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From YouTube: Garden Chores - December
Description
Keeping up with the seasons in your garden can sometimes be tricky. When do you plant for Spring? When do you harvest your vegetables? How do you keep those critters out of your garden? Learn to improve your green thumb with the answers to those and much more.
Join Master Gardener Linda Blue of the North Carolina Office of Cooperative Extension for need-to-know gardening tips and chores for the month of Decemberl. For more information you can call the office of Cooperative Extension at (828) 255-5522.
A
B
B
During
this
time
you
don't
want
to
keep
it
wet,
but
don't
let
it
dry
out
in
between
waterings.
Another
thing:
I've
noticed
about
the
Christmas
cactus,
at
least
with
mine.
It
sometimes
will
grip
some
sap
from
these
flowers
onto
your
tabletop,
and
it's
probably
a
good
idea
to
keep
an
eye
on
that
and
either
be
careful
where
you
put
the
plant,
put
something
under
it
or
get
those
wiped
up
promptly.
Of
course,
the
plant
that
we
most
often
associate
with
the
holiday
season
is
poinsettias
if
you're
bringing
a
poinsettia
home.
B
One
of
the
most
important
things
is
thinking
about
where
you're
going
to
locate
that
plant.
It's
tempting
to
put
this
plant
right
beside
the
front
door,
where
your
visitors
will
see
it
as
soon
as
they
come
in.
However,
that's
probably
not
a
good
idea,
because
if
it's
in
a
location
where
that
cold
blast
of
air
is
going
to
hit
that
plant
every
time,
somebody
comes
in
that
door.
That
cold
air
will
really
take
a
toll
on
this
tropical
plant
and
it
can
start
to
drop,
leaves
pretty
quickly.
B
On
the
other
end
of
that,
though,
you
do
not
want
to
put
this
if
you
can
help
it
in
front
of
a
heat
vent,
because
that
dry
air
blowing
on
the
plant
may
cause
some
of
the
leaf
and
bracket
tips
to
dry
out
or
if
it's
drying
it
out
too
quickly
can
also
cause
the
lower
leaves
start
falling
off
prematurely.
Now
watering
is
with
this
poinsettia.
You
want
to
keep
it
consistently,
moist,
not
overly
wet
I
suggest.
B
If
you
want
to
keep
this
plant
in
this
decorative
foil,
pull
the
foil
wrapper
off
and
cut
the
bottom
out
of
it,
so
that
you
can
water
the
plant
and
have
it
drain
properly.
Then,
of
course
put
the
plant
in
a
good
saucer,
so
that
every
time
you
water,
the
plant,
the
water
will
run
all
the
way
through
and
drain
out
the
bottom
of
the
pot.
If
this
plant
stands
in
water,
such
as
having
that
soil
around
the
bottom
of
that
pot,
it
can
develop,
root,
rot
and
will
go
downhill
pretty
quickly
on
you.
B
You
may
have
other
house
plants
in
the
house
this
time
of
year.
Sometimes
we
have
moved
things
from
outdoors
to
indoors
and
it
takes
a
little
time
to
figure
out
the
frequency
of
watering.
That
can
even
be
the
case,
though,
if
your
plants
haven't
moved,
because
what
tends
to
happen
is
once
the
heating
system
comes
on,
the
air
gets
a
lot
drier
and
your
plants
may
dry
out
more
quickly.
B
How
often
that
plant
is
going
to
need
to
be
watered
it's
going
to
depend
on
whether
it's
in
a
clay
pot
or
something
like
a
plastic
or
ceramic
pot
that
is
not
going
to
dry
out
as
quickly
as
well,
of
course,
on
the
size
of
the
plant
and
where
it's
located.
When
you
are
watering,
you
want
to
make
sure
the
plant
actually
needs
watering
feel
that
soil
and
make
sure
it's
starting
to
feel
dry
and
then
always
put
enough
water
in
that
pot
to
where
it's
going
to
run
out
at
the
bottom
of
the
container.
B
B
If
you
are
purchasing
a
cut
christmas
tree,
if
at
all
possible,
it's
a
very
good
idea,
if
you
can,
before
you
bring
the
tree
into
the
house,
cut
a
few
inches
off
of
the
base
of
the
trunk
of
that
tree,
so
that
you
can
reopen
those
water
conducting
vessels
and
then,
of
course,
immediately
get
that
tree
into
water.
Then
it's
really
important.
This
first
few
days
to
check
the
water
in
that
tree
stand
probably
a
couple
of
times
a
day.
B
It's
not
uncommon
for
a
freshly
cut
tree
to
soak
up
as
much
as
a
gallon
of
water
a
day
in
that
first,
several
days.
So
you
don't
ever
want
to
allow
that
reservoir
to
run
dry,
because
if
the
bottom
of
that
trunk
dries
out
and
reseals,
it's
not
going
to
take
up
water
again.
The
best
way
to
keep
that
Christmas
tree
safe
and
to
not
be
a
fire
hazard
is
to
keep
it
well
watered
so
that
the
needles
do
not
dry
out.
B
B
Really
one
week
should
be
the
length
of
time
ten
days
at
absolute
maximum,
because
the
longer
you
keep
that
tree
indoors,
where
it's
warm,
the
more
it's
going
to
come
out
of
dormancy
and
may
not
survive
when
you
take
it
back
out
in
the
cold
of
course,
get
it
planted
immediately
and
yes,
December
is
fine
for
planting
not
only
that
Christmas
tree,
but
other
landscape
plants
anytime.
The
ground
is
not
frozen,
get
it
watered
in
really
well
and
get
some
mulch
around
it
and
then,
of
course,
next
summer
remember
to
keep
it
watered.
B
B
It
is
ok
to
do
light
pruning
on
any
of
your
evergreen
shrubs
this
time
of
year.
It's
not
the
it's
time
to
do
any
severe
pruning,
such
as,
if
you
are
renovating
a
shrub
I,
would
wait
until
March
to
do
that.
It's
also
not
a
very
good
time
to
prune
fruit
trees.
You
want
to
wait
until
late
februari
or
preferably
March
for
pruning
those
fruit
trees.
You
can,
however,
prune
your
grapevines,
especially
if
you
want
to
use
those
cuttings
to
perhaps
make
reeds
and
other
decorations
with
didn't
get
those
daffodils
bulbs
planted.
B
Yet
that's
okay
go
ahead
and
get
them
planted
the
sooner
the
better,
probably
the
worst.
That's
going
to
happen
if
they're
nice
fat,
healthy
bones,
is
that
they're
just
going
to
bloom
later
than
they
might
ordinarily
bloom
at
worst,
they
might
only
put
up,
leaves
and
not
give
you
flowers
for
another
year.
Yet
if
you
have
gardeners
on
your
holiday
shopping
list,
why
not
do
some
shopping
at
your
local
garden
centers?
B
Not
only
will
you
find
lots
of
really
good
ideas
for
gardeners
and
non
gardeners
alike,
but
it
probably
will
be
much
less
stressful
shopping
than
making
one
more
trip
to
the
shopping
mall
and
finally,
let
me
wrap
up
today
by
wishing
everybody
a
safe
and
happy
holiday
season
from
Buncombe
County
Cooperative
Extension
office.
If
you
have
more
gardening
questions,
feel
free
to
contact
us
at
Buncombe,
County,
Cooperative,
Extension,.