What to plant in February

February is here. Why not peruse our list of the best plants for February, lovely gardens this month and the gardening jobs for February.

What to plant in February

With longer days comes the temptation to sow seeds with gusto, but exercise caution as sowing too much now can leave you struggling for space to grow on young seedlings later, especially if we have an extended, cold spring.

Indoors, I begin the first sowing of quick-maturing salad leaves and herbs such as basil, coriander and parsley.

Towards the end of the month, I start off chillies, bell peppers and greenhouse tomatoes, as some cultivars, including the chillies ‘Chocolate Habanero’ and ‘Jamaican Yellow’ and the sweet pepper ‘Corno di Toro’, can be slow to germinate or crop. Italian and French tomato cultivars, such as ‘Costoluto Fiorentino’, ‘San Marzano’ and ‘Marmande’, will love the extra heat from growing indoors and will stay in the greenhouse all summer (outdoor cultivars will be sown next month, ensuring they don’t grow too large before they can go outside).

In the garden there is still time to plant trees, shrubs and roses, though I would also add any new additions of perennials and biennials, especially if you have light sandy conditions that warm up quickly