Top Gardening Jobs for February

Get your soil tested.

Once you have taken your samples to the North Fulton Service Center’s Cooperative Extension Office in Sandy Springs (Room 248), along with $12 per sample, UGA’s soil lab will email the analysis report to you. You can locate your nearest Extension office as well as get instructions for submitting a soil sample by visiting the University of Georgia’s Extension website: extension.uga.edu.

You may also obtain Soil Test Kit for $15, includes container and prepaid postage. Soil testing will be extremely helpful for your property’s future success.

The recent flash-freeze in December 2022 caused damage and injury to many broad-leaf evergreens and possibly some thin-bark trees. Refrain at least for a month from cutting back anything until you notice new growth. The UGA Extension website has detailed information, including a circular, “Winter Protection of Ornamental Plants.”

On the ground

Clean up your plant beds. Remove excess leaves, weeds and fallen branches. Renew mulch if needed. Clay soil needs lots of help, so remove old mulch and add soil conditioners and decomposed compost. Till it in around the plant roots and tamp down the soil. Replace it with 2-3 inches of fresh mulch.

Do you have an established vegetable garden? Till the soil when it is dry to eliminate overwintering insects and weeds.

Clean and sharpen garden tools. Spray paint the handles a bright color. There will be less chance of losing tools when traveling from one section of the yard to another.

Chop English ivy and other invasive ground covers. Cut back liriope and other ornamental grasses.

Trees

Tree planting is ideal from January through mid-February. Make sure you site your tree in the proper location according to its requirements. Check often to ensure that it has enough water during the first several months after the planting date.

In order to establish its root system, a tree requires watering regularly. While we are on this subject, Georgia’s Arbor Day is always the 3rd Friday in February, so, plant it then to celebrate Arbor Day Feb. 17.

Selectively pruning trees and evergreens is also best done at this time of the year. The “sap” is dormant due to the lower winter temperatures. Topping trees or evergreens is highly discouraged.

Other tips:

• Keep watering fall-planted material when rainfall is sporadic.

• Work inside with houseplants. If the root ball is very tight and water penetrates slowly, it’s time to repot. Untangle the roots and loosen the soil around the root ball. Cut leggy or overgrown plants back, then repot with fresh potting soil.

• Perform hardscape projects during the winter months when possible. Adding walking stone paths provides definitive ways to travel through your property, without trampling on turf or beds.

• Fescue sod can be planted or fescue seed can be applied where the lawn is thin. Because of the lower temperatures, it may take longer for the seeds to sprout.

• Check for unwanted weeds in the lawn and, if possible, remove them by hand with the proper tool instead of using chemicals. If you remove the weed’s root (and seed head), it won’t return.

• Don’t allow leaves to pile up and suffocate your turf. Even though bermudagrass turns brown during its dormant phase, it still needs sunlight.

• Early bulbs will begin to emerge. If you notice flowers blooming prematurely, cover them with pine straw. Remember that all bulbs have their own internal time clock!

• Generally, by February (but maybe not this February, due to the extreme recent freezes), bush roses (such as Knockouts) should be pruned to a height of 15-18 inches, with only 4-5 main canes. Important to remember: when using any of your pruning tools, clean the blades with Isopropyl alcohol or bleach before moving to the next plant. It reduces the chances of spreading fungi, bacteria, and other pathogens.

• Do not fertilize spring-flowering shrubs or trees until after they bloom. Summer- flowering shrubs and shade trees can be fertilized in late February through March. Happy Gardening!

North Fulton Master Gardeners, Inc. is a Georgia nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization whose purpose is to educate its members and the public in the areas of horticulture and ecology in order to promote and foster community enrichment. Master Gardener Volunteers are trained and certified by The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Learn more at nfmg.net.

About the Author

This week’s guest Master Gardener “Garden Buzz” columnist is Marlysa Raye-Jacobus. Raised on the coast of southern New Jersey, Marlysa arrived in the Atlanta area in 1997 after five corporate moves. Initially, she became a Master Gardener through Ohio State University’s program in 1996 and interned in 1997-98 in North Fulton County. She is an active member of several horticultural organizations in addition to North Fulton Master Gardeners. Marlysa is the current co-chair of the Plant! Milton gardening classes presented by the North Fulton Master Gardeners in partnership with the City of Milton. Her passions are: six wonderful grandchildren, traveling, playing tennis, reading, and attending cultural events in the Atlanta area with her husband and friends.