February Garden Tips

The month of February brings budding plants, emerging bulbs, and hopefulness that winter will soon be over. For many, winter will still linger. Regardless of what the groundhog saw, there is still work to be done in the garden! Follow these February garden tips to be ahead of the curve when spring finally arrives:

Fertilize

While now is not the time to fertilize most plants that are still sleeping or dormant, February is the time to fertilize all shade trees and any emerging spring flowers. By now, you should begin to notice the small blossoms on all shade trees. While they won’t open for another month, they still need food!

Prune

Late winter is the time to prune all grapevines and ornamental grasses, such as liriope, mondo, and pampas grasses. When pruning these grasses, cut them back to the ground. Pruning will promote new growth and will remove all of the winter damage. If you happen to notice any branches on your shade trees that have died, prune these back, too! Pro tip: If you are unsure if the branch is alive, make a small scratch on the bark using your fingernail. If it is alive, it will be easy to scratch the bark off, and you will also see green!

Spray the Following

February is the best time to win the battle against pest infestation on your fruit trees. For all fruit trees, spray with dormant insecticide oil to eliminate any insects. Some fruit trees, such as nectarines and peaches, will need to be sprayed with a fungicide spray. Do the legwork NOW and get ahead of the curve. You will be happy that you did.

Propagate

Propagation is always fun. There is something neat about taking a piece of one plant and creating another one! Now is the time to take hardwood cuttings from forsythia, hydrangeas, junipers, and crape myrtles. You can also split perennials, like daylilies, hostas, and grasses.

 

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