Gardening Tips for February

We are getting closer and closer to Spring! With the anticipation of warmer weather, now is the time to start thinking about your garden.

Planting

• Start seeds

  Plant seeds indoors for flowers and vegetables that benefit from an early start. You can use grow lights to germinate seeds like eggplant, peppers, geranium, begonia, and coleus. 

• Plant vegetables

  In cooler areas, you can plant vegetable seeds like tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, English peas, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage. 

• Plant flowers

  Plant sweet peas for fragrant flowers later in the year. You can also plant winter daphne for fragrant blossoms. 

Pruning 

• Prune shrubs: Prune winter-blooming shrubs like mahonia, winter jasmine, and heathers after they finish flowering.

• Prune wisteria: Cut back wisteria side shoots to three buds from the base to encourage more flowers in the spring.

• Prune buddleja and elder: Prune these shrubs to the base to keep them from growing too big.

Inspecting houseplants 

• Check for pests: Regularly inspect your houseplants for pests like spider mites, scale, and mealybug. These pests can thrive in the dry winter air of your home.

Other tasks:

• Turn and cultivate the soil

• Add organic matter to your planting beds

• Transplant trees or shrubs before they break dormancy

• Control weeds.