I live in northern New Mexico (USA) on the east slope of the Jemez mountains. Looking across the Rio Grand valley towards the Sangre de Christo mountains just west and north of Santa Fe, there are two bare slopes on the Sangres that look like a folk art rooster and a folk art hen. The local lore is that summer crops (tomatoes, chile, squash, beans) are not planted until all the snow has melted off the "chickens." Santa Fe is over 6000 feet above sea level (and has a ski area), and on my side of the valley Los Alamos is above 7000 feet (and has a ski area), so waiting for the chickens to be free of snow often puts us into mid May, in spite of our southern latitude. Spinach, peas, lettuce, and other cool-weather crops are direct-seeded starting in early March (before Easter), and potatoes go in during early April. Santa Fe local foods historically do not include tomatillas, as they do not ripen here most years. We grow short-season tomatoes for a reliable crop, and may get mid-season toms to ripen in your usual garden, but only hoop-house growers are betting on long-season heirlooms from the midwest. Catherine

Hey CarmelCalifornia, you are in an area with micro-climates. Are you right in Carmel proper, in the fog zone? If so some of the real heat-loving crops could be a challenge during the foggy summer, so if that is the case, you might not be able to easily grow eggplant and full-size tomatoes and such. If you are inland a bit, and out of the fog zone, you can grow anything. Right now, leafy and maybe root vegetables are probably your best bet. I think any of CarloMartin's list of root, leaf, and brassica choices could be planted now, since the daytime temps are projected to be in the 60s and 70s for a week or so. I suspect you could plant garlic now, too, although it is considered very late, I bet it would come out OK anyway. You can transplant tomatoes in mid-april. Or plant them from seed at about the same time. If you are in the fog zone, try to find a warm spot for the tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes will be more likely to do well than full-sized. If you are in carmel valley or something, then you can grow any tomatoes you want, as well as eggplant, watermelon, etc. The two biggest threats to your garden are probably pocket gophers and deer. Make sure you take steps to protect against them. --McKenzie

Keep in mind that what someone in TX or VA or WA may find easy you may not. You probably want to stick to plants that either grow well in many different places, or plants from areas similar to yours. Annuals: lots of veggie plants, pansies for early color, marigolds, petunias, geraniums (pelargoniums or annual geraniums), nicotiana (self-seeds reliably), annual poppies (self-seed reliably), basil Biennials or short-lived perennials: forget-me not, foxglove, hollyhocks (if you have a sheltered area from wind, like against a fence or building) Perennials: daylilies, ibiris (small evergreen plant with white spring flowers, easy to start from seed), columbines, hosta if you don't have slug problems, siberian iris, hardy mums, coreopsis, perennial geraniums, chinese astilbe, hens and chicks, several sedum varieties, balloon flowers, herbs like thyme, sage, and taragon Bulbs: daffodils and alliums (the tall ones are stunning) Shrubs: Rhododendron "roseum elegens" (if you have acid, organic soil), mock orange, spirea, forsythia, red-twigged variegated dogwood (though in some parts of the country these are disease prone, mine are truly carefree), elderberry, rugosa rose, weigelia, pagoda dogwood (actually a small tree), Annabelle hydrangea, Nikko deutzia, elderberries

Iris, heuchera, dianthus, iceland poppy, johnny jump ups, my little species daffodil...I 'll have to look up the variety, I can't praise it enough! A lemony scent, more than one flower to a bulb, thin leaves...but the scent....ohhhhhh momma! Heavenly, and it is nice to have a late daff. Some of my late grape hyacinths are hanging on, several of the viburnams, the Dwarf red buckeye is getting ready to pop as is the Alleghany viburnam and I can see that combo is going to be great--thanks to Viburnamman who suggested it. The Choinanthes virginicus is on the cusp of blooming....that will be fun as I haven't had it bloom before, my variagated lilac is on the way out, but Miss Kim and a couple of others are just starting.....ahhhh spring! Too bad my back and hands hurt so much from trying to deal with the sod and clay!!!!!