1. If like me you haven't visited your plot for a while during the Winter it may be prudent to check things out there, to ensure this Winters weather hasn't caused any damage.
2. If you have any large perennial plants in your flower garden this month is a good time to divide/split and replant them, weather permitting.
3. Start chitting your seed potatoes this month.
4. Snip side shoots back to 1 or 2 buds and remove the tips of mature red and white currants this month, but beware if frost is likely.
5. Keep feeding the birds and in cold areas make sure they have un-frozen water to drink.
6. Check over your garden tools and repair any damaged ones. Ensure cutting tools are correctly sharpened. Any petrol left in petrol driven machinery is likely to have gone "stale" over Winter, making starting the machinery difficult or impossible.
7. Ventilate greenhouses on warm February days?
8. Put cloches/fleece over strawberry plants to aid earlier fruiting?
9. Grapevines can be pruned in February.
10.
2. If you have any large perennial plants in your flower garden this month is a good time to divide/split and replant them, weather permitting.
3. Start chitting your seed potatoes this month.
4. Snip side shoots back to 1 or 2 buds and remove the tips of mature red and white currants this month, but beware if frost is likely.
5. Keep feeding the birds and in cold areas make sure they have un-frozen water to drink.
6. Check over your garden tools and repair any damaged ones. Ensure cutting tools are correctly sharpened. Any petrol left in petrol driven machinery is likely to have gone "stale" over Winter, making starting the machinery difficult or impossible.
7. Ventilate greenhouses on warm February days?
8. Put cloches/fleece over strawberry plants to aid earlier fruiting?
9. Grapevines can be pruned in February.
10.
SOWING/PLANTING IN FEBRUARY
1. Sow winter greens (under cloches or tunnels).
2. Sow round seeded peas (probably best in pots or trays).
3. Sow tomatoes seeds early Feb (heated greenhouse) late Feb (unheated greenhouse).
4. Depending on conditions, sow broadbeans, early peas for harvesting in May/June.
5. Parsnips can be sown in Feb but sowing in March may give better germination.
6. Try planting shallots under cloches.
7. Lettuce, radish and rocket can be started early under cloches or in the greenhouse.
8. Spinach, turnips and Summer cabbbage can be sown under cover.
9. Sow onion seeds indoors (15degC).
10. Cane fruits can still be planted in Feb.
1. Sow winter greens (under cloches or tunnels).
2. Sow round seeded peas (probably best in pots or trays).
3. Sow tomatoes seeds early Feb (heated greenhouse) late Feb (unheated greenhouse).
4. Depending on conditions, sow broadbeans, early peas for harvesting in May/June.
5. Parsnips can be sown in Feb but sowing in March may give better germination.
6. Try planting shallots under cloches.
7. Lettuce, radish and rocket can be started early under cloches or in the greenhouse.
8. Spinach, turnips and Summer cabbbage can be sown under cover.
9. Sow onion seeds indoors (15degC).
10. Cane fruits can still be planted in Feb.
OTHER JOBS TO DO IN FEBRUARY
1. Cover over unused areas of the plot with cloches or black plastic sheeting to warm the soil earlier.
2. Clean out pots and trays.
3. Repair or replace any broken/damaged tools.
4. Feed the birds.
1. Cover over unused areas of the plot with cloches or black plastic sheeting to warm the soil earlier.
2. Clean out pots and trays.
3. Repair or replace any broken/damaged tools.
4. Feed the birds.
Really need to do a lot of these jobs on our plots - mostly tidying. But it's just too miserable to get out there!
ReplyDeleteIt certainly is miserable, really wet here again too. Definitely a late start for me this year.
DeleteSowing seeds is a bit early for us - we err on the side of caution.
ReplyDeleteI think you are right to err on the side of caution so far this year. Really unpredictable weather again.
DeleteYour Monthly Tips are so useful Rooko. Whoops I have forgotten to take the Petrol out of my Rotavator. Is it too late ? I have just bought a Soil Thermometer on Amazon to stop me sowing seeds in cold soil. I am slowly learning from my mistakes !
ReplyDeleteThanks Marion, try starting the rotavator as normal, if it won't start try putting in some new fuel. DON'T TIP the rotavator over/up as it can cause the oil to flood the machine. Another tip is to put a few drops of petrol into the plug socket, replace the plug and try and start the machine. Don't put more than a few drops in. (Less than half a teaspoonful). Another tip is to leave the rotavator standing in the sunshine for a while to warm up before starting it. My soil is still very cold, I usually wait until about 2 weeks after the last frosts before sowing most seeds. Also you can get testers to tell u whether the soil is cid or alkeline. I use my fingers for testing the coldness.
ReplyDelete