March is usually the month when everything starts blooming, depending on the region. If you have a yard, you can do many things this month. So, what yard work can you do in March?
There are several things you can do in March with spring around the corner. These include cleaning the debris, aerating the soil, getting all the seeds, fertilizing the garden, pruning trees and shrubs, planting trees, preparing the garden soil, testing the soil pH, and making your compost bin.
However, it’s impossible to predict how March will turn out. So, you shouldn’t be in a hurry. Make sure the soil is workable before you start anything. Here, we discuss the yard work you can do in March.
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1. Clean Debris in The Yard
March is the time to start cleaning up your yard. After the winter, you’ll have to do lots of things in the yard. Rake any leftover leaves. You may also need to mow the grass. If you have a garden or plant bed, you also need to clean it up. Mowing your grass will stimulate the root system as the planting season begins. Ensure that you mow short so that you can reduce any weed growth.
You may also need to remove the pieces of dead grass gathered above the soil. However, you could leave some dead grasses in the soil and let them break down naturally. If they’ve accumulated too fast, they could prevent the air and moisture from reaching the grass. In that case, it could weaken your lawn. You can remove them using a rake or dethatch machine. Renting the machine will cost you a few bucks.
2. Aerate the soil
One of the best ways to prepare your soil for the new season is to aerate it. You can rent an aeration machine from home centers and hardware stores in your area. Aerating the soil at the start of the season will let water and air reach the roots of anything you plant there.
3. Get all the Seeds You Need
You should have all the seeds you need before the spring starts. It’s not until the rain starts before you visit the seed store to get what you need. If you’re planning to start gardening, get all the seeds you need and organize them based on the planting dates.
4. Fertilize the garden
As you’re preparing for a new planting season, you should also ready the garden beds. There’s no better way to do this than adding fertilizers to the soil. Once you’ve fully prepared the soil, fertilize the bed. You can also add a crabgrass preventer to the soil. This will ensure that weeds won’t grow on your garden bed when the weather turns warm enough.
If you’ve added a weed barrier, make sure you don’t disturb the topsoil. After adding the fertilizer and weed barrier, water it thoroughly. But if you’re planning to reseed your grass, you shouldn’t add a crabgrass preventer. That’ll prevent any grass seeds from sprouting.
5. Prune Trees and Shrubs
Prune the non-flowering shrubs and trees in your yard once the snow has subsided. If you have any shrubs or trees that flower in the fall, summer, or spring, prune them. However, you shouldn’t prune any bleeding trees that you might have in your yard, such as maple, birch, etc. Wait till the leaves start developing again.
It’s also possible that winter storms affected some of the trees or shrubs in your yard. In that case, March is a good time to clean them up and prune them up. But if a tree or shrub has been damaged by cold or frost, you should wait until the growth starts before touching them. If you covered your tree trunks with protective wraps or burlap during the winter, now is the time to remove them.
6. Plant Trees
March is also a good month to plan all container-grown and bare-root shrubs and trees. This allows them to take root before the season fully blooms. As soon as the soil becomes workable, make sure you transplant any shrub or tree. It’s best to do it before they start leafing. In March, you can also plant roses, bitches, dogwoods, cherries, oak trees, etc. You’re good to go as long as the soil is waterlogged or frozen.
7. Prepare the Garden Soil
Once the soil is dry enough to work it, it’s time to start preparing the soil. You can tell if the soil is workable by whether it crumbles when you squeeze it. If it turns into a mulch, you might want to wait a bit, so you don’t compact the soil. Let it dry out before you do anything on the soil. It’s even better not to walk in the garden until you’re sure the soil is workable.
As for your flower garden with perennials, March is the time to loosen the winter mulches. Ensure you do it carefully to prevent damage and remove all dead foliage. If your soil has a high alkaline level, you should apply sulfur to the soil around plants that prefer acid, such as rhododendrons, azaleas, dogwood, hollies, etc.
8. Test the Soil pH
You can also test the soil pH if you didn’t test it the previous year. This guides you in getting the right fertilizer. There are several soil test kits that you can use. You can also send your soil to the lab for testing. However, you don’t need to test your soil every year. Once every two to three years is okay. If it’s the first time you’re using the soil, you may need to test it. But if the soil has been doing well for the past few years, you may not have to bother. There’s nothing to worry about if you’ve found a natural way to enrich the soil using compost, mulch, or green manure.
9. Make Your Own Compost Bin
If you don’t have a compost bin yet, you can start now. It’s something to keep you occupied while the weather is still cold. As the temperature gets warmer, the compost pile will cook naturally. It’s best to start very early like this, so you’ll have the compost ready by the time you want to start planting.
In Conclusion
March is an exciting month for anyone with a garden in their yard. You can do several things while you wait for the spring to start. It’s important to make plans for the season, and you can keep a journal to make things more interesting.
