Fertilizing and Pruning are the two main jobs for gardeners in February. Using slow-release fertilizer reduces the chance of nutrient runoff polluting our streams and groundwater.

LAWN CARE

Fertilize fescue lawns lightly (half the fall application rate) around Valentine's Day. Remember that late or excessive fertilization in spring predisposes fescue to Brown Patch disease.

Pull wild onions (wild garlic) Those tall green sprouts in your lawn are difficult to control. If you hand-pull them, use a dandelion digger and be sure to get the bulb along with the top growth! Some broad-leaf herbicides for use in lawns may also work on wild onions; check labels. Complete control requires persistence and may take two years or more.

TREES, SHRUBS & ORNAMENTALS

Fertilize shrubs only if you want to encourage growth. If your shrubs are healthy and at the desired size, fertilizing will only increase your pruning chores. Remember that the shrub's feeder roots are concentrated just outside the shrub's dripline. ...but wait to fertilize azaleas until after they bloom.

Established trees do not need regular fertilization; they will get the nutrients they need from decaying mulch or from lawn fertilization.

Cut back dormant ornamental grasses before new growth starts. Ornamental grasses can add an elegant touch to the winter landscape. But after they get broken and matted by ice, cut them back to 10" or so above the ground. Evergreen ornamental grasses (or grasslike ornamentals) such as Liriope and Mondo Grass can be mowed to remove last year's unsightly foliage.

Remember the following rule for pruning shrubs:
Summer-blooming shrubs bloom on the current growing season's wood, so prune them hard in February to encourage floriferous new growth. Examples include abelia, hydrangea, beautyberry, butterfly bush, althea, and bush or tea roses.

Spring-blooming shrubs bloom on the previous growing season's wood, so wait till after they've bloomed to prune them. Examples include azalea, rhododendron, forsythia, spirea, flowering quince, kerria, pieris, weigela, and climbing or rambling roses.

VEGETABLES, FRUITS & HOUSEPLANTS

Start some seeds indoors. It's easy and economical to grow many summer annuals, perennials, and vegetables from seed. Give the little seedlings lots of light, under fluorescent tubes or beside a sunny window. It's not necessary to use special "grow-lights;" ordinary fluorescent tubes are fine. Your houseplants will appreciate bright light too.

WILDLIFE & INSECTS

Control overwintering insects (including scale insects) and their eggs with a dormant oil spray (also called horticultural oil). Check the back of Euonymus and Camellia leaves for small waxy black or white spots, which are the scale insects' hard shells. Follow label directions, and do not apply dormant oil to broad?leaf evergreens when freezing temperatures are expected.

LANDSCAPE IDEA

Enjoy early-blooming shrubs such as witch hazel, winter honeysuckle, and rosemary. Forsythia, spiraea, and quince may send out a few early blooms during warm spells, but they are usually not injured by cold snaps.

PUBLICATIONS FOR FEBRUARY

Fertilizing:
o Lawn Care and the Environment (AG-597)
o Bedding Plants: Soil Preparation & Fertilization (HIL 551)
o Improving Soil Fertility (UHN 4)
o Understanding the Soil Test Report (UHN 6)
o and more

Pruning Techniques, Tools, & Timing:
o Pruning Trees and Shrubs (AG-71)
o Pruning Trees (HIL 602)
o Pruning Basics (UHN 9)
o Trees: A Homeowner's Guide (Forest Service Pamphlet)
o Training & Pruning Fruit Trees (AG-29)
o and more

Lawn Maintenance Calendar for Tall Fescue (AG-367) and Carolina Lawns (AG-69)

Starting Seeds:
o Starting Plants From Seed (HIL 8703)
o Home Vegetable Gardening (AG-06)
o and more

Scale Insects on Euonymus, Camellia, etc:
o Ornamental Insect Notes 15, 45, 50, 54, 55, 91 and others.