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Laidback Gardening: What to Do in February?

Northern gardeners may not have emerged from their winter slumber, but as the days lengthen, the signal that spring is approaching is given to our plants. Here are a few gardening activities you can start doing in February, although most can often wait until March.

  • Sow plants that appreciate an early start;
  • Fill your bird feeder;
  • Prune your hibiscus;
  • Prune your houseplants;
  • Cold-treat your seeds as needed;
  • Perform a germination test;
  • Resume fertilizing houseplants;
  • Force branches for an early spring;
  • Take cuttings from your houseplants.

Sow Plants That Appreciate an Early Start

The indoor planting season starts mostly in March for northern gardener… and so much the better, because the light reaching our seedlings is low in early February, so they almost necessarily have to be planted under a horticultural lamp to be successful. Nevertheless, here are a few seedlings that appreciate a very early start.

Fill Your Bird Feeder

Photo : Aaron J Hill

By February, the birds have eliminated most of the fat they had stored over the previous summer and autumn to stay alive. They struggle to find enough food to stay alive. A bird feeder in your yard can make a big difference to them.

Prune Your Hibiscus

Photo : pixabay

If you’ve had a Chinese hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis) in your home since early winter, it’s time to give it a good pruning. Pruning it in late February or March will stimulate it to produce more flowers over the summer, while keeping its often exuberant growth under control.

Prune Your Houseplants

For a plant to recover quickly from pruning, the best time to prune is when the plant begins its annual growth spurt, either in late winter or early spring (late February to early April in the Northern Hemisphere). Otherwise, pruning later in the spring or summer is acceptable.

Cold-Treat Your Seeds if Necessary

Many seeds require a period of cold before germination, from 2 weeks to 4 months, notably most temperate-climate trees and shrubs, but also many perennials and even some annuals. This treatment is called “vernalization”, “cold stratification” or “cold treatment”. Normally, we start the treatment in January or February, so as to have plants to transplant in the garden in spring.

Photo : pixabay

Perform a Germination Test

Most seeds can germinate at least 2-3 years after harvest, and some can remain good for 7 years or more. A few weeks before the sowing date, perform a germination test.

Resume Fertilizing Houseplants

Many plants are growing buds, opening leaves and blooming flowers. It’s not summer yet, but with over 11 hours of daylight a day, growth is picking up. In late February or early March, it’s time to start fertilizing again.

Force Branches for an Early Spring

Forced forsythia branches.

Spring can’t come soon enough for you? You can “force” shoots from spring-flowering trees and shrubs to give your home an extra-special bloom. The technique is useful for all spring-flowering trees and shrubs, such as willows, forsythias, serviceberries, magnolias, ornamental almonds and fruit trees. They can be forced as soon as their buds start to swell. They also bloom very quickly when forced, often within a week.

Take Cuttings From Your Houseplants

As winter draws to a close, under the influence of longer and longer days, the growth of our houseplants begins, or else it will begin very soon. The best time to take cuttings from our houseplants is usually between mid-February and the end of August.

Photo : Karolina Grabowska 

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4 comments on “Laidback Gardening: What to Do in February?

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  3. I didn’t have success with this approach—any suggestions? Get in touch

  4. Finish dormant pruning that did not get done in January! (Maybe get good deals on bare root stock that did not sell.)

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