of hybrid tea and floribunda roses. Add a sprinkling of Epsom salts to roses and water in.
-add organic mulch to garden beds.
-plant new perennials, shrubs, hedges, vines and trees. Water in well.
-pull up weeds and hoe garden beds.
-fertilize trees and shrubs.
-dig overwintering green manure into the soil.
-prepare the soil in vegetable beds.
-spray slug-infested leaves with a 10% mixture of household ammonia & water.
-edge and repair lawns. 

Greenhouse Gardening for March: (for a cool greenhouse kept at 40 - 45F (5 - 7C)
-plants in bloom for this month – pelargonium, begonia, jade plant, cymbidium orchid, odontoglossum orchid.
-maintain a minimum temperature of 40F (5C) in the cool greenhouse if frost sensitive plants are stored.
-move overwintered begonia tubers onto heating cables. Water lightly until sprouts start to show then fertilize.
-trim back overwintered potted plants, fertilize, move to sunny spot and start watering more often.
-continue to sow summer annuals.
-sow peppers, eggplant, broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, kohlrabi & mesculin.
-dampen down greenhouse lightly on warm days and ventilate. Keep dome covers on newly planted seeds during the night. Uncover on sunny days or you will cook the seeds.
-keep greenhouse clean and free of debris to keep pests at bay. 

Herbal Hints:
-remove mulch and trim back shrubby herbs such as lavender, thyme, etc.
-cut down dead leaves of oregano, mint, etc. when you see new growth start. 

Growing Garlic: Garlic is best planted in the fall but it can also be planted in the spring. Set each clove, root end downwards, at a depth of about 2”. Then ignore, except for a bit of weeding until the flower heads begin to form. Snip the stems below the buds. Continue to ignore the garlic until the foliage turns yellow. This will typically be in mid August. Your garlic can then be harvested. 

Garlic & Honey Marinade: (perfect with chicken, beef or spareribs.
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
2 Tbsp liquid honey
2 Tbsp olive oil
4 Tbsp soy sauce Place your meat in a bowl. Mix together all marinade ingredients and pour over the meat. Toss, cover and refrigerate for at least 5 hours. Drain and cook the meat using the marinade as a basting sauce. 

Handmade Soap News: Part 22 – Soap Making Peddlers would travel from town to town purchasing the potash made on the homesteads. The peddlers in turn would sell the potash to the manufacturers who converted it to pear lash at their factories known as ‘ashies.’ These factories contained a kiln used for the conversion of potash to pear lash. 

Natural Cleaning Products: Sink Cleanser:
-1/2 cup baking soda
-1 cup vinegar Combine ingredients in and use to scrub sink. Rinse well. 

Organic Gardening Tips: Organic Rose Foods that roses love:
1) Fish Fertilizer: Excellent source of nitrogen and great as a foliar spray. Soil applications last many months. Apply early in the season to get your roses off to a good start.
2) Sea Kelp: High in potassium with mega doses of other trace elements. Long-lasting, up to 12 months. This is supposed to be really good stuff! My sister-in-law, the rose expert, swears by this.
3) Cow Manure: Apply any time you can get your hands on it as it is low in N-P-K but excellent as a soil conditioner and cure-all of ailing roses. It is almost impossible to add too much. Just make sure that it is well rotted or you can burn your plants. 

Health and Wellness Rhubarb Rhubarb is easy to grow and loaded with Vit. C. 1 cup of unsweetened rhubarb contains only 29 calories but needs to be sweetened to be enjoyed. It is possible to lessen the amount of sugar considerably by substituting another sweeter fruit for some of the rhubarb such as apples. These make good partners. Rhubarb also goes well with strawberries and raspberries. Two herbs, Angelica and Sweet Cicely are sometimes added to rhubarb to counteract the tartness and thus reduce the amount of sugar that must be added. With Angelica, try adding about 1/4 cup of fresh young stems cut fine. With Sweet Cicely try about the same amount of both stems and the young ferny leaves cut fine. In each case the herb has its own flavour which you may or may not enjoy when added to the rhubarb so add with a light hand the first time you try this. Rhubarb is tough, versatile and requires very little work to produce excellent crops. How sweet a pie should be is a matter of taste. Consider the following recipe as a basic recipe and experiment with all sorts of changes. For example try using 1 1/2 cups each of rhubarb and apple chunks. This will allow you to cut the sugar to about 1/2 cup. Also try adding Angelica or Sweet Cicely (but not both!) as mentioned above. Other spices which you may wish to add are nutmeg, cinnamon, mace and/or allspice 

Basic Rhubarb Pie: Pastry, enough for 2 crusts
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 cup sugar
3 cups rhubarb, cut into 1 inch pieces Line pie plate with the bottom crust. Dot the crust with half of the butter. Mix together the rhubarb, flour, cornstarch and sugar and place on the bottom crust. Dot the top with the rest of the butter. Roll out the top crust and cover the fruit, poking a few air holes in the crust and crimping the sides. Bake in a 350 degree oven until the crust is lightly browned, about 45 minutes. Enjoy. 

Thanks for visiting! Susan

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