What to Do in the Kitchen Garden in December
In December we get to see the garden quiet. Our cool season, here in the DMV, dips to it’s lows as the days grow shorter and we near the winter solstice.
This doesn’t have to mean the garden shuts down.
The Established Winter Garden
Maybe you decided to try the magic of overwinter gardening (which is absolutely possible in our area). You planted for the cool season in October, and now these cold hardy vegetables, herbs, and flowers are well-established so you can harvest all winter long. The key to maximizing your garden potential over winter is planting it early so everything has time to settle in before our first freeze occurs.
When an extended freeze comes, you can protect your garden beds with frost cloth (or upcycled bed sheets). Then, as temperatures rise again, observe what springs back to life. Did you have any plants that didn’t seem bothered? Or did you lose a few plants? You can fill any blank spots by planting cold-hardy spinach seeds. Observing the seasonal changes of the garden can be a fun activity to share with kids.
Winter Sowing
If you didn’t plant a fall garden back in October, you can still garden over winter. Things will just look a little different. In December, you can direct sow your garden beds with cool season plants like beets, calendula, carrots, kale, radishes, and spinach. Unless we have unseasonably warm days, you won’t see much happening. But this planting method that mimics nature, called winter sowing, is a fun reminder of how much nature can do on its own. The little seeds will germinate and take root when the soil temperatures and day lengths allow. Come February, you’ll see all sorts of seedlings popping up in your garden beds.
December Checklist for the Kitchen Garden
Here’s what you can do in the garden this December:
Harvest weekly. Wait until temperatures are above freezing so your plants can “bounce back.” Then you can harvest herbs like cilantro, dill, and parsley, root vegetables like beets, carrots, and radishes, and salad greens like spinach, arugula, and kale.
Install frost protection. Frost cloth protects your plants when temps are below freezing for an extended period of time. You can lay the cloth gently over the plants and pin with landscape staples so it doesn’t blow off in the wind. Or for more structured protection, you can insert hoops across your bed and clip the frost cloth, or even plastic sheeting, to the hoops.
Winter sowing. Now is a great time to fill your gardens with cool season seeds. Varieties that thrive in the cold will germinate now (like spinach) but many will lay dormant, settling into the soil. Then you’ll be rewarded with seedlings in February.
Layer on compost. This is a great time to top up your beds with compost. If you are shutting down your garden for winter, you have to at least do this one thing. The compost will work its way into your soil throughout the season and you’ll be working with great soil come spring!
Try your hand at microgreens and sprouts. If gardening outside this month isn’t your cup of tea, grab a sprouts kit (I got mine at Roots Market in Clarksville) or plant a tray of microgreens. This kid-friendly microgreens terrarium is a lot of fun and makes a great gift. And here’s a free guide for growing microgreens.
Start planning your 2025 garden. Before we know it, the new year will be here. And with it comes the opportunity to begin our new gardens. Now is the time to start dreaming of all the things you want to harvest and cook next spring. Make a list of the things you want to grow. Get to know our local growing seasons, including what can grow in spring.
Buy seeds and seed starting supplies for January. If you’re ready to try your hand at seed starting, order your seeds and supplies this month. You should be starting cool season plants indoors the first or second week of January, and transplanting them outside in February. Warm season plants get started indoors mid-February. Here’s a quick guide to help you decide what to start from seed indoors versus what to direct sow or buy from the nursery.
Need help planning your dream garden?
Whether you’re dreaming of a new garden or have an existing garden and need some support, a personal garden consult hones in on your growing goals and evaluates potential challenges so you get a customized roadmap to garden success.
