March 12-18, 2012
Go plow in the stubble, take timely this season for sowing of vetches of veins and of person.
Now sooner ye sow them the sooner they come And better for household they fill up a room. -Thomas Tusser (16th Century)
Lunar phase and lore Entering its last phase at 8:25 p.m. March 14, the moon wanes throughout the third week of the month, becoming the new Cabbage Butterfly Moon on March 22 at 9:37 a.m. Rising after midnight and setting in the afternoon, this moon lies overhead in the morning.
Since the last week of March offers superb lunar conditions and improved odds for decent weather, now is the time to prepare all of your flats and garden plots for new-moon seeding and digging. If you do plant next week, limit your varieties to root crops, shrubs and trees, favoring Capricorn on March 15-17.
Lunar position favors fishing at noon with the moon above you and your fish, especially as the cold front of March 19 approaches. Lunches may be especially appealing to dieters this week. By late evening in the second week of March, the spring stars are taking over the sky. The fertile planting constellation of Cancer is almost overhead between Pollux and Regulus. Hydra follows at its heels. May’s Virgo approaches along the southeast horizon. The Big Dipper swings deeper into the southern sky.
Weather patterns Across the northern tier of states, March 18 brings the greatest chance for frost in the entire month – a full 90 percent. March 20 is typically the wettest day of the week, with a 60 percent chance for precipitation and the most thunderstorms since autumn.
March 21 is usually the driest day, with just a 25 percent chance for rain or snow. It also brings the most sun of any day in the third week of March: 70 percent of those days are clear to partly cloudy. Only two other days get so bright March 7 and 15.
Zeitgebers for this week include the spiraling of the male titmouse in his mating ritual, the reemergence of the bees, the early courting calls of the flicker and pileated woodpecker, the yellowing of gold finches to about half of their summer color, cardinal song moving up to 7:20 a.m. (EDT) and the beginning of the robin chorus around 7 a.m.
Daybook March 12: Honeysuckle leaves are opening, one of the first steps in the greening of the undergrowth. Parsnip, horseradish, dock and dandelion roots are often dug at this time, when foliage just begins to emerge; root quality is usually at its best before the soil begins to warm. Flats of pansies are set out on milder days to harden them for late March planting.
March 13: Mites, scale and aphid eggs mature quickly if the temperature climbs above 60 degrees. The insects will be more easily controlled by dormant oil spray, the closer they are to hatching. Midseason crocus plants bloom beside the earlier snow crocus.
March 14: The moon’s entry into its final quarter today opens an excellent time for fertilizing areas you neglected to feed last fall and winter. Dig in fertilizer for spring bulbs due during April and May.
March 15: This is the week the first mosquito bites and that the box elders and silver maples come into bloom on warmer hillsides. The tips of resurrection lilies have risen a few inches above the ground by this week of the year, and spring beauties are budding. March 16: Spring is worming time for livestock; have fecal samples checked now. It is also time as well for annual vaccinations and bloodwork. Consider a physical examination for yourself, too. March 17: Foliage of yarrow, lupine, phlox, columbine, coneflower, yarrow, sage, sweet pea, mallow, wild parsnip, goldenrod, snow-on-the mountain, New England aster, Queen Anne’s lace, pyrethrum, bleeding heart, lamb’s quarters and evening primrose is coming up. And today is St. Patrick’s Day, a traditional time for putting in your peas. |
