December is filled with holiday parties and charitable giving. It’s a good thing the garden does not require much urgent attention this month! On the other hand, the more that we can give back to the land in terms of time and effort during the winter, the better off we will be as the weather warms in the spring.
Mulch, compost, and amendments added to our gardens in the late fall are a gift to the soil and our future plantings. Mulch protects the soil, composts slowly, and makes nutrients more readily available to spring plantings. Tidying garden beds can also give our garden plants an advantage in the spring. Garden tidying should be done sparingly so as not to remove winter habitat from beneficial insects. Certain crops however, like asparagus, cannot be rotated to new areas of the garden and last year’s stems will harbor asparagus beetles. Removing and burning the old stalks can give next year’s asparagus crop an advantage over the hungry beetles.
Look over this December Garden Checklist as well as others in my Homestead Garden Journal and Planner for more suggestions on how to show your garden some love this winter. For a digital download of the planner check out my Etsy shop.
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