March In The Tropical Garden
March In The Tropical Garden |
I don't know if this goes for everyone in the tropics right now, but it's been pretty cold in the garden lately. Where I live in Hilo, on Hawaii Island, the rain has been non stop for the past month, Mauna Kea has the most snow its had in years, the ocean water temps are a chilly 65 degrees, and my sweater has barely come off. What that brings for us in the garden this month, only time will tell. If you have some temperate crops such as grapes or apples, you might see a pretty good harvest this year. Or we may see a poor harvest in otherwise reliable bearers such as Lychee or Papaya. That's what is so exciting about gardening, you never know what Mother Nature will throw at you. What You Should Be Doing GardenBefore Anything Else, Get Your Seeding DoneIf you haven't already, you better get on with seeding for your spring and summer garden. If you wait too long, it'll be getting pretty late in the season, so do that first. Now is a great time to get a lot of those warm season plants seeded such as tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant and squash as well as a lot of your favorite herbs such as basil, mint, and cilantro. Keep in mind, that when you do choose the plants you're going to grow, choose varieties that do well in a tropical climate. I'm releasing a video on YouTube next week covering that very topic. Prep Your BedsLast month I suggested you prep your garden beds. If you still haven't done that, do it after you're done seeding. You need to make sure all those baby plants will have a home to get transplanted into. To make a NEW bed in rocky soil, I lay out cardboard to smother the weeds. Make sure there are no gaps. Then I ideally cover it with soil mixed with compost and manure about a foot high. I live in Puna where my soil is literal rock, but I was still able to do this. It required many truckloads of material brought onsite but it really is the best way to have great garden beds in a rocky area. You can also lay cardboard and use the county mulch/compost. If you do that I would let it sit for a month and then make little holes in the mulch, place a bit of soil or compost and then transplant. Feed Your PlantsMarch is also a great time to get back into feeding your plants, because they should be getting pretty hungry right about now. What should you feed them? Compost. Mulch. Manure. Spread some Nitrogen rich fertilizer such as blood meal or trace minerals that can be found in things like kelp meal. If you're into Korean Natural Farming, apply IMO's. Spray worm tea or compost tea. Whatever method of gardening you employ, remember to feed your plants this month! Know Your PlantsIt's OK to admit it. We are all guilty of it. Many of us grow plants without really knowing much about them at all. Have you ever considered changing that? How much cooler would it be if you knew more about the plants that you were growing. How to care for them? How to Propagate them? If that's you, I invite you to check out the How To Grow section on my blog, where we cover dozens of plants that could be grown in the tropical garden.
Till Next Month. A Hui Hou!! |
Homesteadinʻ Hawaii
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