February To Do

This month I'll be working on building the bean house, the edge garden boxes and getting a trellis made for the winter squash next month. We've come a long way on the garden fence but we've still got tons more work to do.

Photo Credit 

Start Indoors:

• Asparagus –  Buy 1 year old or two year old crowns from a good nursery or mail order seed company otherwise you might have to wait a while for your seeds to germinate. Either way you'll have to wait till the third year before harvesting. 
• Kohlrabi - Kolibri is a good choice for spring, but I like this crop better and find it easier to grow for fall.
• Chard, Collards and Kale – if you want early cooking greens you can start them now. If your space under lights is limited, sow them in a cold frame or greenhouse. 
• Hardy Herbs – now is the time to sow seed for parsley, lemon verbena, chives, fennel, borage, chamomile, chervil.
• Salad Greens – Aim for a salad green sowing every month. New month? New sowing of lettuce, etc. That’ll give you edible salad greens in some stage of growth through October. With the heat we get a heat tolerant green would be best otherwise you'll have lettuce that bolts before it forms a heart. I like Romaine Rouge and Marvel butterhead. 
• Onions  Summer Leeks – Keep them growing even though you have some sown outdoors, these will be our back ups. Have more than enough of these will be a good thing. 
• Cantaloupe - Plant these late February. Seedlings do not transplant well so do them in paper pots or paper mache pots 

I'm sure there are more varieties that I have not mentioned. Just be sure to do your research before you sow. 

Sow Outside:
As long as the ground isn’t waterlogged, fruiting trees, bushes and perennials can all be planted out.

• Peas –  Between  February  1st to the 9th is a good time to get them in the ground. If the soil still seems cold and wet (yeah right, not here) , wait a few more weeks or cover with a row cover to keep the heat in. 
• Garlic – If you forgot to do them last year in the fall that's okay, just stick them in the ground.  Your garlic heads will be smaller but you’ll still have homegrown garlic.
• Salad Greens, Spinach, Asian Greens  and European Greens – sow out the hardiest greens in a cloche or a DIY cold frame.  When the temp starts to get really hot here you might want to start them indoors and plant under cucumbers or beans so they provide shade. 
• Radishes- These little guys are miracle workers! The best companion plant out there.  My favorite is Easter Radish. 
• Onion Sets – for early green onions, you can plant sets now and use them before they bulb. These are heat tolerant so it'll be perfect out here.  
• Bare root fruit trees – these should be put into previously prepared ground while still dormant. You might also want to place chicken wire around them under ground unless you want vole and his gopher buddies to scratch on the roots trying to get to grubs. 
• Bare root fruit bushes (currants, blueberries, grapes etc.) – just like the trees, get these in the ground while still dormant.
• Cane fruits (blackberries, raspberries, etc.) – available bare root now. 
• Rhubarb crowns – these can be had by dividing established plants or pick an established plant up at a garden center. 
• Broccoli - These little "trees" can be sown into the grown mid to late Feb. 
• Cauliflower - Am I the only one who eats these raw with ranch dressing?! With our bi polar weather, it's good to sow late February . 
• Leek - You'll want to plant them near your broccoli and cauliflower, they provide great companionship. 

Transplant: 

Depending on your tomatoes you can start to harden them off this month. 

Harvest:

There might be things you've grown last fall that you can harvest this spring but any harvest posts will be solely from this years garden. 

What did you plant last year that is ready to harvest?

Feed: 
 Flowers and bushes can be given a dose of fertilizer as well as peach trees.