February Gardening Tips

As winter begins to loosen its grip, February offers a glimpse of the new life that awaits our gardens. It's a time of preparation, rejuvenation, and anticipation for the vibrant season ahead.

Flower Garden

• Winter and Spring bedding such as pansies and primulas need regular deadheading.
• Overgrown hedges such as privet and beech can be rejuvenated with hard pruning.
• Prune late flowering clematis before the end of the month.
• Apply mulches to flower beds and around trees and shrubs before shoots emerge to cut down on weeding later.
• Complete the planting of bare-root hedging.

 Kitchen Garden

• Buy seed potatoes and onion sets for planting in March and April.
• Complete pruning of apples and pears.
• Feed fruit trees and bushes by sprinkling a suitable fertiliser around the base.
• Warm up areas of soil for early planting of broad beans and hardy peas by covering the ground with cloches.

Greenhouse

• If your greenhouse is heated you can start sowing tomatoes, melons, cucumbers and bedding plants.
• Keep your greenhouse clean and remove dead leaves from overwintering plants.
• Water indoor plants with rainwater and keep their compost moist.
• Check heater fuel levels regularly.

General Advice

• Stock up on pots and compost for early planting.
• Keep up the good work by providing food and water for birds that visit your garden. Check water in birdbaths isn’t frozen on cold days.
• If you are short of time you can cover areas to be dug with manure or compost and let the worms do the work for you. Later in spring the soil will be ready for planting.
• Tree stakes and ties can be damaged after heavy winds and rain so check and replace if necessary.