The first flowers should appear this month, notably on the cushion (Kabschia) saxifrages.
Firm after frost. If frost has loosened any plants, firm the soil around them with your fingers. A sprinkling of fine gravel or stone chippings will suppress most weed seedlings, but will also preclude use of a hoe on weeds that do appear.
  Push back into place labels that have been loosened by frost and renew the writing if necessary.
Remove weeds. Remove small turfs of grass and the seedlings of annuals weeds. These often germinate unnoticed during the autumn but become more prominent during a mild February. Should there be patches of heavy weed growth, lift any plants in danger of being smothered, free them from clinging weeds, dig over ground and then replant.
Kill slugs. During mild weather, scatter slug pellets among the plants, renewing the pellets as necessary if slimy trails on the ground show that these pests are present.
  If plants are delivered during frosty weather, unpack them and stand them upright in shallow boxes, packing damp peat between the plants. Place the boxes under cover until conditions are suitable for planting.
Under glass
Some alpines are propagated by root cuttings. These are pieces of fleshy root, prepared while the plant is dormant by cutting the root into sections about 2 in. long. Make the upper cut of each section horizontal, the lower cut slanting.
Root cuttings. Root them in boxes of sandy compost in a cold frame, inserting the sections vertically with the tops ¼ in. beneath the surface. Plant them into pots or boxes when they have produced small turfs of leaves. If they are not developed sufficiently until April, plant them direct into the open ground.