What to Do in the Garden in February (UK)

Sow and plant

• Chit early seed potatoes: stand tubers rose-end up in trays somewhere cool but frost-free and bright to encourage sturdy shoots.
• From mid-February, sow tomato, chilli, cucumber and aubergine seed for greenhouse growing.
• On light (sandy) soil in mild parts of the UK, sow broad beans, carrots, parsnips, early beetroot, salad onions, lettuces, radish, spinach and summer cabbages outside.
• Continue planting bare-root trees and bushes while they are dormant and the soil is workable.

Prune and tidy

• Last chance to winter prune apples, pears, medlars and quinces before growth restarts.
• Last chance to cut back established autumn-fruiting raspberries, and to winter prune redcurrants, whitecurrants and gooseberries.
• Winter prune wisteria, cutting summer side-shoots back further.
• Prune roses, and neaten overgrown deciduous hedges and shrubs such as dogwood.

Protection and general care

• Keep fleece, cloches or cold frames over early outdoor sowings and vulnerable crops.
• Prepare vegetable beds so they are ready for the main spring sowings in March and April.

Regional adjustment

The RHS ties February outdoor sowing to conditions, not the calendar: it is only recommended on light soil in mild parts of the UK. The milder south and west can start earliest; colder and northern gardens should keep sowings under cover and expect outdoor work to run later.

Sources

Reviewed 2026-07-18. We cite university Extension, government, and established horticultural sources — and never invent pesticide rates or dangerous treatments.

• RHS — Grow Your Own: jobs to do in February — Chitting seed potatoes, mid-February sowing of tomato, chilli, cucumber and aubergine for the greenhouse, outdoor sowing only on light soil in mild areas, and last-chance winter pruning of tree and soft fruit.
• RHS — Gardening in February: jobs to do this month — February monthly jobs including winter pruning wisteria, roses, hedges and shrubs such as dogwood.

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