hiya bucks in Bourne End, Flackwell Heath, Marlow, Wycombe, Wooburn February 2014 | Page 6

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February Gardening

by Stuart McCann of Gardening Angel

Happy New Year to everyone, I hope your
gardens haven’t taken too much of a battering
over the last month or so due to the various
storms we have been having! It looks like the
storms have passed for now but we are due
some very cold weather next week according to
the weathermen (date today is sat 11th jan). I
had a nice 3 weeks off over Christmas and New
Year and can’t wait to get back to work, so I
hope the weather doesn’t restrict me from doing
this during the next few weeks!
Shrub and bush roses should be pruned in
February, doing this correctly will make
sure they produce an abundance of healthy
blooms through the summer months. The
idea is to cut out all the top heavy and dead
wood, and leave a solid framework in place,
which can get lots of light. Also any stems
which are crossing over and any stems

Here are some more jobs for February:
1.  eep your wild birds happy – Don’t forget
K
to keep your bird tables topped up with
unfrozen water and plenty of food for
them, this is the hardest time of year for
them, as there is very little to eat.
2.  ut down your faded grass foliage –
C
Now is the time to cut your ornamental
grasses down to ground level to promote
fresh, new growth.
3.  lean Ponds - Clean out leaves and fallen
C
twigs if the pond is not iced over. If
leaves are left to rot in the pond the gases
released can be dangerous to your pond
life.
4.  inish off pruning your apple and pear
F
trees – You would have started pruning
and shaping your trees after fruiting, but
finish off creating the best shape possible
to allow air circulation and light into the
heart of your structures.
6

that look diseased can be
eradicated. I would say
a g