Blog: only play outside if it’s not too cold or wet
All gardeners know you can’t set a strict calendar for tasks, especially for February’s key gardening jobs. The weather is the overriding factor so follow the forecast and don’t be afraid to put jobs off. The garden will catch up.
After a winter of inactivity gardening-wise, I’ve been sucked back outdoors by the lure of a mild February. I hate myself in a way, as there’s bound to be at least another cold snap – if there’s not, climate change is running rampant in North East England!
It’s often hard to get back into the swing of things, especially if you’ve been ill, either mentally or physically. However, getting that coat on and setting foot out of doors is a huge step. Dr Mandy’s prescription is little and often. In the last week, I’ve managed between 30 minutes and an hour and a half of work on four days. As a reward on Sunday, I sat in the sun, listening to music, and surveying my handiwork.
February’s key gardening jobs – looking after hellebores
I only cut back herbaceous perennials late in winter, as they are excellent overwintering spots for beneficial insects. The exceptions are if it’s been very wet and dead growth starts to rot and in my tiny ‘late winter bed’. As you can see from the before and after pictures, its optimum time is now, full of hellebores and double snowdrops. Dead foliage and stems do nothing to enhance them! It’s a simple job of removing them and excess leaf litter.
There’s a mix of Christmas roses (Helleborus niger) and some bargain Oriental hybrids (H. orientalis) in speckled white, pink and purplish red. I must move the dark-coloured ones to the front aa you can’t see them. Cut off the largest leaves to show off the flowers and avoid hellebore leaf spot.
At the back is a Cornus sericea White Gold. Its supposedly golden stems are more lime but it did put on more growth last year. As it’s there for stem colour, I’ve cut it back hard to encourage new whippy growth. The leaves are variegated and go well next to the purple of Cercis canadensis Forest Pansy but pruning this hard means sacrificing the flowers.
Pruning’s the name of the game
Another quick job in this bed is pruning the unnamed pink climbing rose. I bought it decades ago at a Northumbrian stately home’s walled garden sale – it was a sport of one of their roses. It’s only in the last year that it has got going – I’m glad I kept it. Read my guide on what to prune in late winter.
The final job? I discovered the remains of Clematis Freckles I was sure had died when I had the summerhouse installed. Rather battered, I managed to drape it around an obelisk and hope it grows from there.
Add to this the pruning of all my roses, weeding the patio and moving around the pots for the best effect and the gardening year has certainly kicked off. I’m holding off sowing seeds until next month – or will I succumb?
