The Chihuahuan Desert, long a corridor for trade between Mexico City and Santa Fe, New Mexico, is now home to five million people. The Rio Grande basin covers 172,000 square miles, crossing three U.S. states, more than a dozen Native American nations and five Mexican states.
Plant Answers. PLANT: March is a month to plant the gardener's favorite vegetables such as tomatoes, sweet corn and snap beans and pepper as well as cucumbers, lima or butter beans, cantaloupe, okra (if the soil has warmed sufficiently --70 degrees F. or higher), southern peas, pumpkin, squash, peanuts and watermelon.
If you plant earlier, be prepared to cover your tender vegetables to protect them from late frosts. Frost hardy vegetables may be planted much earlier. Of course, in South Florida, you can plant spring vegetables in the fall and winter, up until February or March. Plant early enough so that your vegetables have time to mature before the heat of summer kicks in. See Table 3 in the Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide for planting dates for specific crops. Summer