The days are lengthening and the sun getting stronger, but February is a notoriously unpredictable month, and we are just as likely to get warm-ish sunny days, or sub-zero temperatures, or non-stop rain. Garden tasks will be tailored to the weather, and some of the tasks I suggest may have to be delayed if winter has decided to maintain an icy grip.

If the weather is too grim for you to venture outside, then how about building something for the birds? The plan below shows a nest box suitable for several different species; all that differentiates the species concerned is the size of the entry hole. I spent numerous hours during the lockdowns of 2020 making a number of these. They cost very little and can be put together in a few hours if you are reasonably handy. Why not have a go? Next Christmas you can ask Santa to bring you a wildlife camera to put inside it.

Indoor (house or greenhouse) jobs for this month include:

• Cleaning your houseplants – if you have plants with smooth, shiny leaves then give them a wipe with a damp cloth to remove dust. They’ll look better, and cleaned leaves will help them absorb light, essential for spurring them into growth.
• If you didn’t follow my advice and sow your chilli seeds last month then do so now, ideally in a heated propagator, or on a warm windowsill. They really do need a long growing season if the chillis are to grow and ripen.
• Chit potatoes somewhere frost free. Chitting is the technical term for the very un-technical task of putting seed potatoes on a tray in the light. An old egg box will hold half a dozen. Once in the light they’ll soon start to sprout.

Outside, you can tidy up your hedges. My mixed native hedge was cut in the late autumn but it still manages to increase in height by about 10 cms a year. As the hedge will still be dormant, and birds aren’t yet nesting, February is the best month for bringing it back under control and taking off some of the thicker growth that the hedge trimmer struggled with. Without leaf cover you can also get into it and cut out the brambles that will probably have established.

Shrub roses can also be pruned. Any dead or diseased bits should be removed and flowering branches reduced by about a half. Cut just above an outward facing bud.

Deciduous grasses will probably be looking untidy by now. Cut last year’s dead bits, before new growth gets in the way.

Garden visits using the Churchill and Langford minibus will resume in February…..

Churchill and Langford Minibus visits

Sunday 23 February 2025

1 Birch Drive, Alveston – THIS TRIP IS NOW FULL

Minibus fare £9 (Garden entry £10 including tea and cake)

This is a private visit to a small garden in South Gloucestershire. The owner is a true galanthophile (snowdrop lover!) and the garden should be awash with spring flowers. The owner will guide us through her garden, and then provide tea and cake, which is included in the £10 garden entry charge.

Saturday 15th March 2025

Lower Shalford Farm & Forest Lodge, Wincanton

Minibus fare £9 (Garden entry £10)

Forest Lodge is a 3 acre mature garden with a lake, spring bulbs and flowering trees. Many camellias and rhododendrons flower from March till May. Interesting garden sculpture. Lower Shalford Farm is has extensive lawns and wooded surroundings, with drifts of daffodils in spring. Small stream running through with several stone bridges.

We will visit both gardens if we have time. Both are included in the £10 entry fee, and cake is available at both too.

For bookings, please email or call; john.simmons3462@gmail.com , 07855-944049.