February In The Gardens 2006

February In The Gardens 2006

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

Week 1

General
Pruning late flowering CLEMATIS and climbing and rambling ROSES.

Cut down autumn fruiting RASPBERRIES to ground level.

Tied in loose conifer branches to prevent spreading and breakage under snow or strong winds.

Finished pruning APPLES.

Hedge cutting.

Allotment
Made semi hot bed and topped with 10cm of our own garden compost.

Planted out LETTUCE 'Fristina'; ENDIVE 'Moss Curled' and BEETROOT 'Boltardy' onto semi hot bed under a cold frame.

Greenhouse
Watering.

Week 2

General
Any potted plants have been top dressed with fresh compost or another suitable mulch.

Cut off EPIMEDIUM and HELLEBORE leaves that were looking tired and tatty in readiness for the flowers.

Any remaining APPLES in store were removed and used.

Shredding hedge cuttings.

Moved CHRYSANTHEMUMS from greenhouse onto cut flower area.

Pruned MALUS 'Sun Rival' to thin number of branches.

Ornamental Kitchen Garden
Pruned MULBERRY tree that was casting too much shade over one of the beds.

Parterre
Cleaned through all beds, digging where necessary.

Greenhouse
Sown SWEET PEA 'White Leamington', 'Noel Sutton', 'Galaxy Mixed', 'Henry Eckford', 'Southbourne', 'Beajolais', 'Goldmine', 'Bouquet' and 'Heirloom Mixed' into paper tubes.

Potted on CAULIFLOWER 'Mayflower' and TOMATO 'Golden Sunrise' into 7cm (3") pots.

Pricked out CAULIFLOWER 'Candid Charm' into modules.

Sown CELARIC 'Brilliant', BRUSSELS SPROUTS 'Bedford Fillbasket', BASIL 'Lemon' and LEEK' Prizetaker' into trays.

Week 3

General
Weeding, forking over, cutting back and dividing herbaceous perennial where required.

Cleaning out water features, washing cobbles, removing sludge build up and repairing any leaks. This has been carried out before frogs, toads and newts begin breeding.

Shredding hedge cuttings.

Topped up gravel pathways where required and mulched alpine areas with pea shingle.

Nursery
Started to divide plants in the gardens to be potted up for sale.

Greenhouse
Pricked out TOMATO 'British Breakfast', 'Shirley', 'Ailsa Craig', 'Floridity', 'Fantasio', 'Golden Sunrise', 'Alicante' and 'Moneymaker'; LETTUCE 'Fristina' and CAULIFLOWER 'Candid Charm' into 7cm (3") pots.

Sown ONION 'Ailsa Craig'; BEETROOT 'Cylindrica'; PARSNIP 'Tender and True'; CALENDULA 'Daisy May' and 'Fiesta Gitana'; TAGETES 'Honeycomb', 'Bo Jangle', 'Sparky', 'Naughty Marietta', 'La Bamba', Tangerine Gem' and 'Starfire Mix' into trays.

Week 4

General
Spreading wood chippings over borders.

Removed box hedging from the formal herb area in the Gentleman's Cottage Garden due to box blight and replaced it with Victorian style teracotta edging.

Also removed mature box hedging fro the Country Garden and burnt it in situ, due to infection by box blight.

Watering in greenhouses and conservatory.

Pruned PASSIFLORA, PLUMBAGO and other climbers in the conservatory.

Allotment
Tidied KALE and weeded around plants.

Directly sown BROAD BEAN 'Exhibition'.

Elizabethan Vegetable Garden
Removed remaining BRASSICAS and SPINACH and tidied all beds and paths.

Planted out BROAD BEAN 'Crimson Flowered' and BEETROOT 'Boltardy' under cloches.

Parterre
Planted BROAD BEAN 'Express'.

Put in pea sticks.

Greenhouse
Sown PARSLEY 'Favorit' into trays.

Sown PEA 'Hursts Greenshaft' and ROCKET into gutter.

Potted CABBAGE 'Golden Acre Primo' into 7cm (3") pots.

Sown SWEET PEA 'Geoff Hamilton' into paper tubes.

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

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