Although early February marks the halfway point between the winter solstice and the first day of spring, it’s still feeling mighty wintry in our neck of the woods. Imbolc, the ancient Gaelic spring festival celebrated on the first of February, as well as Lunar New Year, remind us to celebrate the beauty and specialness of this time of year, and to envision the season ahead.

In February, most Northeast gardeners will stay hunkered down indoors, ordering seeds and sowing supplies, sharpening tools, consulting planting guides, and tweaking garden plans.

But February is also a time for noticing. Take in the smooth curves of a landscape covered in snow, the elegant white edging along tree limbs, the blue jays making tight arcs from branch to bird feeder. If out your window things are looking grim, decide what you’d like to see in a year's time: tall, airy grasses moving in the breeze or a stand of bright Winterberry? Let winter bleakness suggest a plan.

On the subject of planning, make a point to support pollinators and other beneficial insects in your garden this year. While most of our pollinator friends are in hibernation, they’ll need nectar and pollen once they wake up. Having flowers in the garden throughout the growing season isn’t merely cosmetic; it also means better pollination of vegetable crops and, therefore, bigger yields. In other words, as you shop for vegetable seeds, shop for pollinators as well.

Succession sow Calendula, Nasturtium, Borage, and Bachelor Buttons in summer for fall flowering.  

Another route is to sow a Flower Mix like Pollinator Petal Patch or Good Bug Blooms. Sow mixes in well-weeded beds and thin plants so that they have plenty of room to reach their potential. You can learn more about supporting pollinators at the Xerces Society, an organization dedicated to helping threatened invertebrates of all kinds.

For those eager to get a head start on spring, there's still plenty of time for winter sowing cold-stratified seeds that enjoy a period of low temps and fluctuations in precipitation. See our posts on Winter Sown Flowers and Poppies for ideas.

And finally, don't forget to feed the birds! February is National Bird Feeding Month. Nutrient-dense sunflower seeds, thistle, nuts, suet, mealworms, and millet are good choices for our feathered friends. If it's frozen everywhere you look, put out some water too.