Gardening Tips for December 2025

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• Shrubs - Daphne, Euonymus, Myrtus communis.
• Winter Color- Cyclamen, Primrose, Bellis perennis.
• Seeds- Nigella, Larkspur, Flander's Poppies, Breadseed Poppies (all can be scattered on top of the soil November-January here in zone 9).
• Spring Flowering Bulbs- Can still be planted as long as the soil is workable. If your bulbs are starting to sprout in the bag, go ahead and get on out there and get them in the soil.
• Sweet Peas are cool-weather plants. Seeds and six pack sized seedlings can be planted throughout winter(The last few years, Mary has had better luck planting out seedlings rather than starting by seeds in the ground).

• Color Bowls for Winter - Planting shallow containers (shaped like a bowl) is a fun way to create color at entryways or in the garden. Here are a few plants that can be planted now: Bellis perennis, Chrysanthemum paludosum 'Snowland', Ornamental Cabbage, and Cyclamen. Color Bowls are easier to keep winter pests managed and they can be moved around for best sunlight and show. 
• Prune- Wisteria can be pruned and trained now. To create  a larger plant, allow some of the leaders to continue growing in length, tie them in where needed. Prune most stems to two or three fat buds. The fat buds will produce flowers and the thin, pointed buds will produce more vegetation. If you are tackling Wisteria pruning for the first time, Contact The Gardening Tutor for a Tutoring Appointment!  
• Apple trees pruned when dormant will encourage more growth next year. If you have a mature apple tree you can skip dormant pruning and start pruning after spring growth spurt and again in summer to slow growth. Peaches and other stone fruits (fruits with a big pit inside) are very susceptible to diseases in wintertime, best practices will be to wait until spring (when weather is sunny) to prune this type of fruit tree. Continue to deadhead winter annuals, such as Calendula, Pansy, Iceland Poppies, and Bellis perennis to encourage more flowers.
• Irrigation- Prepare exposed pipes (especially 90 degree fittings) for frost by covering with fitted pipe forms or other frost protection. Turn off irrigation controller but check to see which plants are under eaves and will need hand watering during winter.
• Pest Management- Keeping fruit trees clean of old fruits and leaves is one of the best ways to keep them healthy. Dormant spraying for Peach Leaf Curl is best done three times during the winter months. One way to remember approximately when to spray is Thanksgiving, Christmas and Valentine's Day before bud break. Maybe Even Better Than Spraying: Keep Fruit Trees Well Watered in the Dry Months and Mulch Thickly. When you plan to spray your roses, strip all the leaves that the cold weather has not dropped (of course, this may not be possible on huge roses). Remember to spray the entire framework of the rose and the ground under and around the plant. Spraying the soil with dormant oil spray helps to kill overwintering pest insects and fungal spores. Mary uses Neem Oil. Other dormant oils are available. Bait around your winter annuals for snails, slugs, earwigs, sowbugs, and cutworms.

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ALL CONTENT by Mary Frost (no AI).