Wichita gardener’s almanac for March 19, 2016

Happy spring with a dose of cold — Spring arrives officially at 11:30 p.m. CDT Saturday, though we’ve been celebrating a while. Overnight temperatures in the upper 20s have been forecast, though a quick warm-up is expected to follow. Hopefully a quick freeze will not be enough to deter spring flowers or later fruit harvests.

Every day brings more color filling in the dull winter landscape. The past week has brought the first tulips into bloom along with lots of daffodils and green grass at Botanica and Bartlett Arboretum in Belle Plaine, and many places in between.

Time to put down crabgrass pre-emergent — Redbuds have also started to bloom, which is the signal for putting down pre-emergent if crabgrass is a problem in your lawn. If you put down Barricade in November, the crabgrass preventer in it may last through spring. Do not use a pre-emergent if you plan to overseed your lawn this spring, unless it is the type that contains siduron. If you put down a short-term crabgrass preventer, plan to re-apply it in eight weeks.

Overseeding a fescue lawn — If you’re planning to overseed fescue this spring, do so before mid-April; if you use a crabgrass preventer at the same time, make sure it contains siduron.

Plant — Cabbage, broccoli, endive, cauliflower, lettuce, potatoes, radishes, peas, turnips, beets.

Improving the soil — If you’d like to add organic matter to your soil this spring to improve its structure, water absorption and air circulation, be sure the organic matter is well decomposed and finely shredded or ground, Ward Upham of K-State says. Manure and compost should be have “a good earthy smell without a hint of ammonia,” Upham writes in the Horticulture 2016 newsletter this week. Put a 2-inch layer of organic matter on the soil surface and work it into the soil thoroughly, he says.

Be sure the soil is dry enough to work first; you don’t want to produce clods that won’t break down. One way to test it is to take a handful of soil and squeeze. If any water comes out, it’s way too wet. Even if it doesn’t , push a finger into the soil that you had squeezed. If the soil crumbles, it is dry enough, but if your finger just leaves an indentation, the soil needs to dry out more, Upham says.

Garden events

Home and garden show in Newton — “Gardening Through the Ages: Victorian, Victory and Modern” is the theme of the 2016 Harvey County Home and Garden Show this weekend in Newton. The show will feature a farmers market, home and garden exhibitors, plant suppliers, an art show, garden and home seminars, door prizes, and lunch for sale. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday at the National Guard Armory, 400 Grandview in Newton. Kids can make a mini scarecrow at 2 p.m. both days. Admission is $1.

Indoor seed-starting class — A class on starting seeds indoors for vegetable gardening will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at the Extension Center at 21st and Ridge Road. The cost is $5. The class can be taken on its own or as part of the Grow Good Food Gardening series, which is $35 for all eight classes. Register online at sedgwick.ksu.edu.

Talk on growing small fruit in a home garden — Extension agent Rebecca McMahon will give a talk Tuesday at a meeting of the Wichita Organic Garden Club about growing small fruit in a Kansas home garden. The meeting will be at 7 p.m. at Botanica and is free and open to the public.

Healthy meal-building talk — Damian Rowe, a nutritional health coach at Natural Grocers, will be at Botanica on Wednesday to talk about how to use Natural Grocers’ Healthy Meal Wheel hand-out to make every meal healthy. His lunchtime lecture, at 12:15, is included in Botanica admission.

Project Beauty Card & Game Party — The public is invited to bring cards or games or their Bunco group or bridge club to Botanica on Thursday for Project Beauty’s annual card and game party. Refreshments will be served. Tickets are $10 at the door. No reservation is necessary.

Annie Calovich

This story was originally published March 18, 2016 at 10:35 AM with the headline "Wichita gardener’s almanac for March 19, 2016."