January

• Try a new flower and vegetable - maybe Swiss chard
• Read catalogs and design new gardens on paper
• All year – keep the compost bin or pile working for you, the best fertilizer
• Start attending workshops and seminars to learn new methods and ways of growing flowers and vegetables – many are free
• Get your seed order ready to send
• Prepare beds for early planting of hardy cole crops
• Vegetable scraps, raw trimmings can be dug right into the beds to rot
• Attend seed and plant swaps
• Find new varieties of seed and grow your own plants
• Small carrots grow best in the TriCities
• Plant carrots this month as the moon wanes

 

February

• Order seeds and plants
• Keep watch at plant nurseries for new plants and vegetables
• Crocus, daffodils and other spring blooming bulbs are coming up and blooming
• Add a little bulb fertilizer as bulbs peek out
• Remember to plant a row for the hungry
• Fewer plants, properly grown, produce a large harvest
• Plan to grow enough to freeze, can and dry for next winter
• Plan a garden budget to live with
• Involve children in the garden
• A worthy goal: self-sufficiency
• Plan to grow most of your own plants, especially all special varieties

March

• Prepare beds with additional compost
• It is fine to bury raw trimmings from the kitchen into the beds to rot
• Soil in raised beds should come close to the top of the frame
•  Locate a source of rotted horse manure to fill compost bins
• As blooms fade from spring bulbs, Allow the leaves to die down, do not cut them off, bulbs need the leaves to make new blooms next year
• Iris of many varieties begin to bloom, mark clumps that are not blooming, these  need to be divided in June
• Plant cole crops, collards, broccoli, cabbage, and all hardy greens
• We may have snow again this month, keep the row cover close by
• Read the seed packets of tender plants, start seed when it will have about 45 days to grow into planting size plants to set into the garden about May 15
• Plan to have crops coming in, being eaten, and replanted year around

April

• Plant onions and carrots
• Iris continue to bloom, deadhead when the stalk is completely finished blooming
• Do not compost iris leaves and stems – cut off and remove from the property to prevent spread of fungus and other problems.
• Continue to plant cole crops as in March

May

• Last frost date usually May 15
• Plant carrots and vegetables that enjoy cool weather
• Plant beans
• As the tall bearded iris stop blooming, the Japanese iris, (Ensata) bloom. If you don’t have any, try to purchase at least one plant

June

• Plant warm season vegetables as tomatoes and tender annuals
• Devote one hour a week to weed removal, otherwise they will outgrow flowers
• Keep up with weeds, use round-up with a natural bristle paint brush to touch leaves as they come up
• Deadhead flowers, trim old peony and iris bloom stalks to tidy up the plants.
• Dig garlic when the leaves begin to turn brown, gently wipe off dirt, place in a cool dry place to dry before removing tops

July

• Continue deadheading
• Pick lettuce by the leaf when it is small, replant as used

August

• Start greens and fall vegetables, add shade if needed
• Plant onions and onion sets for fall eating
• Can tomatoes and beans
• Freeze tomato sauce and a few vegetables

September

• Stay on top of weeds, before they set seed, cut them off at the ground
• Prepare hoop house, check condition of row cover plant carrots inside along with greens
• Prepare indoor potted plants to come inside for the winter
• Apply winter mulch, undyed, as composted leaves and plant materials
• Keep mulch six inches away from the trunks of woody shrubs and trees

October

• Bring house plants indoors
• First frost date is usually October 15
• Add a little fertilizer, water it in and groom the plants
• Plant garlic during the dark of the moon (new moon) early this month
• Plant tulips, crocus, daffodils and other spring blooming bulbs
• Plant winter greens
• Order and plant new varieties of peonies
• Great time to select and plant trees
• Selectively prune branches as leaves fall
• Compost leaves, brown gold for the garden
• Tidy up flower beds, cut old tops from perennials

November – Happy Thanksgiving

• Obtain and new calendar that has signs of the moon and planting dates
• Winter vegetables can still be planted in hoop houses

December – Holidays are here

• This is a busy month with holidays and families
• Put up and plan to take down any decorations
• Keep an eye on the winter vegetables, uncover or open cover on warm days, close before sundown each day
• Minimal time in the garden, leave time for family and friends and lots of fun
• Limit garden work to picking up, raking leaves to compost, and light pruning of old blooms
• Enjoy harvesting lettuces and carrots from the hoop house
• Add well rotted compost to vegetable beds
• Have a soil analysis done if needed
• Add amendments to beds if indicated by the soil test
• On nice days, walk around the garden and removet weeds that are thriving in bitter weather.