February Monthly Gardening Guide
It isn't quite spring yet, but the preparation for spring gardening starts in February.
Lots of things you can do now help make gardening easier and more enjoyable when those spring days start, in just a few short weeks.
Look over these monthly tips and visit the Smart Gardening Resources below. Decide what fits your garden plan, budget and time, for February and the coming months.
INDOORS
Starting seeds
- Prepare to start seeds. Make sure you have the necessary supplies: seeds, seed-starting medium or compressed peat disks, seed flats with clear covers (or plastic wrap), liquid plant food, wooden or plastic sticks for labeling, small watering can and rooting powder (which helps seeds sprout).
- Depending on your plant hardiness zone, you can start some seeds in February. Either you should have a growing season that begins in April, or the plants you start by seed in February should
be able to tolerate cool temperatures and a possible late season frost. Regions with later transition seasons in the spring should wait until March. Here is a list of some seeds to start in February, according to your zone and conditions:
Ageratum |
Begonia |
'Carefree' Geranium |
Carnation |
Centauria |
Coleus |
Dusty Miller |
Impatiens |
Lantana |
Lobelia |
Pansy |
Petunia |
Salvia |
Snapdragon |
Vinca |
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Making Garden Plans in February
- Create a 12-month gardening calendar. Look at all the monthly tips and think about projects you'd like to undertake
or specific tasks you'd like to accomplish in the weeks and months to come. Put those on your calendar.
- Draw up a 12-month gardening budget. Almost no one can afford to do everything in the garden or yard they'd like to in one year. So, going over the possible activities during the coming months, think about what you can spend and the most important activities for you. For example, if you're focusing on lawn care, you'll be spending money in that category, not on purchasing a bunch of new annuals or perennials.
- Design a long-term, general garden plan. Or look over the one you've made in previous years and see what you want to accomplish. Do you eventually want a new flower bed somewhere? A new tree? Additional shrubs? A water garden? New statuary or stone footpaths? Again, this kind of overall planning helps you see the work you do as part of a design, and not just hit-and-miss each year.
Forcing bulbs in February
- Make sure that bulbs that have flowered and those showing growth have enough water and light. Don't let them dry out. Turn containers so each bulb gets adequate light and doesn’t bend toward the window. Stake tall bulbs for support, if necessary.
- Keep forced bulbs away from heat vents or radiators. Prolong bloom life by providing cooler nighttime temperatures. Set containers in the garage or basement overnight, and bring out again in the morning.
- You can keep forcing new bulbs in February and next month. Try paperwhites, also called narcissus, which grow the quickest. Others, such as tulips, daffodils and hyacinth, need prolonged periods of dormancy in cold temperatures before successful indoor forcing. Besides, they’ll be coming up outdoors in just a few weeks in March and April.
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Starting a Garden Journal in February
- Keeping a garden journal is fun and can be very helpful in planning. There’s no specific way to keep a garden journal. Do what works for you: make notes on weather, rainfall, frost dates, snow dates, seed-starting times, transplant times, etc. Keep reminders, tips from friends and
garden experts, and don’t forget to leave space for your future garden fantasies.
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Mail ordering in February
- Check out the plant catalogues and nursery brochures should begin arriving. You should also visit your favorite online garden supplies site to see what they're offering in February. Decide what you want to plant this season. Look
for new varieties, new ideas for combinations of flowers in sunny and shady areas, and consider a new look for your garden this year. If you prefer to buy locally, make notes from the catalogs and look for the plants in your area. Check the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map for your growing and transition seasons.) You should receive ordered plants at the appropriate time for planting in your region.
- Many catalogues and sites offer plant groupings for specific areas, such as sunny borders, shady borders, mailbox or light post plantings, annual borders, perennial borders, and even single-color borders. Order these packages or use the ideas to construct your own garden designs.
- In deciding what to plant this year, remember that perennials — plants that come up every year — are a great investment. Especially if you are just beginning a garden, make sure to plant a few perennials every year. They will grow and spread, and then you can divide them
and replant elsewhere, or give some to your friends!
Lawn and garden shows in February
- Late winter and early spring are usually the time for flower, lawn and garden shows. Ordinarily, they are held at a large exhibition center and take place over a Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Here you will get relief from the winter doldrums while you investigate new gardening ideas and seek answers from experts. There are all kinds of displays, ranging from plants and planting materials to equipment and statuary. Watch the local newspaper for an announcement on the local garden show and make plans to attend. If there isn’t one in your area, it might be worth a weekend trip.
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Caring for Houseplants in February
- Feed houseplants only once in February, at a 20% solution. Be careful not to over-water indoor plants. The soil surface tends to dry out more quickly than the rest of the container soil. Poke your finger in an inch deep into the soil. If it feels dry at that level, then water. If it fees moist, wait another week and test again before watering.
- If plants are looking droopy, give them more light. Move plants to a sunny window - but out of drafts - or place them under normal kitchen lights or table lamps. Keep the light on for several hours a day.
- Clip off straggly growth. This gives the plant a message to produce new leaves and stems, and helps it stay healthy in low-light conditions.
- Gently remove dust from leaves of houseplants and check for pests. If gnats develop from the moisture in the soil, catch them with double-sided tape wrapped around sticks and placed upright in the soil.
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OUTDOORS
Garden Cleanup in February
- Remove unsightly leaves around doors, foundations, and shrubs—but don’t uncover tender perennials and sprouting bulbs. Rake heavy mounds of leaves away from early bulbs, such as snowdrops, grape hyacinth and crocus, that are starting to emerge. However, don’t expose others, such as tulips, hyacinth and daffodils, unless your region has entered the spring growing season. Check your zone.
- Don’t try to work the soil in flowerbeds yet. Except in the most southern zones, it's likely to be too wet and the weather remains too cold. However, you can spend a warm day pulling out dead annuals left from last fall. Also, cut off dead stalks of perennials.
- Check the mulch level around perennials, trees and shrubs. Replace it, if necessary. Sometimes this just means raking it back into place.
- Take a tour of the garden. Look for flower buds on witch hazel and forsythia. These are early spring bloomers, and will give you an idea of the arrival of spring in your area. In late February, check for signs of early blooming bulbs, such as snowdrops, squill and
crocus.
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Annuals in February
- Very few annuals can - or should be - set out in February, and only in zones that are warm enough - mostly the south. Check the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map to be sure about this in your region. If your zone temperatures allow, try setting out some cold tolerant annuals, such as pansies. But remember, severe winter blasts will damage them.
Perennials in February
- Watch for the “heaving” of perennials. That's when they seem to have been pushed up out of the soil. This is caused by the freezing and thawing of the ground. If this happens, gently push the plant base back into the soil and cover or re-cover it with mulch.
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Pruning in February
- Some fruit trees, such as apple, should be pruned in late February. Regular pruning is important for fruit trees, which set fruit on each year’s new growth. An old tree may need extensive pruning to induce better fruit production. Consult an expert about care for fruit trees, which also need a
consistent spraying program, sometimes beginning in late winter or very early spring.
- Fall-blooming and late-summer blooming shrubs, such as bush clove, buckthorn, cinquefoil, euonymus, Franklin tree and hibiscus (Rose-of-Sharon), may be pruned at this time.
- Do not prune spring-blooming shrubs in February. These include forsythia, mock orange, lilac and spirea. They should be trimmed only after blooms have begun to fade in the late spring or early summer.
- Other types of non-flowering or evergreen shrubs may be pruned in late winter or early spring, before new growth appears. These include junipers, arborvitae and yew.
Snow and Ice Removal
- When shoveling snow, throw some of it on top of garden beds—as long as it doesn’t contain any "melting" chemicals or salt. The additional snow will provide moisture as well as insulation from extreme cold,
which can cause heaving of perennials.
- If there is an ice storm, be very careful in trying to remove thick ice from trees and shrubs, unless the weight is causing breakage. Lightly tap the branches to break up the ice, but take care not to damage the plant. Also try propping up heavily laden branches. Otherwise, simply let the ice melt off naturally.
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Tools and Equipment
- Spend some time in the garage and go through the garden tools and machines. If you didn’t have time last fall, clean, sharpen, repair, oil and organize everything. Take inventory. Make notes about repairs, replacements and
maintenance.
Some tool specifics
- Lawn mower. It’s not too early to take the mower to a garden center or hardware store for a spring tune up. By March, April and May, tune-ups will be in demand and you could wait weeks to get your machine back. A tune-up should include blade sharpening, fuel filter cleaning, replacement of air and oil filter and spark plugs, plus any other needed repairs. Check other power garden tools, such as weed-whackers, leaf-blowers and cultivators for similar needs.
- Hand tools. Clean and sharpen blades, if needed. Use sandpaper or a sharpening stone. Some tools, such as small pruning shears, are best if sharpened professionally. Do it in February and avoid the rush. Remove any rust and repaint. Make note of tools that need replacing. Think about putting up pegboard for these items, or get a big box and keep them all together. Also, find a wall on which to hang the spades, pitchforks, push brooms, hedge shears and other large tools.
- Hoses. You can’t test hoses unless you turn the outdoor water back on, but you can note how many and what kind of hoses you have, and whether they show wear. If you used them to any extent last year, you’ll probably remember which ones are broken or need replacing. Before throwing out a
damaged hose, consider and inexpensive kit that will let you remove the hole and splice the two ends back together. Also, check the hose-reel and decide if you need a new one. These get a lot of wear-and-tear. If you don’t have a hose-reel, consider investing in this valuable time and back-saver.
- Sprinklers. Same as above on testing sprinklers, but you can note how many and what kinds you have, whether they need repair or replacement and if you’d like to find a different kind for different needs in the garden. Some cover large areas, such as lawns, and others are designed to water only small gardens with gentle sprays.
- Hose-End Sprayers. Find them and put them in one place. There are different types for different uses. Some are designed to use granular fertilizers. Others require a liquid solution that mixes with the water running through the hose. Keep the sprayers used for chemical applications separate from the ones used to apply fertilizers. Do not use a pesticide sprayer to apply anything else, and vice versa. Labeling is a good idea.
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Trees and shrubs in February
- Apply dormant oil spray, if needed and if the weather permits in your region. Follow directions. Dormant oil, sold at most hardware stores and garden centers, helps prevent future insect infestations and disease, plus it helps plants retain moisture.
- Depending on your zone and when your transition season starts, you can begin planting new trees and shrubs. Some types are better planted in the spring than the fall. Check before planting.
Watering in February
- If the winter has been dry, water evergreens, especially new transplants. Don’t forget to turn off the outdoor water supply when you are finished, or you could have frozen pipes!
Birds in February
- Keep feeding the birds. They are starting to pair and seek nesting places for their spring broods. If you’ve had a bird feeder out in the preceding months, they’ve come to depend on it.
- Go to the library and check out some bird books, or invest in a good one, such as any produced by the Audubon Society. Keep the book near a window where you can watch birds coming to the feeder.
- Put out birdhouses in February. You can make them or buy them, but they need to be in place before the birds start looking for nesting spots. Wrens and bluebirds will be drawn to nice little houses. Make sure the openings are the right size for the bird you want to attract. Small birds require small openings and won’t make a nest in a large-holed house.
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Miscellaneous
- Repeating from the last chapter: squirrel feeding is not recommended. Providing food only encourages them to stay around all spring and summer — and they will multiply! Squirrels are garden scavengers and can destroy not only plants by their chewing and digging, but garden statuary, as well, which they tend to sharpen their teeth on. They'll also do their best to steal from any bird feeders. But, if you enjoy watching them and they don’t bother your garden too much, you can give them corncobs, apples, bread crusts and sunflower seeds.
- To add some outdoor color, think about decorating window boxes and planters with inexpensive artificial greenery or flowers. Stick them in the soil. Look for artificial holly, ivy, dark-colored mums and asters, or ornamental kale. Also clip some holly and evergreen ranches and put them in boxes. Add some pinecones and acorns.
- For indoor arrangements, clip some evergreen branches and combine with dried or artificial flowers and eucalyptus.
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