It's time to plant summer blooming bulbs!

Tigridias:
Bulbs of tigridias, or tiger flowers, can be found at local nurseries now. Plant them six inches apart and three inches deep in full sun along the coast, or where they'll get afternoon shade inland. Fertile loam or sandy soil is best. If you have clay soil, mix in plenty of soil amendment, such as Kellogg Amend, or plant in pots or raised beds. The colorful blooms appear in July and August. Each flower lasts only one day, but others follow on the same branch so the bloom season is quite long.

Gladioli:
Tie gladioli planted earlier to stakes installed at planting time. Protect them from slugs and snails, and keep them well watered. Feed potted glads with liquid fertilizer. Continue to plant gladioli, though when planted now they will need more protection from thrips in summer.

Dahlias:
Prepare planting holes for dahlias by mixing plenty of organic matter into the soil. Some aged chicken manure can be added to the soil now, along with pre-moistened peat moss, nitrolized wood shavings, or homemade compost, in preparation for planting in April. Dig the organics deeply into the ground - as much as a foot deep - and keep the soil damp.

Tuberous Begonias:
Start tuberous begonias this month. If you kept some tubers from last year, take a look at them now to see whether they're showing signs of life. If so, bring them out of hiding and start watering them. Buy new ones at local nurseries. Some tubers are slow to sprout, so choose those that already have a sprout or two.

Tuberous begonias aren't easy to grow, but if you have rich acid soil in an east-facing area, not too many snails, and a knack for growing begonias they can be one of the most rewarding plants for summer color in semishade. Years ago they were considered suitable for coastal zones only. New heat-resistant varieties such as the Non-Stops have made it possible for gardeners in interior zones to try their hand at this most colorful and exotic-looking garden plant. If growing them from tubers sounds too involved, wait until summer and visit a nursery that has the begonias already planted and potted.

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Now is the time to plant warm-season annual and perennial flowers outdoors either by seeds or transplants. If you did not plant in the fall, fill all your flower beds with warm-season flowers now. If you planted last fall, however, most beds are full to overflowing with cool-season flowers. There's little if any room for planting more. The only planting to be done is to plant seeds in flats - for bedding plants to be set out later, to fill bare patches as they occur, and to plant pots and hanging baskets and fill in any area that by the end of the month may have finished flowering (a bed of cineraria, for example).

Continue to feed container-grown flowers with liquid fertilizer for growth and bloom. We suggest you use Dr. Earth Liquid Solution 3-3-3. Fertilize cool-season flower beds with a granulated fertilizer if you see a slowdown of growth or flowering. Water it in well afterward. Deadhead flowers to keep them blooming.

Though nurseries are filled with such cool-season flowers as primroses, calendulas, nemesia, stock, snapdragons, Iceland poppies, pansies and violas, wise gardeners remember that these are the flowers that should have been planted in fall. Planted now, for the most part cool-season flowers will give only a short season of bloom, especially inland. The height of their bloom season is April. Stock, snapdragons, calendulas, and Iceland poppies are particularly unhappy choices to plant now. Heat or disease knocks them down fast. Pansies, polyanthus primroses, cyclamen, and violas can be popped into blank spots, but don't fill whole beds. Polyanthus primroses and small-flowered cyclamen will bloom through June in cool coastal gardens, however, and can be kept alive to bloom another year. And newer varieties of small-flowered pansies are prolific bloomers and heat tolerant. They may last into August.

If you're filling whole beds, prepare the ground thoroughly and choose mainly warm-season flowers. Good choices among annual flowers to plant now from pony paks for color in sunny spots all summer long include ageratum, marigolds, cosmos, sweet alyssum, verbena, salvia, petunias, and nierembergia. A large number of perennials can be put in now, including achillea, agapanthus, perennial alyssum, campanulas, candytuft, carnations, columbine, coreopsis, coral bells, daylilies, delphiniums, dusty miller, dianthus, marguerites, gaillardia, geum, penstemon, perennial forget-me-nots, Pride of Madeira, statice, and Shasta daisies. In semishade put in transplants of begonias, lobelia, impatiens, coleus, and fuchsias. (Bedding begonias and lobelia can take full sun along the coast when grown in the ground. Impatiens can take full sun only if they're in a cool breezy spot next to a lawn rather than hot pavement.)

A large number of warm-season flower species can be planted successfully now from seeds. They include achillea, ageratum, alyssum, anchusa, balsam, ornamental basil, browallia, calliopsis, celosia, cleome, coleus, cosmos, gaillardia, gazania, geranium, globe amaranth, gloriosa daisy (rudbeckia), helipterum, hollyhock, lobelia, marigold, morning glory, salvia, sanvitalia, sunflower, strawflower (helichrysum), thunbergia, tithonia, verbena, and impatiens. (Ageratum, coleus, lobelia, scarlet salvia, and impatiens need light in order to germinate. Sprinkle seeds on top of prepared soil, and anchor them by pressing gently into the soil surface - don't cover them with earth. Keep them moist by frequent misting.)

Desert gardeners can plant vinca rosea, nicotiana, portulaca, solanum, (ornamental eggplant) and zinnias from seeds, but the rest of us should wait a few more weeks. These heat lovers can't stand cold feet. They'll do much better in warmer weather.

Now is the time to feed all types of established lawns and to plant new ones from seed. You can also plant lawns from sod this month.

Mow, feed, and water all lawns. Warm-season grasses, such as Bermuda, dichondra, and zoysia, are waking up from winter dormancy. As soon as they start growing, begin mowing weekly with a reel mower to the correct height for each. Mow common Bermuda to 1 inch, hybrid Bermuda to 1/2 or 1/4 inch, St. Augustine to between 3/4 and 1 1/4 inches, and zoysia to 3/4 to 1 inch height. Cut Adalayd grass with a rotary mower between 3/4 and 1 inch in height. Cool-season grasses, such as fescue, ryegrass, and bluegrass, are still growing fast; mow them weekly with a rotary mower to 1 1/2 inches in height. Feed all established lawns now with a complete lawn fertilizer - containing phosphorus and potassium as well as nitrogen - to get warm-season grasses off to a good start and keep cool-season grasses going longer.We recommend you use Dr. Earth Super Natural Lawn Food. A healthy well-fed lawn is better able to withstand pests and diseases and choke out weeds.

While nitrogen gives your lawn top growth and a healthy green color you can see, phosphorus and potassium feed the roots and growth systems of the plant that are unseen but just as important. Phosphorus and potassium are longer lasting in soil than nitrogen, so one feeding a season with them is often adequate. After this complete feeding you can switch to a less expensive, pure nitrogen fertilizer if desired, and feed warm-season grasses with it once a month for the rest of the growing season.

Feed most turf grasses at the rate of 1 pound of actual nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of turf. Feed dichondra one-half this strength and the new tall, drought-resistant fescues three-quarter strength. (The latter respond best to frequent but light applications of fertilizer.)

Apply fertilizer when the ground is damp and grass blades dry, and follow up by watering deeply. Otherwise you risk burning your lawn. If you're willing to pay the price, add coated slow-release fertilizer on a cool-season lawn at this time of year. Cool-season grasses need little or no fertilizer during the warmer months of the year.

Irrigate all lawns now, according to their individual needs, when rains aren't adequate.

Choose the best time to plant. Both warm- and cool-season grasses may be bought as sod, and cool-season grasses can be planted from sod any month year-round. Although you can plant both warm- and cool-season grasses from seed this month, wait if you possibly can to plant cool-season grasses. Fall is a better time to plant them because fall planting gives cool-season grasses planted from seed more time to establish a root system before summer heat arrives. When planting warm-season grasses, wait until the weather has warmed up in your area. (If you plan to plant zoysia, it's best to wait until June.)

Study lawn types before planting one. How do you choose which grass is right for you? Begin by looking around your neighborhood. Talk to the owners of good-looking lawns. Don't just choose for appearance, though. Consider how much traffic your lawn will have to take and how willing you are to fuss over it. Also consult your Cooperative Extension Office and reference books on lawns before choosing a lawn that's right for your area and needs. Experienced nurserymen are another source of information; they usually know which seed or sod has performed well in your neighborhood. Above all, consider drought resistance.

Plant new lawns. Regardless of the type of grass and method of planting you choose, be sure to prepare the site thoroughly. If you're planting an invasive grass, such as Bermuda or an invasive variety of zoysia, first install edging to keep it from creeping into borders.

For all lawns, rototill deeply, add plenty of soil amendment, and level and lightly roll the ground. Sprinkle seeds evenly and cover them with mulch. Either roll stolons with a cleated roller to press them into the soil or partially cover them with topsoil. Keep your freshly planted lawn damp until established. Sprinkle it twice or three times daily, but avoid watering late in the day.