What to do in the garden in December
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Zone 1
❄️ Zone 1 · Min −51 °C · Northern Alaska, Yakutsk, Siberian far north. Almost no outdoor growing season.
- 📦 Order seeds early — remote areas need lead time
- 📖 Design new beds and guild plantings on paper
- 💡 Start grow light schedule to prep for February
- 🌿 Study cold-hardy perennials suited for Zone 1
Zone 2
🥶 Zone 2 · Min −45 °C · Interior Alaska, Northern Canada, Norilsk.
- 📦 Order seeds early — delivery takes time
- 📖 Design next year's garden on paper
- 💡 Maintain grow light area for February starts
- 🌿 Research cold-hardy perennials for Zone 2
Zone 3
🌨 Zone 3 · Min −40 °C · Winnipeg, Northern Minnesota, Surgut. Very short season (90–120 days).
- 📦 Order seeds early — best varieties sell out
- 📖 Design new beds and perennial guilds
- 💡 Maintain grow light schedule
- 🌿 Study permaculture design for cold climates
Zone 4
🌧 Zone 4 · Min −34 °C · Minneapolis, Calgary, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg. Season ≈ 140 days.
- 📦 Order seeds early for best selection
- 📖 Design new bed layouts and perennial guilds
- 🌿 Research improved varieties for cold climates
- 💡 Prepare grow light schedule for February
Zone 5
🌥 Zone 5 · Min −29 °C · Chicago, Montreal, Moscow, Helsinki. Season ≈ 160 days.
- 📦 Order seeds early for best selection
- 📖 Design new beds and guild layouts
- 💡 Set up grow light area for February
- 🌿 Study perennial plants for zone 5 gardens
Zone 6
⛅ Zone 6 · Min −23 °C · Denver, Toronto, Warsaw, Oslo, Kyiv. Season ≈ 180 days.
- 📦 Finalize seed orders for best selection
- 📖 Design new beds and perennial guilds
- 💡 Set up grow lights for January
- 🌿 Research new varieties for zone 6
Zone 7
🌤 Zone 7 · Min −18 °C · New York, Berlin, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Seoul. Long season ≈ 200 days.
- 🥬 Harvest overwintering greens under cover
- 📦 Order seeds; plan spring garden
- 🌿 Spread compost on resting beds
- 📖 Design guild plantings for next year
Zone 8
☀️ Zone 8 · Min −12 °C · Seattle, Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Lille, Amsterdam. Near year-round growing.
- 🥬 Harvest winter greens continuously
- 📦 Order seeds; plan spring layout
- 🌿 Spread compost on resting beds
- 🌱 Start onions, leeks indoors late month
Zone 9
🌞 Zone 9 · Min −7 °C · London, Bordeaux, Marseille, Nantes, Rome, Madrid. Year-round outdoor growing.
- 🥬 Harvest winter crops continuously
- 🌱 Start tomatoes indoors for February transplant
- 📦 Order seeds; plan spring layout
- 🌿 Spread compost and mulch on all beds
Zone 10
🌴 Zone 10 · Min −1 °C · Nice, Lisbon, Athens, Southern California, Southern Florida. Subtropical.
- 🥬 Winter garden in full harvest
- 🍅 Transplant tomatoes outdoors — year-round possible
- 📦 Order seeds; plan spring beds
- 🌿 Spread compost; establish new food forest sections
Zone 11
🌺 Zone 11 · Min +4 °C · Hawaii, Hong Kong, tropical coasts. True tropics, frost-free year-round.
- 🏆 Year-end harvest from established guilds
- 🌸 Plant new guild species; add diversity
- 📦 Plan next year's annual crops and perennial additions
- 🌿 Sow cowpeas to restore nitrogen after heavy harvest
Make a plan for your own plot
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