December Activities

This Page Brought to you by
Al Cooke
Agricultural Extension Agent
Chatham County Center


Following are some garden activities that may be appropriate in Central North Carolina during the month of

December

Things to Do

For Christmas
Trees and Shrubs
Annuals & Perennial Flowers
The Edible Garden
Routine Chores
Things to Watch For

For Christmas

Be sure the Christmas tree is well watered before you bring it in the house.

Once you get it home, make a fresh cut to remove about an inch from the bottom of the trunk. Immediately place it in a bucket of water and leave it in a shady spot away from wind. Check the next day to replenish the water supply. Once the rapid uptake slows after 2-3 days, you can bring the tree inside. Check it daily to keep it watered throughout the holidays to reduce chance of fire. Use only UL listed cords in good repair. Turn lights off when you leave the house.

Living Christmas trees should be kept indoors for only a brief period.

A week or less is best. Be sure that it’s well watered before it’s dug. Firs and spruces are not good selections for the landscape in our region. Think more along the lines of red cedar, Virginia pine, or even a richly berried Foster holly. At home keep the root ball moist by mulching. If more water is needed, ice is a convenient way to apply it with minimal mess. Indoors the tree will do better in a cooler room, better in the 60s than the 70s. Plant it as soon after Christmas as practical. Avoid or minimize lights on the tree; a spotlight can set off your handmade ornaments nicely.

Christmas poinsettias should be kept away from heat and from drafts.

Poinsettias can be damaged as temperatures drop near 50; transport them in a warm vehicle and bring them inside promptly. Place the poinsettia in a bright area. Full sunlight is OK but increases water needs. Avoid placing it on or near heat sources such as televisions, lamps, or appliances. Keep it away from drafts caused by opening doors or heat vents. When the plant needs water, remove the foil and place the entire container in a basin or dish that can be filled with water. Leave the plant for about an hour, then remove and allow it to drain before replacing it in the decorative foil.

Mistletoe is a parasite on host plants

and can be removed at any time. With most of the leaves off the trees, it’s easier to find. Mistletoe is a delightful holiday decoration of course, and you can cut it where convenient. It can also cause the host plant to deteriorate over a period of years. In most cases the affected branch of the host plant should be removed completely.

Once the Yule log is burned, what do you do with the ashes?

Many traditions and myths are associated with the Yule log including honoring Odin, the Norse god of drink and ecstasy; long winter nights of feast and frolic; and sacrifices to the fertility gods. (Let your imagination run with that.) Ashes were often scattered on fields to insure fertility for crops. Regardless of myths and beliefs, we know today that most wood ashes are a good source of essential potassium and can reduce soil acidity but only minimally. You can safely add your own Yule blessings to the garden directly or indirectly via the compost pile.

If you’re looking for some live greenery for decorating,

there may be some in the gardens. While it’s not a good time to do any major pruning, some light trimming of unruly stems is OK, especially if they happen to have colorful berries.

Plants for decorating: (you may want to paint or otherwise embellish some of these)

Pine boughs, Pinus spp.
Pine cones, Pinus spp.
Sweet gum balls, Liquidambar styraciflua
Sycamore balls, Platanus occidentalis
Red cedar, Juniperus virginiana
American witch hazel, Hamamelis virginiana (may be in bloom)
Deciduous hollies with berries on otherwise bare stems, Ilex decidua, I. verticilata
American holly, I. opaca
Chinese hollies, I. cornuta cultivars
Stems of red-twig dogwood, Cornus sericea
Inkberry, Ilex glabra
Horsetail, Equisetum spp.
Rushes, Juncus spp.
Greenbriar, Smilax spp.
Mistletoe, Phoradendron leucarpum
Christmas fern, Polystichum acrostichoides
Nandina, Nandina domestica
Magnolia, Magnolia grandiflora – leaves and pods

Trees & Shrubs

Plant trees and shrubs including fruit trees.

Woody plants grow roots when soils are cool. The more roots you can grow before next summer, the better plants will be able to forage for water and oxygen to meet the demands of heat. Root growth will slow with colder weather, but you can continue planting trees and shrubs through late winter. That includes fruit trees. Most of the berries (grapes, strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries) should wait for spring. But trees should be planted before Christmas.

Plants adapt to extreme cold weather better if they are well watered.

Little water is necessary during fall and winter. But if the transition from warm to cold happens quickly, plants that are well watered a day or two in advance typically experience less damage.

Annual & Perennial Flowers

It’s not by any means too late to plant bulbs.

In central North Carolina December is excellent timing for planting spring bulbs. Loosen the soil thoroughly. Then plant at least as deep as recommended for the bulb size. Most bulbs should be planted at least 5 – 8 inches deep. Fertilize lightly after planting.

Dig and divide perennials that bloomed in the spring and early summer.

You can still dig and divide most perennials now, but now is the optimal time for early bloomers. Recovery is quicker if they are well watered before you dig. Water them in well when replanting. This time of year, you may not need to water them again before spring. Look around your gardens for bare spots that need a bit of color. Now is a good time to find just the thing to fill in those spots. You can plant new perennials from now right up to winter.

The Edible Garden

Plant fruit trees.

Trees grow roots when soils are cool. The more roots you can grow before next summer, the better the plants will be able to forage for water and oxygen to meet the demands of summer heat. You can continue planting fruit trees through the end of winter, but now is better than later. Most of the berries (grapes, strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries) should wait for spring. But trees should be planted before Christmas. If you can't do it before Christmas, put it on your list of New Year's resolutions.

Routine Chores

Enroll in the Complete Gardener series of classes that starts in January!


Save those leaves.

Leaves are what our soil survived on before we built homes and landscapes. Leaves provided recycled nutrients to feed the soil microorganisms that are essential to the life of our soil. Earthworms, insects, fungi, bacteria, and a wealth of other living soil organisms feed on leaves and other organic matter and incorporate it into the soil to provide soil structure. Leaves make a good, if unattractive mulch. Leaves can interfere with the growth of a fescue lawn, so you'll still need to move them off the lawn. Use them as mulch or add them to the compost pile. It's also acceptable to just pile them up until you have a use for them. Some poultry fencing or other enclosure will keep them from blowing around. They won't decompose rapidly until warm weather. But by this time next year, you will likely have some good leaf mold to use in creating new beds.

Mulch can help to moderate soil temperatures as well as reduce moisture loss.

Mulch helps reduce cold injury to shallow roots. It allows the soil to cool gradually in the fall, moderates extreme cold temperatures, allows warming gradually in spring, and moderates extremes of heat in summer. It also reduces moisture loss to evaporation. Late fall is a good time to make sure plants are mulched. For the tenderest plants, heap mulch up around the crown of the plant before the first hard freeze. (Remember to rake it back next spring.)

Soil testing can be done at any time of year.

Boxes and forms are available at your County Extension Office. Estimated processing time for samples received throughout the fall is about two to three weeks after they arrive at the lab in Raleigh. Check the website at the Agronomic Lab for Estimated Processing Time. The time delay for processing samples tends to get a little longer throughout the fall. Then after Christmas, the time delay stretches out to several weeks. Vegetable gardeners who didn’t plan ahead tend to be the most frustrated when they don’t have their reports back as soon as they hoped. So now is a good time to get your samples in so that you don’t have to deal with delays in February or March. It’s easier to take samples when the soil is moist but not wet. For quickest action get them directly to Raleigh yourself rather than leaving them at any local collection point where they may sit for days or weeks. You can mail them to the address on the form or deliver them to the lab in Raleigh. From the State Fairgrounds, go north on Blue Ridge Road. When you see the Art Museum on the right, turn left on Reedy Creek Rd. The lab is about 1/2 mile down Reedy Creek Rd. on the right.

Things to Watch For

Be sure the Christmas Tree doesn't dry out.

Once you get it home, make a fresh cut to remove about an inch from the bottom of the trunk. Immediately place it in a bucket of water and leave it in a shady spot away from wind. Check the next day to replenish the water supply. Once the rapid uptake slows after 2-3 days, you can bring the tree inside. Check it daily to keep it watered throughout the holidays to reduce chance of fire. Use only UL listed cords in good repair. Turn lights off when you leave the house. No one deserves a fire for Christmas.

Native Witch Hazel, Hamamelis virginiana

Camellia sasanqua

Watch for cool season weeds

such as henbit, chickweed, and hairy bittercress. Selective post-emergent herbicides can be applied to these small inconspicuous weeds now before they become obvious next spring. These products will be more effective on days when the temperature is above 40F all day long, especially if it gets up in the 60s or 70s. If herbicides are not in your repertoire, continue with hand weeding or whatever strategy you use. Be careful not to damage the roots of trees and shrubs with the hoe or the trunks and stems with trimmers.

Watch for Cool Season Mites

on junipers, arbor vitae, other conifers, azaleas, hollies, and camellias. These mites are often only noticed after the damage is done (interior browning of foliage in early summer) and when the pests are no longer present. Use the white paper test to monitor for them. Hold a piece of paper (or even a white glove) under a stem and shake the foliage vigorously. Pause and observe the debris that falls out. Ignore anything that moves quickly. Watch for a speck smaller than a period on this page to begin moving. If you confirm the presence of mites, visit this Insect Note for mangement options.



This page created and maintained by
al_cooke@ncsu.edu

Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Revised on November 20, 2009
November 14, 2008

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