February…
…………….and thinking about Zinnias
I love the month of February, it is the beginning of the in between time. To me it means we’re still in winter and can cook all those feel good meals and dress in the comfy cozy clothes that cover most of our physical foibles, yet the thought off a coming spring just around the corner. Yeah…I really like February.
We can keep ourselves busy by using this interim period to clean from under the beds, change furnace filters, redecorate a bedroom in time for some romantic fun on Valentine’s Day, and of course………..
………………checking out the yard and making our gardening plans.
Outside
We can scratch our outdoor itch by doing some pruning and cutting back those late fall blooming shrubs and plants. I know we have some Blue Mist Spirea and some Russian Sage that we are going to get to in the next couple weeks.
February is the beginning of the end for the dormant season in many parts of the country and a great time to prune and shape trees. Remember your goal is to help plants develop even and aesthetically pleasing growth. Don’t prune if your trees/shrubs have already set buds. If you do you will cut off the new life for year. If there are branches that cross each other or grow inward, eliminate them. Branches that have become leggy….off they go. If some branches have been damaged by heavy snow prune them off.
If perennials appear to have given their all, clip them back to the ground and wait for a couple months to show signs of new life. Some of them will surprise you!
Inside
Now is the time you can start seeds so they will be ready to transplant with a good root base established. I use the trays I have purchased annuals in from the nursery the year before. They work great. Plant the trays, sit the tray on a card table or other surface in front of a sunny window and enjoy the mood of spring in the air (even before it is).
If you’re lucky enough to have a greenhouse now is a great time and so therapeutic to spend time sprucing up the place in preparation for the hours you will enjoy there.
A great website for purchasing seeds
A lot more economical than the twirly racks in the grocery stores!
