February In Your Garden

February feels like a turning point in the garden. It’s still cold outside, but there are signs of spring’s imminent arrival everywhere you look. Bulbs are slowly emerging from the ground, and the days are getting longer at last.

This month’s garden jobs are

 mostly about getting things ready for the spring.

Prune wisteria now, cutting back

 summer side-shoots to 2 or 3 buds.

There’s still plenty of time to prune your rhododendron while they’re in their dormant stage. 

Take notice of your climbers, as some may need pruning before the end of the month.

Cut back shrubs, such as cornus and salix cultivars (grown for their

 colourful winter stems), down to their bases.

Prune summer-flowering clematis towards the end of the month, before active growth begins. 

Cut back the old foliage from 

ornamental grasses before growth begins. Clip them to within a few

centimetres of the ground.

Prune overwintered fuchsias back to one or two buds on each shoot. 

Prune winter-flowering jasmine

 (Jasminum nudiflorum) after 

flowering, to encourage new growth for next year’s blooms. Cut back the previous year’s growth to 5cm from the old wood.

Trim winter-flowering heathers as the flowers disappear, to prevent plants becoming leggy.

Prune winter-flowering shrubs such as mahonia and viburnum x 

bodnantense once their colourful display has finished.

Remove faded flowers from winter pansies to stop them setting seed. This will encourage a flush of new flowers when the weather warms up.

Lift and divide snowdrops still ‘in the green’, if you want to move them or create more plants.

Move any deciduous trees or shrubs that need repositioning now,

provided the soil is not frozen or waterlogged.