February is here and although we are still firmly in winter, there are many signs of life about. Snowdrops and Crocuses are popping their bright heads up, winter flowering shrubs are scenting the air, and minds begin to turn to thoughts of seed sowing and making plans for the spring ahead. Read on for some tips and garden inspiration from Riverside...
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Chase away the winter blues with bulbs!
Bulbs are an easy and fun source of extra colour for your garden. Some varieties will treat you to an amazing scent as well. Pollinators appreciate them too, especially the earliest spring bulbs which may be one of the few sources of nectar available in late winter and early spring.
The spring bulbs - which include Crocus, Hyacinth, Narcissus and Tulips - are planted in autumn and early winter, but if you didn't manage to plant any over the recent months never fear. Our range of potted bulbs are in stock now, busily putting on healthy roots and shoots in their pots, ready to be planted straight into your borders or decorative containers.
Looking further ahead, summer bulbs (and tubers, rhizomes and corms, to get technical!) can be planted from late February and into spring to provide dramatic form and colour to your growing space in the summer months. Some examples are Cannas, with their broad leaves and tropical looking blooms, and Dahlias, with their multitude of colours and flower shapes. We are excited this year to be offering the unusual Dahlia imperialis, or 'Tree Dahlia', which can grow to 3 metres tall!
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Bedding to put a 'spring' in your step
The Riverside bedding plant department seems to have burst into flower recently. Many of you have commented to us about how lovely it's looking!
Two of the star performers at the moment are the Bellis Daisies - so cute and cheerful! - and our wonderful range of Primulas. In addition to the classic Primroses in a rainbow of colours, we have a few special types that might catch your eye. New to us this year is the 'Obsidian' range, Primulas with dark, bronze-tinged leaves that set off the colours of the flowers beautifully. These are also particularly frost hardy, making them reliably perennial. (Several members of staff have been spotted putting a few of these into their own shopping baskets!) We are also offering again the very pretty Primula 'Star Fever', with its dainty, white, star-shaped flowers.
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Seed potatoes now in stock
For all you aspiring potato growers out there, the time has come to buy your seed potatoes for this year. What will you choose? A 'first early' type to harvest as new potatoes? Perhaps a salad type to help you be the be the best potato salad maker for this summer's picnics? Or are you dreaming of flavoursome chips, mash or jacket potatoes? Whatever you fancy, we've got you covered!
To learn a bit more about choosing seed potatoes and how to 'chit' them to get them prepared for planting, have a look at our blog post.
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Hellebores galore
February is a prime month for the flowering of Hellebores and we still have plenty of these winter beauties in stock. One of our main suppliers of these plants is Credale Nursery, a specialist grower in Herefordshire. They have developed their own strain of Helleborus orientalis and each year send us a wonderful selection of their single- and double-flowered plants. This type of Hellebore is the best for a truly shady position in the garden, so if you are looking for something to bring a little allure to a dark corner, these may be just the thing.
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Jobs in the garden for February
Soft fruit
Now is a perfect time for planting soft fruit bushes, particularly Raspberries which should be planted into the ground while still dormant. Our soft fruit section is well stocked and our staff are always happy to give any planting advice you might need.
Seed potatoes
If you've bought seed potatoes for the veg plot, you can start to 'chit' them now, which helps give them a head start before planting in early spring.
Seed sowing
It is still quite early in the year so most things won't need to be sown yet, but February is a great time to sow Sweet Pea seeds. You can do this in a cool green house or cold frame, as the plants can cope with fairly low temperatures. If you have a suitable environment, for instance a heated propagator, it is also possible to start tomatoes and chillies from seed now, as well as some half hardy annuals.
Planting
Now is a good chance to make plans for any new borders or to start thinking about plants to fill any gaps in the garden. Look out for the first of this year's 9cm hardy perennials and alpines later this month.
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Happy to help.
If you have any questions at all then please feel free to contact us, we'd love to hear from you!
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