Get on with the gardening bit I hear you mutter into your cornflakes/late evening cocoa. The only time when it has been worth venturing out into the garden if my memory serves, was the 26th and 27th January and the forecast for the first half of February is going to curtail lots of desires unless you are related to a penguin. You can start by reading Noddy’s Plot for January and delete all references to January, read February (and possibly March) and you will not go far wrong with what you ought to be doing.

So for something a little bit different, what are you going to be getting for that special person on the 14th February? Valentine’s Day is named after an early Christian martyr called Valentine, well actually there were several of them and few if any know why they were martyred. It was Geoffrey Chaucer (the alternative Shakespeare?) who was basically responsible for triggering the romantic associations we know and love today. The day was associated with the mutual exchange of love notes but since the 1800’s handwritten notes have given way to mass-produced cards. And this nicely leads me on to buying flowers which brings us round to gardening again.

Now is the time to pot anemone corms, after soaking for a day, and lily bulbs. Plug plants will soon be available and are a good source of plants, with minimal labour from yourself which will be best spent with your feet up watching the birdlife hanging onto the feeder to avoid being blown into the next county.

I think any outdoor planting needs to be thought about very carefully and should be avoided where the soil is lying wet. However check pots and tubs to make sure that they haven’t dried out (it can happen even in weather like this!) Trim lawn edges to save work later in the season. Clear any debris off your lawn or you will finish up with a bare patch, again if it is not too wet think about scarifying it. Notice I said think about it and not actually do it. In fact February is a good month for thinking about lots of things in the garden as there is always March to catch up.

Deadhead winter bedding as this can carry on into early summer, if done regularly. Plan your summer planting schemes in good time for ordering the necessary bulbs, annuals and seed, and for propagating the relevant material.

Now retire to the potting shed and drink the last of your winter warmer, in my case a nice drop of Caol Ila, a very pleasant Islay Malt.