• Prune apple and pear trees now - but postpone peach pruning until mid-March. Visit www.walterreeves.com for UGA factsheets.

• It's not too late to lightly and carefully spot-spray completely dormant bermudagrass with glyphosate (Roundup, KleenUp, KleerAway) to kill green winter weeds. Make sure no green Bermuda sprouts are near the soil line.

• Look for blooms on your Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis). Few other plants can supply the year-round interest of this evergreen groundcover.

• Redesign your lawn for easier mowing. Eliminate sharp angles and narrow turf areas. Use mulch, new flower beds or a groundcover like mondo grass there instead.

• Water poinsettia, Christmas cactus and amaryllis plants with houseplant fertilizer diluted to one-half strength.



SECOND WEEK

• How much fertilizer or lime does your lawn or garden really need? The only way to know for sure is to call your county Extension office (404-897-6261) and get a soil test kit.

• Prune one-fourth of the branches from your overgrown fig bush. Removing any more will reduce the number of fruit this summer. Concentrate on saving the horizontal ones.

• Bring branches of spirea, forsythia and flowering quince indoors. Placed in a vase, they will bloom in just a few days.

• Remember to turn houseplants 180 degrees every two weeks to prevent uneven growth.

• Remove guy wires, stakes and trunk wraps from small trees you planted last fall.



THIRD WEEK

• The brown foliage on pampas grass and maiden grass can be pruned away now. Leave only a "crew cut" of brown stems twelve inches high.

• Plant sweet pea now for fragrant flowers later. Plant English peas, onions, asparagus or elephant garlic for your spring vegetable garden.

• Overgrown Burford holly shrubs can be pruned severely now. Even if it is reduced to twelve inches tall, this shrub will resprout plenty of new foliage by summer.

• Plant a large container for your patio. A small boxwood surrounded by variegated ivy and blooming pansies would look very nice!

• Plant a winter daphne (Daphne odorum) near your home's entrance or front walkway. The scent will greet you each day when you arrive at your abode this spring.



FOURTH WEEK

• Clean out bird boxes so they will be ready to welcome new residents in a few weeks.

• Build raised beds for vegetables, roses and herbs. It's easy to do with four pieces of 2x8 wood planks. Choose lengths that fit your space; bolt them together at the corners.

• Reduce the size of your butterfly bush by two thirds to one half to encourage new growth (and big blooms) this summer.

• Time for the first fertilization of fescue for the year. Any brand of turf fertilizer will work well. Next application: April.

• Set your mower to its highest setting and cut off the tattered leaves of liriope (monkey grass). They will quickly regrow in March.