Timely Tips

What to Do in February 2026
Weekly Gardening Timely Tips from
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Westchester County

Feb. 22 – Feb. 28

Perennials: If flower buds are beginning to emerge on hellebores, cut back the old, damaged leaves to make room for new growth. Be on the lookout for glory of the snow (Chionodoxa) in blue, pink and white, yellow flowers of winter aconite (Eranthis) and white snowdrops (Galanthus) popping up, even in snow. More early flowers and spring will not be far behind.

Flowers:You can begin to sow seeds indoors of annuals that are slow growers, including ageratum, browallia, geranium, impatiens, lobelia, petunia, salvia and verbena. Use a sterile seed starting mix, and when seeds sprout make sure plants have adequate lighting so they’ll grow stocky and not spindly. You can also use a fan to create a very gentle breeze to encourage stocky plants once the seedlings have a few sets of true leaves. Pay close attention to the seed mix evenly moist, so it does not become saturated or too dry.

Fruits and Vegetables:Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, and related cole crops take about 6 weeks to reach transplant size, so you can start these seeds indoors now. These cool weather crops are best transplanted in the garden in the spring as soon as the soil can be worked, and nighttime air temperatures are reliably above 50° F. To determine if the soil is dry enough to be workable, gently squeeze a handful of soil into a ball. If it crumbles a bit when you open your hand it is ready to be worked.

Trees and Shrubs:
Branches of crabapple, flowering cherry, forsythia, pear, pussy willow and quince can be cut for forcing indoors. Oaks may be pruned before March to avoid an infestation of beetles that carry oak wilt. Spotted lanternfly (SLF) egg masses may be present on trees and many landscape surfaces. SLF is a major agricultural threat that can kill crops (grapes, fruit trees and others) and affect landscape plants. Seehttps://nysipm.cornell.edu/environment/invasive-species-exotic-pests/spotted-lanternfly/Report sightings by sending an image to ReportSLF.com and crush as many eggs as you can find. Use a card to scrape them off of surfaces into a sealable bag, squish and discard in trash.

Houseplants:Some common houseplants are poisonous to people and pets. The Cornell Department of Animal Science includes humans as one of the “commonly affected species” in their list of Plants Poisonous to Livestock. See http://poisonousplants.ansci.cornell.edu/php/plants.php. This list is not exhaustive: if you have any doubt about a plant, keep it out of reach of children and pets. For more information visit https://www.poisonhelp.org/help or contact the American Association of Poison Control Centers at 1-800-222-1222

General: Join us as we discuss climate anxiety in the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Westchester 2026 Home Garden Lecture Series: Climate Anxiety: How to Help.

Wednesday, Mar. 18 from 10 to 11 am, remote on Zoom, $5. All lectures are remote on Zoom. A ticket to any single remote lecture is $5 and the tour is $20 (while there is space).

Speaker: Dr. Matt Aiello-Lammens is an Associate Professor in the Environmental Studies and Science department at Pace University. He has studied anthropogenic impacts on plant communities, risks associated with species declines, and factors leading to invasive species spread with an eye toward understanding and protecting northeastern forests. Matt Aiello-Lammens has BA in Physics, a PhD in Ecology and Evolution, and was a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Connecticut.

Check out the brochure at https://www.canva.com/design/DAG37gykNic/RGq-kIdH95APY6-bKoGQYw/view?utm_content=DAG37gykNic&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=uniquelinks&utlId=hcc45ab7c29 For more information, please call CCE at 914-285-4640, 914-285-4620 or email westchester@cornell.edu

Last updated February 21, 2026