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What to do now: Flowers in February
Reproduced from February 07 issue of Gardeners' World magazine. This month's issue on sale now Subscribe now and save 30 per cent.
Tend pansies...time to prune...sow sweet peas...
Look after those pansies
Winter-hardy pansies provide reliable flushes of bloom during mild spells - a welcome boost when your borders are looking so bare. Don't ignore them, though, as fading flowers usually form seed pods and these must be picked off to prevent plants setting seed. Remember to tidy the plants regularly, picking off yellowing leaves and checking for sheltering slugs and snails among the foliage. Greenfly infestations can spread quickly in spring, so spray with soapy water if you spot any.
Prune your hydrangeas
Leaving old flower heads on mophead and lacecap hydrangeas provides a degree of frost protection to developing shoots. New growth is emerging on Hydrangea macrophylla varieties and this must be protected, but once conditions improve in your area, the faded flower heads should be snipped off. Cut back, shortening shoots to strong buds lower down the stem, shaping plants as you go. Take this opportunity to remove congested stems, opening up the centre of the bush, by cutting out about a third of the oldest woody or non-flowering stems each year. Varieties of Hydrangea paniculata need to be pruned differently, cutting all shoots down to within three buds of soil level every spring.
Cut back clematis
Summer-flowering clematis are due their annual prune this month. Ones that flower from June onwards must be pruned to avoid new growth and blooms developing high up on bare lower stems. During February you'll notice plump green buds sprouting from bare woody stems, and it's these that will develop to carry flowers later in summer. Prune just above the lowest buds, or at various heights so that resulting new growth provides the cover you're after. Clematis to prune in February include varieties of C. orientalis, C. texensis, C. vitalba and C. viticella and large flowered hybrids
Adam says: rescue hedges
Neglected hedges - bare at the bottom and full of gaps - can often be rejuvenated with hard pruning. Yew, privet, forsythia, camellia and beech can all be cut back hard into the old wood or down to their bases with loppers. This will reward you with strong new growth from the base, which you can turn into a far better hedge.
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