In this live monthly Q&A I covered what I’m thinking about in late March—especially what to direct sow, and how I time my warm-weather transplants so they actually grow once they hit the garden. I talked about why “last frost dates” are really a roll of the dice, and why I pay more attention to trending temperatures and warming soil. For tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, tomatillos—anything that loves heat—I’m targeting the top 4 inches of soil warming to around 65°F. If you put warm crops into cold soil, you can protect the tops from frost, but the plants just sit there and shiver. I also broke down indoor seed-starting timelines and container sizes. For me, peppers are an 8–10 week indoor grow (plus a week to harden off), while tomatoes are more like 4–6 weeks (plus hardening off). I showed how a small root ball is the hidden reason transplants fail—when you plant them out, they can dry out fast even if the bed is wet, because the roots only access that little plug of soil. The fix is simple: water consistently for 10–14 days while the roots expand. I also explained why big-seeded crops like cucumbers, squash, zucchini, melons should be started in larger cells and only grown about 3–4 weeks before going outside so they don’t get rootbound and stressed.