It is pruning time for many things. Have sharp tools, and don’t butcher. Conifers may be tip-sheared and shaped. Hybrid tea roses may be pruned this month – February, but remember if you never pruned you would still get new growth. The best way is to cut some old growth, remove dead limbs, and shape the bush. Old tea roses like ‘Maman Cochet,’ and ‘Mrs. B. R. Cant’ need not be pruned except for dead wood, crossed limbs and to shape. They make very large bushes. One of the joys of growing them is not having to prune.
Hybrid perpetuals, damasks, gallicas, in fact all the old roses need little pruning. Once a year blooming climbers like ‘Paul’s Scarlet’ can be pruned lightly after they have bloomed. Old canes should be taken out in the fall.
Moss roses should be pegged by driving a stake, bending over the canes and tying loosely to the peg. This will result in more of these exquisite blooms. I save old bottles of nail polish and daub roses when I have pruned. It works nicely.
Prune all spring blooming shrubs such as deutzias, mock-orange (Philadelphus), flowering quinces and spireas after they have bloomed.
Watch for aphids, and spray them. At the first sign of slugs and snails feed them well with poison. There are many good brands on the market.
Ant hills will need attention to do away with these pests. Take advantage of nice days to spade flower beds. Dig deeply and incorporate all the humus you can. Humus is any decayed vegetable or animal matter. Add fertilizer and the beds will be ready for planting when danger of frost is over.
Feed the lawn. Use a balanced plant food at the rate of four pounds per 100 square feet. Scatter evenly and water in well.
Never pull daffodil blooms. Either snap or cut them. The bloom comes from the heart of the bulb. By pulling them, you allow water to get into the bulb, rotting it; or it may be blinded and not bloom again for several years.
Hundreds of Subjects and Thousands of Topics at Plant-Care.com: