What to plant in December in England is a very short list: the RHS suggests only garlic and shallots, and only in mild areas with well-drained soil. It lists no vegetable sowings for the month, so December is mostly for harvesting winter crops, protecting the soil and planning next year's bed.

Illustration of a frosted raised bed in December with rows of leeks and kale standing and the empty half of the bed covered with compost
IllustrationDecember is for harvesting winter crops, protecting bare soil and planning next year's bed.

Gardeners' World adds a few sowings under cover for keen growers. Below, that advice is kept separate from what Sowstory plans: in a Sowstory plan, garlic is still the one crop that can start in the bed in December, and it is the last month it can.

At a glance: what to plant in December

TaskCropsSource
Sow under coverOnion seed in pots; winter lettuce and lamb's lettuce; mizuna and microgreens indoorsGardeners' World
Sow outdoorsBroad beans in mild areas onlyGardeners' World
Plant outdoorsGarlic and shallots in mild areas with well-drained soilRHS
HarvestLeeks, parsnips, Brussels sprouts, kale, cabbages, beetroot, turnips, swedes, celeryRHS, Sowstory harvest windows

For the full year, see the vegetable sowing calendar for England.

Sow indoors

The RHS December page lists no sowings, but Gardeners' World suggests a few for growers with cover:

  • Onion seed in pots under cover, for planting out in spring about 10 cm apart.
  • 'Winter Gem' lettuce and lamb's lettuce in an unheated greenhouse.
  • Mizuna and microgreens indoors.
  • Broad beans in trays, where it is too cold to sow outside.
  • Garlic in modules, one clove per module under cover, if your soil is heavy.

Gardeners' World warns that low light combined with warm rooms gives weak seedlings that are prone to damping off, so keep winter sowings cool and bright.

Sow or plant outdoors

Garlic

December is the end of the garlic season. The RHS lists it for mild areas with well-drained soil, and Gardeners' World says garlic can go outdoors in mild regions. Garlic needs one to two months at 0–10°C to form a bulb that splits into cloves, according to the RHS, so cloves planted now can still get their cold over the rest of winter. Plant each clove pointed end up with the tip about 2.5 cm below the surface, 15 cm apart.

The deciding factor now is the soil, not the date. The RHS is clear that you should not plant into frozen or waterlogged ground. If your bed is sodden, start cloves in modules under cover and plant them out when conditions improve. Our guides on when to plant garlic and how to grow garlic cover the details.

Shallots (RHS and Gardeners' World advice)

The RHS lists shallots alongside garlic for mild, well-drained sites, and Gardeners' World says they can be planted until December at 15–20 cm apart. Sowstory does not plan shallots.

Broad beans (Gardeners' World advice)

Gardeners' World suggests sowing broad beans direct only if the weather is mild, otherwise under cloches or in trays. Sowstory's broad bean profile is the dwarf variety 'The Sutton', sown direct in March or April, so an autumn or winter sowing is your own addition.

In a Sowstory plan this month

In December, garlic (autumn-planted cloves) is the only crop profile Sowstory starts in the bed, and this is the last month of its window. Nothing else starts until March: in January and February Sowstory starts no crop in the bed at all.

If garlic is in your plan, Sowstory allows 25 cm between rows and 15 cm between cloves, with up to three rows: about 48 cloves along a 1.2 × 2.4 m bed as a simple estimate. It reserves the space for about 36 weeks, which takes the rows into next summer.

Crops already in a Sowstory plan keep cropping. Its harvest windows give leeks from November to February, parsnips from October to February, standard kale from September to March, curly kale through winter, and Brussels sprouts from September to February.

Planning next year's bed

The quiet weeks are the best time to plan. Decide which crops you want to eat, check how much sun the bed gets, and work out what fits. Our raised bed layout ideas and the plant spacing chart show how to do it by hand.

If you would rather have it done for you, Sowstory takes your bed size, sun, the crops you like or want to avoid, and your goal, then lays out the bed to scale with a month-by-month plan for England. It is coming soon to the App Store, and your first bed plan is free.

Sowstory's timings are England-wide months, not adjusted to your postcode, and it gives no frost date for your address.

Jobs this month

From the RHS December list:

  • Do not plant into frozen or waterlogged ground; wait for a better day.
  • Cover stored roots in trenches with cardboard when a hard frost is forecast.
  • Stake Brussels sprouts.
  • Compost empty beds. The RHS November advice is a double layer of plain cardboard, with tape and staples removed, topped with homemade compost.
  • Store canes for next year.

Frost in December

The Met Office does not publish an average date for the first autumn frost. Its rule of thumb is that frost is possible on a clear, calm night when the air is forecast at 0–4°C, and that cloudy, windy nights are usually frost-free. The RHS notes that cold air drains downhill and collects in low spots or against hedges and fences, so a bed in a frost pocket will be colder than the forecast suggests. For more on reading frost risk, see our frost dates guide.

What not to sow yet

  • Tomatoes, chillies and cucumbers. The RHS starts them in a greenhouse from mid-February; Gardeners' World suggests January for chillies and aubergines only in a heated propagator at about 21°C.
  • Outdoor spring sowings. Even in February, the RHS limits outdoor sowing to light soil in mild areas and says to wait for warmer soil in March or April elsewhere.
  • Sowstory's spring crops. Its dwarf broad beans, peas, onion sets, carrots and first early potatoes all start in the bed in March.

Last month's list is in what to plant in November; next month, see what to plant in January.

Sources