February, in the gardening world, is one of preparation. Last month, though dull stayed quite warm, so you may find your lawn is growing. Give it a light cut, you are just preparing the grass for the summer months to come.

Honeysuckle and other deciduous vines should be trimmed back now and shaped if needed. Your roses should also be pruned back now if they haven't been done yet.

If soil is not too wet or frozen, start weeding and digging over borders and any new areas ready for planting. Dead head winter pansies to prolong their display. Check pots and tubs for moisture, water in the morning but not if frost is forecast, the water may freeze and cause damage to the plant's roots.

If you didn’t during the Autumn then now is a great time to lay either home made compost or commercially bought compost/manure. Treat it as a mulch, nice and thick but avoid contact with stems

Pruning Wisteria. Now is the best time to see your Wisterias Structure. Along these mains stems will be gatherings of shoots, reduce the length of these by no more than 2 -3 buds and you will be rewarded with lashings of beautiful lilac or white flowers in May – June.  During July any wispy stems should be shortened by two thirds.

Hedges can be cut back now, before birds start nesting.

Looking after your garden regularly allows you to spot when things are not right, as well as how wonderful it can look. Weekly or even fortnightly inspection which may included 20 mins. tidy will improve your garden and your life. If you are not sure where to start give me a ring. We offer consultations for people eager to improve their outside space.