March Tips & Events for Santa Clara County | | |
“No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn.”
~ Hal Borland
| | Quiz: Eat It, Plant It, or Compost It? | |
Regrowing vegetables and fruits from sprouts or scraps seems like a good way to keep food waste out of the landfill and live more sustainably. In some cases this is true, but not always. For each of these, can you eat it, re-grow it, or should it just be composted:
- Garlic?
- Potatoes?
- Red or yellow onion?
- Carrot tops?
| | | Spring Garden Fair Is April 11 | Our annual Spring Garden Fair returns to help you kick off the summer gardening season! Our plant sale offers seedlings of tomatoes, peppers, herbs, and other summer vegetables (new this year), ornamental and native plants, and succulents, chosen specifically for our local climate and conditions. Come and learn from gardening talks by experts. Check out information booths featuring “Ask a Master Gardener” help desk, seed exchange, garden tool care, composting, fun activities for kids, and more. Tour our garden collections and get inspiration for your gardens. Mark your calendar and join us! | | Photo: A Master Gardener demonstrates how to transplant a tomato seedling at the 2025 Spring Garden Fair, by Mary Werthman | | Found a “worm” in your apple? It is likely a codling moth larva. Adults emerge in mid-March to April and produce eggs. The hatched larvae tunnel into fruits to feed, then drop out to pupate, leaving the fruits damaged. To reduce the population, start by looking for entry points on the fruit, marked by tiny mounds of reddish-brown frass. Remove the infested fruits and any fallen fruit, and seal them in plastic bags for disposal. To protect fruit, enclose each young fruit in a paper bag. A heavy infestation may require insecticide, but proper timing of application is critical for effectiveness. | | Photo credit: Jack Kelly Clark, UC IPM | | Growing Sweet Potato Slips | Want to grow sweet potatoes but can’t find seeds? They are often grown from “slips,” which are sprouts from a sweet potato. While you can buy slips, you can also grow them yourself. Find a sweet potato of the variety you like. Place it on warm, moist soil and cover until sprouts appear, or suspend it in a jar of water (video) in a sunny spot. Once the sprouts reach six inches or more, twist or cut them off. Plant them directly in pots or root them in water so that they can be ready for transplant when the soil temperature reaches 70°F. | | Photo: Sweet potatoes sprouting in water, by Saori Cotter | |
Do you want a garden where both you and your pets can thrive? Come to our talk on March 21 at the Willow Glen Library in San Jose. You will learn how to design your garden with your pet’s natural instincts in mind. We will share ideas for creating a beautiful and highly functional outdoor environment that is safe for you, your pets, and local wildlife. We will also discuss strategies for removing dangers, selecting non-toxic plants, designing harmonious living zones, and encouraging positive behaviors to ensure a flourishing garden and happy, healthy pets. | Photo credit: Beth Basham |
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Garden to Table to Pantry | |
At the end of our cool weather season, you can preserve an abundance of cabbage by making sauerkraut. The University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension provides lab-tested methods for safely making sauerkraut at home.
Freshly harvested, firm green cabbage heads are recommended for the best results, while loose-leafed varieties like Napa cabbage are not advised. The fermentation process relies on natural bacteria present on the cabbage, with salt used to extract juice and create an anaerobic environment essential for safe fermentation. It is crucial to keep the cabbage submerged in its liquid to exclude air, as oxygen exposure can lead to spoilage.
| Photo credit: Evett Kilmartin, UC Regents | | |
Potato: Plant or compost. The green parts on the skin or stems and leaves contain solanine, a poisonous glycoalkaloid. However, these potatoes are still safe to plant to produce a new crop or to add to the compost bin.
Carrot Tops: Eat or compost. Carrots will not regenerate the taproot if you plant the green top. The greens are edible but often bitter.
Red or Yellow Onion: It depends. Once an onion starts growing, it is still edible, but it will lose flavor and texture. If planted, it can yield edible greens but not a new bulb.
Garlic: Eat, plant, or compost. Garlic that has sprouted is edible although the flavor may be a little less intense. The greens are also edible. You can plant the sprouted clove, but keep in mind that late fall is generally best for planting garlic.
| | Photo: Sprouting Garlic by George Hodan | | Our popular monthly Plant Clinic Online starts up again on Tuesday, March 10. The Plant Clinic Online lets home gardeners chat via Zoom with Master Gardeners to diagnose plant problems. Attendees can also listen and learn while other people ask questions. The clinics take place on the second Tuesday of the month, March–October, from 7–8:30 pm. Everyone is welcome! Register for Plant Clinic Online Zoom. | | Photo: Circular holes in a rose leaf created by leafcutting bees, by Jack Kelly Clark, UC IPM | | More March Tips and To-Dos | | For more gardening tips and to-dos, visit the monthly tips archive on our website. It is perfect for browsing, and while you may recognize some of the content, you’re sure to find something new. It starts with to-dos for the month, just the thing to review before heading out to your garden. | |
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Aquaponics: Growing Fish and Food in Harmony, Wednesday, March 4, 6:00–7:30 pm, Martin Luther King Library, 150 E San Fernando Street, San Jose
Growing Warm Season Vegetables, Saturday, March 7, 10:00 am–noon, Online
PADG Quick Spring Veggies & Citrus Pruning and Care, Saturday, March 7, 10:00–11:15 am, Palo Alto Demonstration Garden, 851 Center Drive, Palo Alto
Gardening for Beginners Course, Saturday, March 7, 10:30 am–12:30 pm, Cambrian Library, 1780 Hillsdale Avenue, San Jose
Low Water Ornamentals from Around the World, Tuesday, March 10, 6:30–7:30 pm, Mountain View Public Library, 585 Franklin Street, Mountain View
Plant Clinic Online, Tuesday, March 10, 7:00–8:30 pm, Online
SCTDG Growing Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, and Yams, Saturday, March 14, 10:00–11:30 am, South County Teaching and Demonstration Garden, 80 Highland Avenue, San Martin
Top 10 Habits of Successful Gardeners, Saturday, March 14, 10:30–11:30 am, Rose Garden Branch Library, 1580 Naglee Avenue, San Jose
Growing Tomatoes, from Seed Saving to Harvest, Saturday, March 14, 11:00 am–12:30 pm, Central Park Library, 2635 Homestead Road, Santa Clara
Growing Favorite Summer Vegetables from Seed, Sunday, March 15, 1:30–2:30 pm, Rinconada Library, 1213 Newell Road, Palo Alto
Growing Fabulous Citrus, Wednesday, March 18, 7:00–8:30 pm, Los Altos Library, 13 S San Antonio Road, Los Altos
The Secret Life of Biopesticides, Thursday, March 19, 12:00–1:00 pm, Online
MRDG Planning Your Vegetable Garden, Saturday, March 21, 9:30–11:00 am, McClellan Ranch Preserve, community garden area, 22221 McClellan Road, Cupertino
MCP Growing Great Warm Season Vegetables! Saturday, March 21, 10:00–11:30 am, Martial Cottle Park, 5283 Snell Avenue, San Jose
Gardening with Pets, Saturday, March 21, 10:30–11:45 am, Willow Glen Branch Library, 1157 Minnesota Avenue, San Jose
Growing Culinary Herbs in Your Garden, Saturday, March 21, 10:30–11:30 am, Gilroy Library, 350 W 6th Street, Gilroy
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Check our calendar for the latest schedule of events. Videos of many past presentations are also available.
| | Interested in Composting? | | | | |
Composting produces soil-building organic materials for gardens. It also helps to divert organic waste from greenhouse gas-generating landfills. The University of California Cooperative Extension of Santa Clara County partners with cities and the county to offer composting education workshops to residents.
Check out these composting workshops on the Cooperative Extension website!
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University of California Master Gardener volunteers promote sustainable gardening practices and provide research-based horticultural information to home gardeners. Visit our website for more information including:
Have a gardening question? Ask us. We’re here to help!
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