What to plant in March: zone 1b
A rule-of-thumb starting point for zone 1b: last spring frost around June 15, first fall frost around August 15. Zones are set by winter lows, not frost dates, so two gardens in the same zone can be weeks apart. Measure your ZIP below for dates from your area's own 30-year record.
Plan & order
- Map this year's beds2 sowings: Mar 2 and Mar 9
Rotate families off last year's ground. Nightshades, brassicas and cucurbits each move to a new bed. Sowing again a few weeks later keeps the harvest coming instead of arriving all at once.
Dormant care
- Sharpen and oil toolsaround Mar 16
Clean, sharpen and oil blades while there's time. Dull tools bruise plants and slow you down.
- Prune dormant fruit treesaround Mar 30
Prune apples, pears and peaches while fully dormant. Open the center, remove crossing wood.
Start indoors
- Sow microgreens indoorsaround Mar 23
A tray on the windowsill gives you a cut of fresh greens every 10-14 days through the cold months.
Turn this into your own calendar
Want this calendar emailed to you?
Get the full 12-month version for your ZIP area. Every sowing, transplant, and harvest window, with reminders you can add to your calendar.