Embracing the Gardening Challenges of March

I don't know about you, but March is a special month for me. Why? Spring is a magical time when the outdoors comes back to life, and a gardener like me can visualize all the work I want to start this year. I’m considering which plants I could get in the ground right away, trees and shrubs that I have seen in a plant catalog, or that one giant ornamental grass that still needs to be divided. Even though I want to start immediately, it is important to remember we aren't out of the cold yet.
Kansas is a very unique place, even in the Midwest. We have negative overnight temperatures one day, and 3 days later, it's 60 and sunny. In years past, gardeners in Kansas have sat in limbo to plant or not to plant, because of potential freezing temperatures. This can get frustrating if you are not very patient. I want to jump at the first opportunity to put colorful annuals, such as snapdragons and pansies, in the ground. However, not every annual I want will handle the inevitable dip into freezing temps.
Even seeds that I cascaded over my flowerbed are liable to get tricked by the up and down temperatures. If you plan to do some gardening in early March, you need to get some sort of frost blanket. Frost is tiny frozen water droplets that can form on outside surfaces during overnight freezes. A frost blanket protects the tender tissue of the plants by retaining enough heat to stabilize the temperature surrounding the plants it covers.
Trees and shrubs that have historically been hardy in this area can also struggle with frost in the early spring. Saucer magnolia trees are notorious for blooming just as temperatures heat up for a short period, only for a hard frost to follow, typically damaging the newly opened flowers. I know there are people in the metro area who have never seen their magnolia tree in full bloom because the frost took them out just as they were getting going. But there is some hope.
The good people running the John C. Pair Center in Sedgwick County are working hard to help get a better product to the consumers. When erratic Kansas weather happens, plants at the John C. Pair Center also experience these conditions. These plants are our test subjects. Data on the best-performing varieties and genetics is made available to suppliers and nurseries in Kansas and surrounding areas. These varieties will be introduced and advertised as able to handle temperature extremes. Adding these selected varieties to your property will add some resilience to your yard for years to come.
Dividing perennials is still a safe activity that can be done this early in the season. Hosta, grasses, daylilies, sedums, yarrows, and more are right for division in the spring. One great benefit to dividing perennials is spreading beauty to other parts of your garden that might be bare, preventing erosion and providing habitat to wildlife. Also, landscape plants can lose their vigor when they become too large. By dividing them, you will encourage new, vigorous growth from the smaller plants.
As we move through this unpredictable time in the calendar, remember to be patient. Not completing these early spring tasks will not make or break your garden this year. Before you know it, the daily temperatures will be in the 90s, and the tasks needed in your garden will have changed to other priorities. However, researching appropriate varieties, and planting for our volatile temperatures, will help your success rates.

by Markis Hill, Horticulture Ornamentals and Turf, 2024