February Gardening

There is a lot of fresh, new plant material coming in throughout the month, so get ready to liven up those porch containers and, if your soil is workable, your garden beds as well. Primroses, Cyclamen, and Ranunculus all make their appearances on our shelves now. For those who missed the bulbs in autumn, we have potted crocus, hyacinths, and daffodils to help brighten things up.

The earliest of the perennials are here, including Hellebores, Heucheras, and Iberis. Evergreen herbs and ground covers are readily available as well.

Summer-flowering bulbs arrive at the end of the month—including Begonias, Dahlias, lilies, and more! It’s still too early for starting most of these outside, but you can store the bulbs for a few weeks until fairer spring weather.

We get our supply of roses only once a year. Depending on the weather, they might be available as early as the second half of February. Please call ahead to see if we have the rose varieties that you are looking for.

Now is the correct time for pruning most roses. This includes all shrub-style roses—hybrids teas, floribundas, and grandifloras. Cut roses back to about 18 inches tall, just above an outer facing bud. Remove any small, spindly,or damaged canes. Note that climbing roses and ramblers are not necessarily pruned in this way. They should be trained to fit the spot you are growing them in, and then pruned to maintain the training. Please inquire for more specifics if needed.

It is still an acceptable time to do renovation pruning on your shrubs. This means completely removing major limbs on established shrubs. Only renovate for a good reason, such as damaged, misplaced, or oversized limbs. Minor shearing of shrubs is usually done after the flowering season or, in the case of hedges, before growth is likely.

Some fruit trees can be pruned in February, including apples and pears. Some gardeners also prune cherries, plums, and peaches (collectively called stone fruits) now. Note that some sources, however, state that summer pruning is best for these. To help prevent the spread of diseases, make clean cuts in dry weather and sterilize your pruners between cuts. This is especially important with stone fruits. Please check with us about the correct way to prune your particular fruit type, as listing all the details for each type of fruit is beyond the scope of this page.

Speaking of fruit, February is when the vast majority of our stock for the year arrives. Late February to spring is when our selection is at its best, and now might be your only chance to get some of the hard-to-find types.

February is the standard time for dormant spraying disease or insect prone deciduous shrubs and trees. Fruit trees, roses, and lilacs are examples of plants that benefit from dormant spraying. Doing so now will help to prevent infections later in the growing season. Dormant sprays will damage leaves, which is why we use them when the plant is leafless.

Dormant sprays include copper, lime-sulfur (both for fungus), and horticultural paraffinic oils (for certain insects). Do not confuse this with neem oil. Please check in with us to determine which spray will work best for your garden.

All the new seeds—including tomatoes—are in good supply, and February is one of the best months for planning and shopping for your new garden. You can plant some cold-loving veggies outside, including peas, spinach, kale, and other hardy greens. Lettuce can be planted now as well, but it will need to be in a cold frame. Be sure to download our Veggie Planting Calendar for recommended planting dates.

Seed potatoes (many varieties of which are difficult to come by at the grocery store) usually arrive in mid to late February. However, their arrival is very much dependent upon the weather every year, so there are times when we don’t see them until early March. Asparagus also makes its annual appearance on our shelves in either late February or early March, so get them while you can! These should be planted between late February and late March for best results.

It is still just a bit early for renovating your patchy lawn, but proper timing is just around the corner. It is best to wait until March before digging in compost and adding new seed. It is also too early for any herbicides to work well, so continue to weed by hand as necessary.

Moss is often a bigger problem than weeds at this time of year, and moss-killer treatments may be necessary. The only fertilizer recommended this early would be a granular organic lawn food. More soluble types should not be used yet, as many of the nutrients will wash away with rainfall.

Some of your plants may have thinned out over the winter due to lack of natural light, but the days are getting longer and the plants will start to recover. Supplemental lighting can always help, but it’s not necessary for most houseplants.

Continue normal care and be careful not to overwater, especially if you keep your house on the cool side. Repotting and fertilizing should probably be held off a bit longer except where it is obviously necessary.

Cyclamen, orchids, and rex begonias are often available now to liven up your living room, or as a great gift for Valentine’s Day.