What to do in your fruit garden during February 2012
At last spring is on the horizon. Finish off any winter pruning before the end of February (or before buds burst) and any late planting of bare root trees, canes and bushes. Our Activity sheet Pruning and Training fruit gives a clear, basic guide to effective pruning of fruit trees and bushes. There’s still time to book on Andy Strachan’s ‘Pruning for Beginners’ course at Ryton Gardens on February 23rd. Keep rhubarb plants in the dark to force them to produce pale, succulent stems. An old compost bin does the job, but keep the door closed.

What to do in your fruit garden during February 2012

At last spring is on the horizon. Finish off any winter pruning before the end of February (or before buds burst) and any late planting of bare root trees, canes and bushes.

Our Activity sheet Pruning and Training fruit gives a clear, basic guide to effective pruning of fruit trees and bushes.

There’s still time to book on Andy Strachan’s ‘Pruning for Beginners’ course at Ryton Gardens on February 23rd.

Keep rhubarb plants in the dark to force them to produce pale, succulent stems. An old compost bin does the job, but keep the door closed.

What to do in your fruit garden

Top Fruit

Apple James Grieve –
a suitable apple
for a family tree

Plant a Family Fruit Tree. If your garden is on the small side, you may only have space for a single tree so growing a family tree could be an option. Family trees have three varieties grafted on the same rootstock, making cross-pollination a certainty and increasing the variety of fruit you can grow.
Check that newly planted fruit bushes and trees have not been lifted by frost. When the soil freezes the water in it expands. This can have the detrimental effect of loosening the plant's grip on the soil, causing the plant to be rocked by the wind, thus exposing and damaging the roots. Re-firm bushes and trees after the ground has thawed.
Protect wall-trained peach
& nectarine from rain

Peach leaf curl
Protect early fruit blossom from frost overnight. Drape small trees and wall-trained fruit by draping with hessian, double-thickness netting or fleece when frost is expected. Remember that even early flowering blackcurrants, such as Ben Gairn, can suffer frost damage, which will reduce the crop.
Hand pollinate early fruit blossom if the weather too cold and windy for pollinating insects to be very active.
Prune cobnuts and filberts provided the catkins are fully open and releasing pollen, otherwise wait until March.
Protect wall-trained peach, nectarine and apricot trees from the rain to reduce the risk of peach leaf curl disease – which is spread from the branches to opening buds by rain splash. Any protection needs to be in place from before bud burst and until the leaves have appeared. The cover should be open at the sides to allow access to pollinating insects. Hand pollination may be necessary to ensure fruiting.

Soft Fruit

Terracotta rhubarb forcing pots
Rhubarb is is technically a vegetable, but as it is usually regarded as a ‘fruit’ it appears here in the fruit section. Forcing rhubarb for tender young stems can be done in the spring. Clear away all dead foliage from the crown and then cover with an old dustbin or large pot to exclude light. For a quicker return, surround the forcer with fresh manure, which will generate some warmth..
Plant bare rooted fruit trees and bushes. This is a good month to do this as long as the ground is not frozen.
Garden Organic members can see our factsheet on Planting fruit trees & bushes, for more information
Dream of fruit to come
Tip prune summer-fruiting raspberries. If you haven’t already done so, cut down newly planted canes to 22-30cm (9-13 in). If raspberry beetle or raspberry midge has been a problem, fork gently around raspberry canes to expose overwintering larvae of these pests to birds.
Prune established autumn-fruiting raspberries, such as Autumn Bliss and Fallgold. Cut all canes back to soil level. Autumn raspberries bear fruit on new canes that will start to grow in a few weeks time. The optimum number of plants is around 12-20/ metre of row to get good sized fruit. Remove weaker canes as they grow to reduce the number if necessary.
Try double-cropping autumn raspberries if the plants are strong, free of pest and disease, and the soil very fertile. Rather than cutting canes down to the ground, leave the lower portion, below the part where the fruits were produced last autumn. These will then produce an early crop, followed by another in autumn.
Untie cordon trained grapevines before they come into growth. Allow the rod to almost touch the ground. This allows buds to form on the lower spurs. When buds begin to grow, tie the rods back into position.

Garden Organic members can see our factsheet on Organic vine cultivation for more information

Cover strawberries with a
cloche for an early crop
Cover outside strawberries for an early crop with polythene tunnels or glass cloches early in the month. Remember to ventilate on warm days, especially around flowering time to ensure that pollinating insects can get access, replacing covers at night. If there are not many pollinating insects about due to cold weather, you may have to hand pollinate with a small brush.

Under Cover

Re-pot or top dress citrus trees. They will be starting to show some new growth now so re-pot those that are outgrowing their pots and for those larger specimens just top-dress any larger, more mature plants.
Strawberries that have been inside all winter will need to go outside as they only flower after exposure to cold weather. Strawberries that have been outdoors all winter can be brought inside to force them to flower and fruit for an early crop. Plants covered with cloches outside now will provide a succession of fruit following on from an indoor crop being forced.

Pest Watch

Top Fruit:

Check grease bands are still in place and sticky, on stakes (if used) as well as trees.
Hoe under fruit tree canopy, if possible, to expose pests to predators.
Check stored fruit and remove any that shows signs of rotting. Leave rotten fruit out for wildlife and/or birds – this will be a welcome addition to their diet.
Check plums, damsons and gages for signs of the plum leaf-curling aphid. This tiny green aphid can hatch as early as mid-January. If this pest has been a problem in the past, spray now with insecticidal soap if you see any signs of it.
Garden Organic members can see our factsheet on Aphids for more information.
Powdery mildew: Check apple, apricot, cherry, plum, gooseberry, blackcurrant, peach, grapes, strawberry, raspberry and blackberries for this disease. Typical symptoms are a discrete off-white patches appearing on the leaves, and often the stems and buds.
Garden Organic members can see our factsheet on Powdery Mildew for more information.
When pruning fruit trees, remove all dead wood and any mummified fruit still remaining on the tree from last year. Take this opportunity to check the tree over for signs of canker.
Garden Organic members can see our various factsheets on fruit tree management in the members area for more information.

Soft Fruit

Enjoy the challenge of growing melons. An early sowing now will give melons a long season of growth and ripening. A temperature of over 21°C is required for germination. Once the plants are raised they can be grown in a greenhouse without heat or in a good summer, planted outdoors.
Visit www.OrganicCatalogue.com for a selection of melon seeds.
Soft fruit bush buds may need protecting from birds, particularly bullfinches – cover with netting where appropriate. Ensure all nets are held taught over bushes to avoid birds getting caught up in them.
Check blackcurrant buds for signs of big bud mite infestation
Garden Organic members can see our factsheet Blackcurrant pests and diseases for more information

Wildlife Watch

Encourage birds (especially blue tits) into garden by putting up nest boxes. They will feed on caterpillars and other pests.

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