Happy Valentines all, did you get your roses, chocolates, romantic dinner…. no me neither, never mind there’s always Easter…. or next year…..and we can always grow our own roses anyway!
Well the snow appeared….and stayed a while…..
Can’t stress enough about your tender plants, make sure they are still covered and out of jacks way….Keep the ice at bay on pathways and patios with rock-salt, sand or grit, just be steady out there.
Digging for victory…Get your seed potatoes now, chit them (to allow shoots to form) and place them in a light, cool, frost-free place. Potatoes don’t just have to be planted in the ground they can be grown in all manner-of-ways, the tyre tower is an excellent way if you don’t have much space. Your local tyre shop or scrap yard will have a few spare, put newspaper on the ground, stack two tyres on the paper, fill with straw or soil, bury ten potatoes in the straw or soil and water. When the potato sprouts peep through, add another tyre and fill up with more straw or soil. Keep doing this as your potatoes grow, until you have at least four or five tyres in the tower. Wait till the plants flower, dismantle your tower and see how many potatoes you have…you will be surprised. Great idea to get children into growing their own….
Plant a tree….The Big Tree Plant…this year sees the start of the biggest tree planting campaign ever. The Government’s Big Tree Plant aims to plant 1 million trees in towns and cities and create new woodlands across the UK, now I know we don’t all have space to plant a tree, but in a small garden you could plant a smaller variety of tree, some of the Japanese Acer’s are under 20’ and they give a fantastic show come autumn, and there are ornimaental Cherriers that are also under 20’ and look wonderful in the spring. Ask at your local nursery or garden centre.
Ready…set…grow…Start to get your pots, trays, and propagating equipment ready. Thoroughly clean any stored over winter or purchase new seed trays. As the month progresses, you can begin your propagation in earnest. For a lot of seeds you will need a higher temperature at this time of year, so a heated propagator can pay dividends. Most seeds germinate at 13˚C but others such as tomatoes need a temperature of 18 ̊C. Get bare rooted cane fruits, e.g. raspberries, blackberries planted out. Prepare the soil by digging a trench and adding plenty of organic matter. Plant up some containers, to brighten up your front door or porch. Use the wide choice of pre-potted spring bulbs now available. And while you are doing that re-pot or top dress last years containers. Divide clumps of herbaceous perennials that you want to propagate those that have become too large for their allotted space, and those that are flowering poorly or have lost their shape. Divide your snow drops and replant in another part of the garden.
Feather and fur…If you go out into the garden at daybreak now the lighter mornings are creeping in you will notice the birdsong increasing, male birds are starting to mark out their territories ready for mating and the nesting season. Natural food supplies may be in short supply, especially when deep frosts persist. Don’t forget to feed them regulary to keep them coming back, you will need them when the bugs start! Plenty of wildlife makes its home in dead wood, and other animals use it as a source of food, but in our increasingly tidy garden, fallen and dead wood is not so common. A pile of logs simulates fallen branches and is considered essential in a wildlife garden. You can usually find somewhere to put a pile of smaller logs, even in the tinyist backyard. It is best placed in a shady spot, so that it remains cool and damp. Do keep the ground clear of food, vermin are also on the lookout for extra food at this time of year.
Spring forward … Continue adding to your compost bin any vegetable food waste, chopped vegetation, paper and leaves. Keep turning your heap as this will speed up the decomposing rate. Check on stored chemicals. Make sure bags aren’t split. Discard any that have been lying around for a long time. Be careful how you dispose of them, take this sort of material to the local authority waste site. Continue with tidying up around the garden, sweeping up leaves, keeping patio and paths clear. Apply organic fertilisers such as seaweed meal, blood, fish and bone or pelleted chicken manure, around the base of plants, spread and then fork in. Inspect your garden tools and lawnmower ready for the new season, check for frayed cables, loose belts, missing or damaged guards, and accumulation of grass, clean and have serviced if necessary, and lets wait for the longer, warmer days to arrive…..it wont be long now.
Cheerio for now, keep warm!
