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February Gardening Calendar
Calvin Finch, PhD
January 26, 2010 | Comment on this article
February is the big pruning month, especially this year with the freezes. First, remove all the dead wood on all plants in the landscape.
Be patient on pruning out the dead wood on citrus, figs, Sago palms, and other plants that are likely to have some live wood at the base. They may only sprout in March.
Poinciana, firebush, lantanas, duranta, and esperanza can be cut at ground level. It is also likely that Mexican olive, oleanders, cape honeysuckle, Mexican honeysuckle, and Turks cap will be dead to the ground level.
Open up roses and fruit trees to air movement by pruning out the middles. For diagrams visit http://plantanswers.com.
Wait on early blooming plants such as ornamental peach or pear, climbing roses, and Texas mountain laurel to prune until the flush of bloom is complete. Otherwise you will reduce the number of blooms.
Early in the month is the last time to plant cool weather plants such as broccoli and cabbage transplants, spinach transplants, sweet pea, and English pea seeds. In February, plant potatoes in the garden. If you seed your own tomato and peppers, plant the seeds in peat pots or containers this month. Tomatoes should be planted early in the month and peppers any time in the month.
Seeding your own tomatoes is the best way to try the heirloom varieties. Obtain the seeds from internet catalogs or other sources.
Every year gardeners from all over the region visit the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo to pick up a few plants of the year�s experimental tomato. Some area nurseries also offer tomato transplants. Sometimes this is the only time to find the high demand, low supply selections like Surefire and Heatwave.
February, however, is too early to plant tomatoes in the garden. The soil is too cold and the threat of freeze is too likely.
The best strategy is to pot these early tomatoes in one-gallon containers filled with potting soil and enriched with Osmocote or another slow release fertilizer for containers. In the containers, they can be placed in a sunny, wind free location to take advantage of warm days. Move them to shelter if temperatures are forecasted below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The idea is to keep them in a high-growth mode.
If the tomatoes experience too much cool weather they harden off and quit growing. Place the potted tomatoes in the garden in March or April.
February is also still a good time to plant roses, fruit trees, shade trees, shrubs, and perennials.
It is too early to fertilize your lawn, but apply fertilizer to trees and shrubs. For shade trees apply one cup of slow release lawn fertilizer for every inch of trunk diameter. Apply the fertilizer out on the drip line. Slow release lawn fertilizer is good for most landscape plants including roses and fruit trees. The formula is usually about 19-5-9.
Wait to fertilize the lawn until May 1, but February is a good time to aerate and top dress. If you have weed problems and want to apply a pre-emergent herbicide such as Amaze (to prevent sand burs), do it after the aeration and top dressing has been in place for two weeks.
In the flower garden, snapdragons, cyclamen, pansies, stocks, and dianthus have several months of blooming period left.
In the vegetable garden, fertilize the onions, broccoli, greens and other cool weather crops. Again use slow release lawn fertilizer. Also keep harvesting green onion, spinach, Brussels sprouts, carrots, and rutabagas as you need them.
Calvin Finch is a horticulturist and the San Antonio Water System�s project director of regional initiatives and special projects. Hear him on �Gardening South Texas� on KLUP 930 AM radio Saturdays noon to 2 p.m., and 1-3 p.m. Sundays. Or, e-mail him at reader@wcn-online.com. |
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