Below you will find a list of February chores that will get your heart racing for spring. No matter the weather, these things will help ensure that you have a successful growing season. 

• Give all your garden tools a good cleaning and sharpening
• Prune your fruit trees.  Find a pruning guide here.
• Be sure to finalize all of your seed orders
• Plant peas, potatoes, and parsley (seed) directly into the ground. The few weeks of cold temperatures will help them to germinate successfully. 
• Clean up perennial beds and any leaves that are still lying around.
• Look around your yard. Now is the time to move any plants that you have been thinking of moving or add new ones. Cut shrubs back before you move them.
• Cut back liriope (monkey grass) toward the end of the month before it shoots out new growth. Prune evergreen shrubs after the middle of February.
• Service your lawn mower.  Oil – Belts – blades – filters.
• Prune berry bushes and summer flowering shrubs. You want to do this while they are dormant. Do not do it after they begin to come out of dormancy. 
• On nice days it is good practice to turn your compost pile. If you don’t have a compost pile, it is a great time to start one.
• If you have the space, add an extra row to your garden space to give your surplus to the less fortunate in your community.
• If your Valentine has a green thumb or at least an affection for plant life, consider getting them a plant or a gift certificate for garden supplies.
• Mow winter crops and turn them under if the soil is dry enough to cultivate.
• Spread compost over the beds you will plant next month.
• Plant bare-root trees and container shrubs and trees.
• Put out fresh mulch or pine needles around trees and shrubs.

 This isn’t an all-inclusive, comprehensive list of course. However, it is enough to keep you busy till next month when a whole new list begins. It also hits the most important points that will get you off to a good start. So let’s get this done and get ready for spring! I’m excited, aren’t you?

Happy Gardening!