In this Garden Grounds live Q&A, I talk about what seeds you can direct sow in March and how to think about timing it so you’re not just throwing seed into frozen ground and hoping. I’m in Maryland Zone 7 and we get the classic false spring—80 degrees one day and snow the next—so the real key isn’t the air temp. It’s soil temperature. Below about 40°F, nothing germinates, so seeds can just sit there. What I look for is that top 2–4 inches of soil trending to 45°F+ (even if nights are still cold), because sunshine can warm that top inch up fast. For early direct sowing, I start with peas, then move into spinach, arugula, mustard greens, lettuces, carrots, radishes, beets, and turnips. I also like bok choy/pak choi and other Asian greens early because they prefer cool weather and bolt fast when heat arrives. I also answer questions on getting carrots to germinate (moisture is the “trick”), pre-sprouting peas to avoid rot in colder zones, and why I don’t mulch over freshly sown seed. We also get into practical indoor seed-starting issues like moving cool-crop starts outside for sun, and how I use boiling water to sterilize mixes to reduce fungus gnats indoors.