Garden jobs month by month
Garden jobs in December
In December you prune fruit trees and other trees on frost-free days, still plant trees and hedges while the ground is not frozen, and give the birds food and water. Leave hollow stems and seed heads standing: insects overwinter in them.
Updated for 2026
What to do in the garden in December
In December the garden rests. You can still plant trees if the ground isn’t frozen, and prune fruit trees on frost-free days.
- Prune fruit trees and other trees on frost-free days.
- Plant bare-root trees and hedges.
- Choose a Christmas tree with a root ball and plant it outside after the holidays.
- Protect the trunks of young fruit trees from rabbits.
- Give the birds food and water.
What to prune in December?
94 trees and hedges from the guide. When and how for each plant in its pruning guide:
- Beech
- Hornbeam
- Hawthorn
- Apple tree
- Pear tree
- Redcurrant
- Grapevine
- Kiwi vine
- Blackcurrant
- Gooseberry
- Japanese maple
- Hazel
What to sow and plant
- Harvest from the vegetable garden
- brussels sprouts, chicory (witloof), kale, lamb’s lettuce, leek, parsley, parsnip and savoy cabbage
What to harvest
From trees, shrubs and garden plants:
- Olive tree fruit
- Common myrtle berries
- Date-plum fruit
- Horseradish roots
- Kumquat fruit
- Lemon fruit
- Lime fruit
- Mandarin fruit
- Strawberry tree fruit
Recipes
- Brined olives Olive tree
- Myrtle liqueur (mirto) Common myrtle
- Dried date-plums Date-plum
- Creamy horseradish sauce Horseradish
- Candied kumquats Kumquat
- Salt-preserved lemons Lemon
What’s flowering for bees?
Trees and shrubs with nectar or pollen for bees and bumblebees:
All speciesNature in December
- Brush piles, log piles and hollow stems are winter shelters for hedgehogs, toads and insects.
- Give birds food and fresh water, especially when it freezes or snows.
- Evergreen hedges and ivy give birds shelter on cold nights.
What you can see now
- Holly bears red berries, ivy black ones.
- Evergreen trees stand out: pine, yew and holly.
- The first hazel catkins appear.
Challenges of the season
All challenges- Plant 3 native shrubsPlant 3 native trees or shrubs, such as hawthorn, hazel or guelder rose: planting season has begun.
- Measure 3 plantsMeasure 3 trees or plants, with a photo: next year you will see how much they grew.
Wildlife garden in December
All wildlife garden guidesRead more
All articles- Identifying trees in winterWithout their leaves, you can still recognise trees by their buds, bark, silhouette and the fruit that stays on the branches. These features will get you started.
- Planting a tree: how to do it properlyThe right tree in the right place, the best planting season, the planting hole, staking and watering in the first few years. This is how your new tree grows into a healthy old one.
- Pruning fruit trees: apple, pear, cherry and plumPrune apples and pears in winter, cherries and plums in summer. How to prune a young fruit tree and an old one, and how to avoid silver leaf and gummosis.
Coming up
Garden jobs in February
Each monthly page is online six to eight weeks ahead, so you can plan in time.