Q. What things do I need to do in February?

A. Most houseplants require less water in winter months because growth is slowed or stopped. Check soil for dryness before watering.

Increase humidity around houseplants by grouping plants together, placing them on a pebble-water tray or running a humidifier.

Check stored produce and tender flower bulbs and roots for rot, shriveling or excess moisture. Remove and discard damaged material.

Check young trees for rodent injury on lower trunks. Prevent injury with hardware cloth or protective collars.

Early blooms of spring-flowering bulbs can make good gifts for a sweetheart. Keep the plant in a bright, cool location for longer-lasting blooms. Forced bulbs make poor garden flowers and should be discarded as blooms fade.

“Leaf” through nursery catalogs and make plans for landscape and home orchard additions. Order plants early for best selection.

Early spring-flowering trees and shrubs, such as forsythia, crabapple, flowering quince, flowering dogwood and honeysuckle, can be forced for early indoor blooms by placing cut branches in water in a warm location.

Sketch your garden plans on paper, including what to grow, spacing, arrangement and number of plants needed.

Wood ashes from the fireplace can be spread in the garden, but don’t overdo it. Wood ashes increase soil pH, and excess application can make some nutrients unavailable for plant uptake. Have soil tested to be certain of the pH before adding wood ash.

Check mulches, rodent shields, salt/wind screens and other winter plant protection to make sure they are still in place.

Prune landscape plants, except early spring bloomers, which should be pruned after flowers fade. Birches, maples, dogwoods and other heavy sap bleeders can be pruned in early summer to avoid the sap flow, although bleeding is not harmful to the tree.

Fruit trees also should be pruned now.

Prepare or repair lawn and garden tools for the upcoming season.

Start seeds indoors for cool-season vegetables so they will be ready for transplanting to the garden early in the season. Broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage seeds should be started five to seven weeks prior to transplanting.

Test leftover garden seed for germination. Place 10 seeds between moist paper toweling or cover with a thin layer of soil. Keep seeds warm and moist. If less than six seeds germinate, then fresh seed should be purchased.

Baptisia australis Perennial of the Year for 2010

Native to much of the Eastern United States, B. australis is a legume and can fix nitrogen in the soil. Commonly called blue false indigo, the name Baptisia is derived from the Greek word bapto, which means to dip or dye. Early Americans used the plant sap as a dye similar to, though weaker in strength than, the true indigo plant native to the West Indies. There are other species of Baptisia with white or yellow flowers.

Although a bit slow to establish, B. australis forms a neat, shrub-like plant, reaching about 3-4 feet in height and spread upon maturity. The 12-inch, upright stalks of purple-blue flowers rise high above the bluish-green foliage in May/June. Depending on the weather, the flowers last about three weeks and are followed by interesting seedpods that turn black as they mature and dry. The handsome pea-like foliage makes an excellent filler plant for other flowers after the blooms fade.

B. australis adapts well to dry, low-fertility soils and also thrives in well-drained, tended garden beds, yet neatly stays where planted. The plants perform best in full sun but will tolerate some shade, although the stems will be a bit floppy.

ONGOING
Master Gardener Friends of the Children's Garden Brick Sales. Engraved bronze plaques will be centered in each brick. The bricks will be laid in a Recognition Garden in the Children's Garden at Smiley Park. 4x8 inch bricks are $100 and 8x8-inch bricks are $200. To obtain a brick form, contact any Van Wert County Master Gardener or the OSU Extension Office at 419.238.1214 or email reed.9@cfaes.osu.edu  This is a great project to honor your children or grandchildren. How fun for your children to see their names engraved in a bronze plaque on a brick and find their name in the garden.