Seasonal Tips for Gardening Zones December 2001-January 2002

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Timely gardening tips for where you live.
Timely gardening tips for where you live.
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Growing cayenne pepper plants.
Growing cayenne pepper plants.
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Gift ideas from your garden.
Gift ideas from your garden.

Learn about current December and January seasonal tips for gardening zones in the U.S.

New England/Maritime Canada Gardening

Snow is flying and gardening chores are reduced to watering the window pots of parsley, sage and Thai hot peppers brought in from the garden. It’s time to enjoy last season’s harvest and start planning for the next. A personalized planting chart will help you know when to start seeds for your garden and how many plants you will need. Rule a large sheet of paper with columns for each vegetable you plant, and mark rows for each month. For each crop, mark the dates you start seed, transplant and harvest in the appropriate columns and rows. Note the size of your planting and if the amount harvested met your family’s needs. With a few years of fine-tuning for extra-early crops, main crops and fall plantings, you will have a seasonal task calendar exactly suited to your individual site and tastes. (See the chart, “Your Personal Seed-Starting Planner” for more tips on garden planting times.)

Mid-Atlantic Gardening

December is the time to garden on paper. Pay attention to what problems you experienced last year and try to plan a rotation with these in mind. To discourage scab on your spring potatoes, plant them where your late corn grew. Early root crops are a good choice to follow winter squash since that area will tend to be low in annual weed seeds. Go through your stored winter vegetables every week or two, culling out the bad ones. Save seed for planting next year from your best open-pollinated winter squash as you eat them. In mid-January, start bulb onions from seed indoors or in a greenhouse. Take advantage of the first warm spells to sow some cold-tolerant lettuce and Chinese greens outdoors.

  • Published on Dec 1, 2001
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