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Garden Notes for February 2021

In the middle of January as I write these notes, spring and plant growth seems a long way off. When we had the first lockdown last year the weather was remarkably good. This winter is not the same and does not encourage much gardening activity with frequent showers and cold nights, but this will change soon, hopefully. More and more people are discovering the benefits of growing crops in containers, since these will provide shelter and warm up the soil quicker than in the garden. In addition there are increasing numbers of crops being developed specifically for growing on the patio.

In February, if you have well sheltered places why not try some early broad beans, spaced at 20 cm. Young carrots are one of the joys of the garden, try sowing some ‘Early Nantes’ or ‘Amsterdam Forcing’. All the big seed-houses do packs of salad leaves, and these can be grown after starting under glass, since they need a bit more heat than the other crops I have mentioned. Mini-lettuces like ‘Little Gem’ and ‘Tom Thumb’ may also be started and planted out at 15cm spacing when the plants have developed a bit more.

All these seedlings will need to be protected from frosts – use garden fleece as required, but always allow plenty of air to circulate to stop fungal attack such as botrytis which will cause damping off.

Think about getting seed potatoes in February. There is a wide range to choose from. First earlies like ‘Lady Christie’ do well here, although to get the fuller flavour of second earlies is always nice – try ‘Nadine’ or one I particularly like ‘Charlotte’. When you get them put them in a cool frost free place with lights. Use the large egg tray to get the seed potatoes ‘chitted’ – where the potato ‘eye’ starts to get green and gives it a good start when they can be planted in the soil.

Towards the end of February, start of March, bush roses should be pruned. Use sharp secateurs. Cuts should not be more than 5mm above a bud, and should slope away from it. Prune die-back to healthy wood. Remove all dead, diseased stems and burn them. Trace suckers back to the roots from which they are growing and pull them away. Always wear protective gloves, the scratches from rose thorns can be nasty. Other pruning to do this month include raspberry canes. It’s your last chance to cut autumn-fruiting raspberry cans to the ground which will stimulate new canes to fruit in the autumn. On the other hand leave plum, cherry and apricot trees until the summer as pruning in the cold months is likely to make them susceptible to Silver Leaf disease

That reminds me, everyone, but especially all gardeners, should make sure that they keep their tetanus inoculation up-to-date. It should be done at least once every 10 years. It is available on the NHS and it really is important to be safe rather than sorry.

Lawns will start growing soon, so make sure that your garden machinery has been serviced and is ready to go when you are. On a wet day check your garden tools are clean and ready for use.

Chris

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