Lunar sowing calendar for gardeners and gardeners for December 2022

December garden plan

It would seem that he does not at all dispose to trips out of town to visit his beloved dacha. But diligent owners know: at least once in December it is worth coming to their 6 acres.

Preparing seedlings in December

Winter has just begun, work in the country has recently ended, but experienced summer residents already in December start sowing seeds for seedlings.

For example, you can sow the exotic naranjilla berry – its fruits ripen for a very long time, 255 days, so the seeds need to be sown in December.

In the last month of winter, you can sow the seeds of indoor plants – absolutely any. Including seeds of citrus and exotic fruits – before the New Year, grocery stores usually have a large assortment of such fruits.

And in December, you can lay the seeds of fruit crops for stratification – apple and pear trees (grown seedlings can then be used as rootstocks), hawthorn, mountain ash, bird cherry. To do this, the seeds must be mixed with sand (for 1 part of the seeds – 2 – 3 parts of sand) and sent to the refrigerator (1).

garden work in december

The main works of December are associated with snow.

Trample snow around apple and pear trees. In ancient times, there was such a tradition in Our Country: the peasants, together with their children, went out into the garden and danced round the apple trees. Then it was believed that this protects the trunks from mice, and the roots from frost. In fact, dense snow is not a hindrance to rodents, and loose snow protects the roots better. Nevertheless, modern experts agree with the peasants: it is useful to trample snow around apple trees – in spring it melts much more slowly, and the soil is saturated with moisture evenly and to a great depth, which benefits the tree.

But this only works for apple and pear trees. But this method is contraindicated for stone fruits – their kidneys wake up very early, and if there is snow in the trunk circle, the earth will remain cold longer, and the roots are not able to extract moisture from the cold earth. As a result, the trees will simply dry out. This can happen with plums, cherries and cherries. But apricot and felted cherries have another problem – if the snow does not melt for a long time, the root collar warms up, which can also lead to death.

Shake the snow off the branches. Wet snow in large quantities sticks to the branches of trees, and under its weight they can break. Therefore, after each snowfall, it is necessary to shake off the crown – usually it is enough to knock on the branches with a stick wrapped in burlap (so that the bark is not damaged).

Tie pyramidal conifers. Coniferous plants with a pyramidal crown also have problems with snow – it sticks to the branches, and they bend back from the trunk (2). And if they don’t break, they will remain crooked and the crown will look untidy. To prevent this from happening, the crown is wrapped in a spiral with a dense rope, trying to press the shoots closer to the trunk.

Cover arborvitae and junipers. In these species, the first 2-3 years after planting at the end of winter – the beginning of spring, the needles burn. At the end of winter, the sun is already beginning to bake, the green needles evaporate moisture, and the roots are in the frozen soil layer and cannot get water. As a result, the plants dry up.

To prevent this from happening, they need to be shaded. The best way is to build a kind of hut of twigs around the seedling, and tie pine or spruce branches on top so that they cover the crown to the ground.

garden work in december

And what can you do in the garden in winter? The crop is harvested, the seeds are sown before winter, the free plots are dug up. We are waiting for spring. But no, December also has important work to do.

Throw snow on the beds. Where heat-loving perennials grow and seeds are sown before winter, snow is the best protection against frost.

Buy seeds. The excitement with the purchase of seeds usually begins after the New Year holidays – they will soon sow peppers and eggplants for seedlings. Queues form in garden centers, and online stores greatly increase the time for sending orders. Therefore, do not wait for an emergency, take the seeds in December. Moreover, they can be bought at a profit – at the end of the year, agricultural firms and shops sell seeds that expire. And discounts are from 50 to 80%!

Will these seeds germinate? And how! The fact is that, according to the law, the implementation period cannot exceed 3 years (3), but the seeds of many vegetables remain viable for much longer:

• tomatoes and beets – 7 years;
• melons and peas – 6 years;
• cabbage – 5 years.

And cucumbers give maximum yields when sown with 4-year-old seeds. So feel free to buy seeds at a discount – you will not lose.

Harvest in December

Oddly enough, but the harvest can be harvested in December, even from the garden. For example, kale (aka kale). This vegetable withstands frosts down to -18 ° C and retains its taste and useful properties even when frozen. So you can visit the beds and pluck a few lettuce leaves for dinner.

In December, you can dig Jerusalem artichoke.

And in the garden, collect viburnum and mountain ash – after frost, their fruits become sweet, all bitterness disappears.

Folk omens for gardeners for December

• If December is clear, then do not expect a harvest, and if it is cloudy, then the year will be fertile.
• If December is dry, then spring and summer will also be dry.
• Thunder in December – to a frosty winter.
• Bullfinches arrived in December – by the cold winter.
• If the snow in December comes close to buildings, fences, then the summer will be damp and windy. If there are gaps between the snowdrifts and the walls, then it is fruitful.
• Note the weather on December 28 – this will be March. What will be on December 29 – so will April. The weather on December 30 will tell you what the weather will be like in May.

Popular questions and answers

She told us how to spend the December days for the benefit of herself and the site agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mihailova.

Sources of

1. Kamshilov A. and a group of authors. Gardener’s Handbook // M .: State Publishing House of Agricultural Literature, 1955 – 606 p.
2. Plotnikova L.S. Coniferous plants // Moscow, “Kladez-Buks”, 2011 – 96 p.
3. Federal Law No. 149 “On seed production” dated 17.12.1997/11763/XNUMX http://www.kremlin.ru/acts/bank/XNUMX