Zone 8a planting calendar

What to plant in December: zone 8a

A rule-of-thumb starting point for zone 8a: last spring frost around March 30, first fall frost around November 15. Zones are set by winter lows, not frost dates, so two gardens in the same zone can be weeks apart. Measure your ZIP below for dates from your area's own 30-year record.

These are zone-average dates. Check an area-level frost estimate from thirty years of nearby weather history and this calendar retimes itself.
Typical last frost: March 30
Typical first frost: November 15
Winter lows: 10 to 15 °F
Zone 8a Almanac. What growers here actually recorded: sowing weeks, days to first pick, and yields.

Plan & order

  • Inventory and order seed3 sowings: Dec 8 and Dec 15 and Dec 22

    Sort what you already have, toss anything over 3 years old, and order early while varieties are in stock. Sowing again a few weeks later keeps the harvest coming instead of arriving all at once.

Dormant care

  • Sharpen and oil toolsaround Dec 29

    Clean, sharpen and oil blades while there's time. Dull tools bruise plants and slow you down.

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