What to Plant in December in Zone 4
Here is what you can sow in December if you garden in USDA zone 4. Dates use typical zone 4 frosts, so your own microclimate may shift them by a week or two.
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Quiet monthThere is not much to direct sow outdoors in December for zone 4. Use the planner to map the whole year so you never miss a window.
Zone 4 in December
December in Zone 4: Sharpen the Blades Before Spring Needs Them
A dull blade damages the plant, not just your patience
Pull every hand pruner, hoe, and shovel out of the shed and run a flat file across the cutting edge at the same angle the factory ground it, usually about 20 degrees. A pruner that crushes a stem instead of cutting it cleanly leaves a wound that heals far slower and invites disease in far more easily than a clean cut does.
Wipe every metal surface with a light coat of household oil before it goes back on the shelf. An hour spent now on 10 or 12 tools saves you from discovering rust pitting in early spring, right when you need every one of them working.
Rough out next year's hardening-off calendar while the shed work dries
With a last frost that tends to land around May 10, work backward: seedlings started indoors in March need their hardening-off stretch to begin in the last week of April, about 10 to 14 days of gradually longer outdoor exposure before they go into open ground for good. Pencil that window into next year's calendar now, while you have the time to actually think it through.
This is also worth noting for anyone tempted by an early warm spell in spring: a hardening-off schedule started on the calendar, not on a lucky warm afternoon, is what keeps a whole tray of seedlings from getting caught out by a frost that a mild stretch made you forget was still possible.
December in zone 4: common questions
What can I plant in December in zone 4?+
December is a quiet outdoor-sowing month for zone 4. Start warm-season seeds indoors, or plan the next window. Your exact dates depend on your ZIP code's frost, not just the zone.
What USDA hardiness zone am I in?+
Zone 4 is one band of the map, but planting time is set by your local frost dates, not the zone number. Enter your ZIP code in the free planner and it uses your actual frost dates, which can differ by weeks within a single zone.
Are these December planting dates exact?+
They are typical zone 4 windows. Two gardens in the same zone can be a week or two apart because of elevation and local climate, so treat these as a starting point and tune them to your ZIP code with the free planner.