Spring is on the Way!

It finally feels that spring is on its way. There are bright clumps of snowdrops everywhere and hellebores are beginning to flower. We have been trying to work on our own new garden at Gardener's Cottage but it has proved to be a bit difficult as clumps of snowdrops are beginning to flower everywhere we want to dig. We have been carefully picking through the borders gathering them up before we dig!

The wet weather at the beginning of the year was a challenge as we thought we would never be able to get out into the gardens. The copse and New Lawn became excessively wet underfoot, and the eel trap filled with eels as the lake level rose again. Richard released about 20 eels back into the lake. However, the bad weather did give us the chance to prune the grape vines and conservatory plants so it wasn't all bad.

This is the month for pruning and clearing, so we have been attacking the task with gusto. The cercis and robinia arches in the Millennium Garden have been pruned and tied in, and a large area of the copse was been attacked with a pruning saw.... A large scrub patch in our working yard has been removed to make way for a nursery bed, and the Palm House, which is not open to the public, is also being cleared and tidied.

In the Kitchen Garden work is continuing steadily. Two cold frames are being built, so that we can raise and display vegetables in a more protected environment, pathways have been improved and more box hedging has been planted. We are hoping to have a wide variety of veg and fruit on display for the next season.

February Tasks

Start to cut down and mulch herbaceous borders when the soil is not sticky. Epimediums and hellebores can have their old leaves removed so that the early flowers can be seen.

Keep off the lawns when frosty.

Order seed potatoes and start chitting them in a cool dry corner.
(This means getting them to start sprouting, to give them a head start when they are planted).

Check greenhouse heaters and fleece in the garden regularly. The wind can easily dislodge loose fleece.

Start pruning late flowering shrubs.