Garden Planning, Tips and Planting Advice

Gardening Tips: February Lawn Care

If the weather is mild and there is early growth, you can give the lawn a light mow. However, ensure you lawn mower blades are set high – about 3cm.

Gardening Tips: February Pruning

This is a good time of year to prune fruit trees, such as apple and pear, which are dormant. You can also prune blackcurrant, gooseberry, loganberry and raspberry bushes.

Container pots and patio plants

If you have delicate plants in container pots on your patio or elsewhere in your garden, you must protect them from frost. If you have room, bring pots indoors. If you do not have room, insulate them with a layer of bubble wrap or Hessian. It is also a good idea to feed your potted plants by replacing the top layer of soil with fresh compost.

Gardening Tips: February Planting or Transplanting

To plant, the type of equipment you will need includes:

• Trowel
• Shovel
• Rake

Watering can or hose

When planting or transplanting, use compost from your compost bin, manure or purchase compost. Once you have dug a hole big enough for the plant, add 2-3in of compost or manure into the hole to feed the plant. Fill the hole with water, preferably from your water butt and let the water sink in. Place the plant in the hole and water again. Fill in the hole with soil to the top of the root ball and water again.

In February you can plant or transplant the following types of plants provided the weather and soil permits:

• Trees
• Shrubs
• Bushes (including fruit bushes)
• Roses

If you receive ordered plants from a nursery and the ground is not suitable for planting, you can keep the plants in bundles for a couple of days. However, after that they should be taken out of their bundles and 'heeled-in'. Heeling in consists of placing plants in a soil filled trench until they can be moved to their permanent position in the spring.

Sow

Note: Always check the instructions on the seed packet concerning time of sowing and transplanting. Different varieties are designed to grow at different times. The information below is a general guide for common vegetable and flower seeds that can be sown this time of year.

Vegetables

The following are examples of vegetable seeds that can be grown outside under cloches:

• Brussels sprouts
• Leek
• Onion
• Beetroot
• Broad beans

The following are examples of vegetable seeds that can be grown in seed trays in greenhouses or heated propagators:

• Tomatoes
• Cucumber
• Lettuce
• Flowers

The following are examples of flower seeds that can be grown in seed trays in greenhouses or heated propagators:

• Snapdragon (antirrhinum)
• Begonia
• Carnation
• Chrysanthemums
• Dahlia
• Petunia