Seasonal Action Guide
What to Do in the Garden in February (Canada)
The short answer
In most of Canada (zones 3-6), February is the first real sowing month — indoors. Starting about 12 weeks before your average last frost date, sow the slowest transplants: celery, celeriac, and onions, plus woody herbs like lavender, rosemary, oregano, sage, and thyme, and slow annual flowers such as pansies and petunias. For a Prairie frost-free date in mid-to-late May, that 12-week mark lands in late February; gather soilless seed-starting mix, trays, heat mats, and grow lights now so you are ready.
Everything else waits: it is too early for tomatoes, peppers, and squash in most of the country, and starting them now produces leggy, root-bound plants. Coastal BC runs on an earlier clock — with an average last frost around late March, coastal gardeners can be a full six to eight weeks ahead of Prairie schedules.
Start and sow (indoors)
- At about 12 weeks before your last frost date, sow celery, celeriac, and onions indoors — the slowest vegetable transplants.
- Sow slow herbs from seed: lavender, mint, rosemary, oregano, sage, thyme (also ~12 weeks before last frost).
- Sow pansies and petunias, which need roughly 12 weeks indoors before planting out.
- Sow into sterile soilless media about 0.5 cm (1/4 in) deep for disease-free, well-drained germination.
- Keep growing microgreens and lettuce indoors for fresh greens.
Prepare equipment
- Source soilless seed-starting media, heat mats, grow lights, and clean trays before the spring rush.
- Wash and disinfect reused pots and trays to avoid carrying over damping-off disease.
- Test old seed packets for viability (sprout a few between damp paper towels) before relying on them.
Maintain and protect
- Force spring bulbs indoors for early colour.
- Resist walking on snowy or thawing beds — compacted soil is hard to fix.
- Finalize your seed orders; the 10- and 8-week crops (peppers, tomatoes) come up fast in March and April.
Regional notes
The 12-weeks-before-frost rule scales across the country: Prairie gardeners (frost-free mid-to-late May) hit it in late February; southern Ontario and Quebec gardeners a week or two earlier depending on zone. South coastal BC's average last frost is around March 28 per West Coast Seeds, so coastal gardeners may already be direct-sowing hardy crops outside by late February in mild years — follow a coastal-specific chart rather than Prairie timing.
Sources
Reviewed 2026-07-18. We cite university Extension, government, and established horticultural sources — and never invent pesticide rates or dangerous treatments.
- Gardening at USask — Gardening Timeline (February) — 12 weeks before last frost: start celery, celeriac, onion, lavender, mint, rosemary, oregano, sage, thyme, pansies, petunias; source media/heat mats/lights; force bulbs
- West Coast Seeds — Regional Planting Charts (Coastal BC) — South coastal BC average last frost around March 28; charts adjust sowing weeks around regional frost dates
- Gardening at USask — Tomatoes (seed-starting depth/media) — Sow seeds ~0.5 cm deep in soilless media (peat/coir with perlite or vermiculite) for disease-free germination
Keep going
Garden Tasks for January (Warm-Climate US)
Seasonal Action Guide
Garden Tasks for February (Warm-Climate US)
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Garden Tasks for March (Warm-Climate US)
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Garden Tasks for April (Canada)
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Garden Tasks for February (Cool-Climate US)
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Garden Tasks for March (Canada)
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Garden Tasks for August (Canada)
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Garden Tasks for December (Canada)
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