December is one of the quietest months of the allotment calendar, and a good time to think about next year.  Nothing better on a rainy windy day than a cup of tea, the King’s seed catalogue (there are copies in the summer house), a notebook and pen and starting to plan for next year.

There are still jobs that can be done on the allotment though:

General December allotment jobs

• December is a great time to do big jobs like maintaining or installing paths, building raised beds and making changes to your plot layout.
• Topping up paths with bark chippings – keep your eyes open for new deliveries at the top and bottom gates.

• Keep off beds this month to avoid compacting the ground when it’s wet. Use planks to spread your weight if you need access.
• Check your shed and greenhouse for damage, clean the windows and tidy inside. On a dry day you can apply a wood preservative while there’s no greenery in the way.
• Look after your tools:  remove any caked on soil, sharpen and oil secateurs to keep rust at bay.
• Dig in rotted manure and copost
• Cover beds with Permatex (available in the Hut – £1.60 per metre)

Allotment fruit in December

• Bare rooted fruit bushes can be planted out this month as long as the ground isn’t waterlogged or frozen.
• You can create a new strawberry bed this month with bare root plants now or using rooted runners from your own plants.
• Plant bare root plum and damson trees, adding plenty of mulch made from rotted manure or organic matter.
• Winter prune apple and pear trees by removing dead branches and crossing growth, creating, a good central airflow.
• Don’t  prune plum trees over winter as this will encourage the destructive and damaging silver leaf disease.
• Blackcurrant bushes should be pruned to ensure a regular supply of new wood and maintain cropping. Cut a third of the older, darker wood close to the base during the dormant months between November and February. This is a great job to do when the soil is too wet to work!
• Cut back autumn-fruiting raspberries to ground level.
• Repair fruit cages

Allotment Vegetables in December

• Harvest: Potatoes, ,Winter Cabbages, Kale, Parsnips, Brussel Sprouts, Leeks, Jerusalem Artichokes and Swedes

• Garlic can still be planted but only if the soil is not frozen or waterlogged.

• There’s still time to divide large clumps of rhubarb and replant.  Give any unwanted to friends or fellow plot holders.
• Remember that mice and rats can be problematic in winter as they partial to digging up newly planted broadbeans, garlic, shallots and onion sets

Allotment flowers in December

• Scatter hardy flower seeds that are about to go out of date around the plot. They’ll germinate in spring and surprise you with their random colour.
• Sow sweet peans on a warm windowsill in December for growing on in a cold greenhouse. Keep them a little on the dry side over winter and pinch out the middles to encourage more flowers when they start getting too tall.
• Roses will  benefit from a winter prune (depending on the variety).
• There’s still time to plant last-minute tulip bulbs in the ground or containers.