What to plant in March: zone 4a

Prune apples, pears and peaches while fully dormant. Open the center, remove crossing wood.

Patch row cover, cold frames and hoops now so a late freeze can't catch you unprepared.

Alliums need 10-12 weeks under lights before they go out. The earliest sowing of the year.

10 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Match day-length to your latitude. Long-day north of 37°, short-day south.

10 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Plant seedlings deep in a 6 in trench and hill soil up the stem twice during the season. That buried length is the tender white shaft you're growing for.

10 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Celery is a water crop: it turns stringy and bitter the moment it dries out. Keep soil consistently moist and feed steadily. Homegrown stalks are thinner and far more flavorful than store celery.

10 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Needs a long, steady season: start indoors early and keep soil evenly moist the entire time or the knob stays small.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Pinch first flowers on transplants so the plant invests in roots before setting fruit.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Soak seeds 24 hrs before sowing. Cut outer stems and it comes back for years in mild zones.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Divide the clump every 3 years: one plant becomes six with no effort.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Eggplant sulks in cold soil. Transplant 3 weeks after last frost, not on it. Harvest while skin is glossy: dull skin means bitter, seedy flesh.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Sow thickly in a band and harvest by pulling every other plant: the rest fill in the gap.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Corking (light brown cracks near the stem) means the pepper is fully ripe and at peak heat, not damaged.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Picked green it's a poblano; left to ripen red on the plant and dried, it becomes an ancho chile.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Thin-walled pods dry easily on the plant or strung indoors; harvest for drying once fully red.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Pick while still green and wrinkled for the classic blistered appetizer; about 1 in 10 fruits carries real heat.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Cut back hard before it flowers and sets seed, or it self-sows into every corner of the garden.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Grows 4-6 ft tall once established; give it the back of the bed and divide the crown every few years to keep it productive.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Fence it off if cats roam the neighborhood: they'll flatten the plant and any seedlings around it rolling in the scent.

8 weeks of indoor growth before your last frost (05-20). Deadhead spent spikes to extend bloom all summer; bees and hummingbirds favor it over almost anything else nearby.

Soil is ready -8 weeks before last frost.