What to Plant in British Columbia in March
Coastal British Columbia sits right at its average last-frost mark this month, so March is a hardy-crop month, not a tender one.
Gardening in British Columbia
Everything we have worked out for British Columbia: what to plant and when, which varieties finish in time, the pests that actually turn up here, and the jobs that pay off month by month. We also cover the rest of the property, from lawns and soil to home care and energy, because a garden rarely stops at the vegetable bed.
The numbers first, because everything else follows from them. Measured at the weather station in Vancouver, the last spring freeze falls around March 18 and the first fall freeze falls around November 10, 1,738 growing degree days in the year.
That is enough for early varieties, tight for anything late. Garlic does well: 21.8 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in British Columbia: the pests that turn up here.
Figures from Environment and Climate Change Canada. A state is not one climate: elevation, a large lake or the coast can move these dates by two weeks either way, so check your own county with the extension service before you spend money.
What to Plant in British Columbia in June
June across British Columbia’s southern coast is full-on growing season. With the average last spring frost long past (mid-March at Vancouver) and the…
What to Plant in British Columbia in July
By July, British Columbia’s coastal and southern valleys are running about three and a half to four months clear of the average last spring frost, so the…
What to Plant in British Columbia in January
Garlic and shallots can still go into workable soil on the coast, bare-root fruit trees and canes go in while they’re dormant, and cold frames keep hardy…
What to Plant in British Columbia in February
Coastal British Columbia’s mild winters mean February isn’t a dead month in the garden, but it isn’t a green light either.
What to Plant in British Columbia in December
British Columbia sits deep inside its frost window in December, so open, unprotected ground planting is limited across most of the province.
What to Plant in British Columbia in August
In and around Vancouver, August sits deep inside the growing season, not near either frost line.
What to Plant in British Columbia in April
Coastal British Columbia sits well past its average last frost by the time April arrives, which makes this one of the busiest direct-sowing months of the…
Growing Peppers in British Columbia: Fruit Set, Heat and Timing
In British Columbia, the biggest threat to pepper fruit set isn’t extreme heat, it’s the opposite.
Pepper Varieties That Ripen in a British Columbia Season
British Columbia’s coastal and valley gardens rarely face the punishing heat that shuts down pepper fruit set elsewhere, but the growing season itself is…