{"id":4405,"date":"2026-08-16T10:09:42","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T09:09:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/?page_id=4405"},"modified":"2026-08-16T13:29:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T12:29:46","slug":"december","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/?page_id=4405","title":{"rendered":"December"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right\"><a href=\"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/?page_id=4056\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"4056\">Next Month<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>December is a quieter month on the allotment, but there\u2019s still plenty to do. It\u2019s a good time to harvest winter crops, tidy beds, protect plants from cold weather, check your plot after storms, and prepare for the growing season ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Things to do on your allotment in December<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>From looking after the soil to checking your tools and planning next year\u2019s crops, a little work in December can make a big difference when spring arrives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>December is a good month for&nbsp;<strong>tidying, protecting the soil, and planning ahead<\/strong>, rather than doing lots of planting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Clear and tidy beds<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 remove dead annual plants and diseased material, but leave some healthy stems for overwintering wildlife.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Spread compost or well-rotted manure<\/strong>&nbsp;over empty beds. You can leave it on the surface for worms and weather to work in.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dig only if necessary<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 there&#8217;s usually no need to dig every bed, particularly if your soil is heavy or wet.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Protect tender crops<\/strong>&nbsp;with fleece, straw or other suitable covering when hard frosts are forecast.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Check stored crops<\/strong>&nbsp;such as potatoes, onions, squash and root vegetables regularly and remove anything that&#8217;s rotting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Harvest winter crops<\/strong>&nbsp;including leeks, parsnips, Brussels sprouts, kale and winter cabbages as needed.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Plant bare-root fruit trees and bushes<\/strong>&nbsp;while they&#8217;re dormant, provided the ground isn&#8217;t frozen or waterlogged.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Prune dormant fruit trees and bushes<\/strong>&nbsp;where appropriate, but avoid pruning stone fruit such as plums in winter because of disease risk.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Check fruit-tree ties and supports<\/strong>&nbsp;and loosen anything that&#8217;s becoming tight.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Clean and sharpen tools<\/strong>&nbsp;and oil wooden handles and metal parts before storing them.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Clean pots, seed trays and greenhouse glass<\/strong>&nbsp;so everything is ready for spring.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Check fences, sheds, netting and gates<\/strong>&nbsp;for storm damage and repair them before winter weather gets worse.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Turn or check your compost heap<\/strong>&nbsp;if conditions allow, and keep it covered from excessive rain.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Look after wildlife<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 leave some shelter and seed heads, and provide clean water and suitable food if you feed birds.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Plan next year&#8217;s crops<\/strong>&nbsp;and order seeds early, making a rough rotation plan so you don&#8217;t grow the same crop families in the same beds repeatedly.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Take stock of seeds<\/strong>&nbsp;you already have and check their dates and storage conditions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">One important December rule<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Don&#8217;t feel you have to work the plot whenever you visit.&nbsp;<strong>Avoid walking or digging on very wet soil<\/strong>, as it can compact the ground and damage its structure. A December visit can simply be a quick inspection, harvest and cup-of-tea job!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Next Month December is a quieter month on the allotment, but there\u2019s still plenty to do. It\u2019s a good time to harvest winter crops, tidy beds, protect plants from cold weather, check your plot after storms, and prepare for the &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/?page_id=4405\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":170,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4405","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4405","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/170"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4405"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4405\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4440,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4405\/revisions\/4440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}