What a pleasure it is to walk into a nursery this time of year. The almost-forgotten smell of warmth and plants, the friendly faces of everyone you encounter and the ever-present feeling of optimism being in a nursery just after daylight saving time starts.
There is a only one rule to follow here: Make a list of what you need before you go. Alaska nurseries just have too many tempting goodies in March.
Buying both dahlia and begonia tubers should be on your list this week. The good ones are the ones that go first. Hopefully for me, you are not the only one reading this column and buying supplies this week. Just know Ben Franklin, or whoever said it, was right in this instance: The early bird gets the worm and all that.
With dahlia tubers, you pretty much just need to concentrate on the type and variety you are buying. You can get all manner of plant sizes and flower shapes, and they have nothing to do with the size or shape of the tuber. Just pay attention and read the label; do not just rely on the pictures. It is a real bummer to end up with 8-inch plants when you wanted those big, 3-foot-tall, dinner-plate dahlias.
The same is true for tuberous begonias. Read the labels so you know what you are getting. And for heaven's sake, label the ones you buy so you will know what they are when you win first prize at the fair. With tuberous begonias, I always go for the plump ones over the thin ones. I look for tiny pink stems growing in the concave section of the tuber, but it isn't a factor in buying -- it just means quicker greening up. Generally, plump and bigger is better.
I normally wait until April rolls around to start the begonia tubers, but why wait this year? Fill a flat with good compost or organic soil. Plant them, concave side up, by pressing them into the media. This, of course, only after you dip the bottom and sides of the tuber into an endomycorrhizal fungal mix. Try not to get soil (or water, later) into the concave depression. This is where the new growth will emerge while the roots will come from the bottom and sides of the tuber. Keep the soil slightly moist and wait for the little pink stems to appear.
Obviously, labels and an endomycorrhizal fungal mix should be on your nursery list this week, too. If you are growing any pea plants -- be they edible or ornamental -- you should also get a packet of nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
Next, good starting soil should be on the list. I like compost. I do not like someone else adding fertilizers or anything else to my soil. You may like something else. Look around. If you are new to gardening, you can try a few different seed starting mixes or just ask the nursery staff. Great staff help is one of the advantages of shopping for gardening supplies at a nursery over a box store, though they have great soils, as well.
And I suppose it is OK to buy a few seed packets. Just a few. Be realistic and make sure they are already on your garden plan (the one you draw up now and follow for the rest of the spring).
When you buy seeds, read the labels. Look for days to germinate. Anything over 15 days is a long time and more difficult. Don't get suckered by something you have never heard of. The wonderful thing these days is that you can always use Google on your phone to help you make an intelligent choice about buying seeds.
I always like to try to grow things from seed that are not readily available at nurseries, like canary bird vine or rhodochitin or tall snapdragons. The rest of the plants I need I can always buy. Remember: You only have so much room and time to spend on growing seeds, and our nurseries do the very best of any in the world (and that is not an exaggeration).
Finally, this week, you will find that some nurseries have little fuchsia starts. You will need four for a single basket. Make sure you get the kind you want, i.e., hanging versus upright. If you want to fool around and train a standard -- one of those fuchsias with 3- or 4-foot, trunk-like stem -- buy a few uprights and get to work.
What else do you need? Oh, next week would be a good time to start tomatoes, so if you need seeds, now is the time to get them. Starting flats? Containers for the tubers, and perhaps a heat mat or two to speed up seed germination.
Jeffs Alaska Gardening Calendar
Seeds to start: Lobelia (20 days to germinate; do not cover as the seeds need light), snapdragons (10 days; seeds need light and lower temps), carnation (20), verbena (20), pelargonium, salvia, pansies.
Special seed to start: Any peas. What the heck; we are going to have an early season. This way, you can pinch them back a couple of times before transplanting outside.
Herbs to start: Lavender, lovage, lemon balm, and it is still not too late for rhodochiton.
Alaska Botanical Garden Spring Seminar: All day next Saturday. Do you have tickets? There are some left as of this writing. If you can get in, go. This is a must-attend event. Go to alaskabg.org ASAP.
Dog poop: It is frozen and if it isn't buried in snow, now is when you want to clean up, not after the thaw.
Jeff Lowenfels has been writing this column for 40 years and never missed a week. He is the author of the best-selling, award-winning books "Teaming with Microbes" and "Teaming With Nutrients."