Anna Taylor, owner of Anna’s Flower Farm in Audley End, shares what’s going on in the garden this month
Gardeners are said to be generous souls – some might say foolhardy. I even question myself, after burying precious autumn bulbs with no evidence to show for my efforts. Now, when the green shoots push through the soil, I will admit to being a little surprised. I give a nod to my past self for having the foresight to put in the work.
At this time of year, all of our attempts in the garden are made with hope and faith – which is difficult for even the most seasoned horticulturist. We are about to come blinking out of it, with brighter, longer days as the month unfolds. Rather than hunt for the flowers in the garden, I recommend planting scented and flowering plants near the house, to enjoy them daily. These will be some of the most potently fragrant of all, needing to attract insects with every flirtation. Think sarcococca, clematis, tiny bulbs of iris reticulata, hellebores and those first snowdrops.
When planting pots in early autumn, while it’s still warm, one cannot imagine how much joy they can bring on a frosty, murky day. Of all months, I reckon February is the one to plant for.
I am pleased with my past self for putting in an autumn cherry – a wonderful small tree, just about 3m tall, by our living room window. It successionally blossoms throughout the winter, with tiny pink flowers bringing joy on cold days. Shrubs of mahonia, viburnum tinus, v. bodnantense and winter-flowering honeysuckle branches twinkle and carry heady scent, year after year – perfect for bedside bud vases of delight. In the summer, these slink into the background, but emerge to perform in the gloom.
All gardening is done with a little gratitude to the past, be it sowing the seeds, mulching or tying in. There are no instant gardens of worth, however beautiful the artifice. I am convinced that the steps towards its bloom are where the joy really is.
Celebration of St Valentine’s feels out of place in a month where anything of value must be planned with attentive effort. It’s sad to see lovers’ affections reduced to imported, out-of-season roses in a smash-and-grab a day before. It seems to miss out on the fun, to gift flowers without scent, movement or energy. How about giving something to grow and enjoy all the way to bloom?
Known as the birds’ wedding day, when the conditions are just right for mating, Valentine’s is also the date from which we begin to sow seeds. The sun is climbing higher in the sky and the days are lengthening. Give a packet of seeds this Valentine’s Day to sow in March. Sweet peas can be pushed into the soil and – if watered, fed and tied in – your love will have fragrant wild stems to cut daily for weeks, come June. It can’t be coincidence that in the ‘language of flowers’, sweet peas mean ‘everlasting pleasure’. Save the seeds for next year.
February is also a great time to plant bare root plants, including roses. Planting for summer flowers, dig a hole on a mild day and within a few months you will enjoy truly scented flowers, returning year after year. Isn’t that’s true love?
Anna’s Flower Farm runs classes throughout the year, visit annasflowerfarm.com to find out more
