What to plant in December in the South

Worked out for 46 cities from their own weather and frost dates, by zone.

What to sow and plant in December in the South, by zone: frost possible, highs of 61–72 °F (New Orleans, Savannah and 8 more): broad bean, peas, onion, spinach, lettuce and 23 more; frost possible, highs of 50–61 °F (Atlanta, Nashville and 23 more): garlic, broad bean, peas, onion, spinach and 20 more; frost possible, highs below 50 °F (Washington, D.C., Louisville and 9 more): garlic, broad bean, peas, spinach, radish and 3 more.

In the South, December is winter.

Frost possible, highs of 61–72 °F: New Orleans, Savannah, Charleston, Montgomery and 6 more

In December, on average, these cities have highs of 61 to 66 °F and lows of 44 to 52 °F, 4.1 to 6.1 in of rain on 9 to 12 days; the day lasts 10 h 00 min to 10 h 14 min (on the 15th).

December falls in the frost season: frost-tender crops wait. Average first frost: New Orleans (December 15), Savannah (December 24), Charleston (December 20), Baton Rouge (December 9), Mobile (December 15), Shreveport (December 9) and Lafayette (December 6).

How	What	Where
sow direct	Broad bean, peas, spinach, lettuce, radish, carrot, cabbage, broccoli, Swiss chard, beet, parsley, cilantro, arugula, chamomile, daikon, dill, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, parsnip	all
plant sets	Onion, shallot	all
start indoors, plant out in January	Cauliflower	all
start indoors, plant out in February	Tomato, bell pepper, eggplant, chili pepper, Florence fennel, moringa	New Orleans and Mobile
start indoors, plant out in February	Brussels Sprouts	all
start indoors, plant out in March	Celeriac, celery, chayote	New Orleans, Savannah, Charleston and 6 more
sow direct	Turnip	Savannah, Charleston, Montgomery and 4 more

Compared with November: new — tomato, bell pepper, eggplant, turnip, chili pepper, Florence fennel and moringa; no longer sown — leek, chickpea and chicory.

Not starting in December: zucchini (February, started indoors) and green beans (March, sown direct) — dates for Savannah.

Ready to harvest in December in Savannah, if sown in the right month: peas (October), radish (November), beet (October), watermelon (September), pumpkin (August), sweet corn (September), parsley (October) and cilantro (October).

Frost possible, highs of 50–61 °F: Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte, Oklahoma City and 21 more

In December, on average, these cities have highs of 50 to 60 °F and lows of 33 to 43 °F, 1.3 to 5.4 in of rain on 4 to 11 days; the day lasts 9 h 35 min to 10 h 00 min (on the 15th).

December falls in the frost season: frost-tender crops wait. Average first frost: Macon (December 1), Wilmington (December 1) and Virginia Beach (December 1).

How	What	Where
plant cloves	Garlic	Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte and 20 more
sow direct	Broad bean, peas, spinach, radish, cabbage, arugula, turnip	all
plant sets	Onion	all
sow direct or start indoors, plant out in January	Lettuce	Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis and 15 more
sow direct	Carrot, Swiss chard, beet, chamomile, daikon, dill, kale, mustard greens, parsnip	Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis and 11 more
sow direct or start indoors, plant out in February	Broccoli	all
start indoors, plant out in January	Cauliflower	Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis and 11 more
start indoors, plant out in February	Leek	Nashville, Knoxville, Huntsville and 4 more
start indoors, plant out in February or sow direct	Parsley	all
sow direct	Cilantro	Macon and Wilmington
start indoors, plant out in February	Brussels Sprouts	all
start indoors, plant out in January or sow direct	Kohlrabi	all
plant sets	Shallot	Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis and 11 more
start indoors, plant out in January	Chicory	Charlotte, Raleigh, Greenville and 1 more
plant bulbs	Crocus, daffodil, hyacinth, tulip	Fayetteville, Bowling Green and Roanoke

The same as in November.

Not starting in December: tomato (February, started indoors), bell pepper (February, started indoors), zucchini (March, started indoors) and green beans (April, sown direct) — dates for Oklahoma City.

Ready to harvest in December in Oklahoma City, if sown in the right month: peas (October), lettuce (October), radish (November), carrot (October), Swiss chard (October), beet (October), pumpkin (August) and parsley (October).

Frost possible, highs below 50 °F: Washington, D.C., Louisville, Baltimore, Lexington and 7 more

In December, on average, these cities have highs of 45 to 50 °F and lows of 30 to 34 °F, 3.2 to 4.4 in of rain on 9 to 13 days; the day lasts 9 h 23 min to 9 h 46 min (on the 15th).

December falls in the frost season: frost-tender crops wait.

How	What	Where
plant cloves	Garlic	all
start indoors, plant out in January or sow direct	Broad bean, spinach	Washington, D.C., Louisville, Baltimore and 7 more
sow direct	Peas, radish	Washington, D.C., Louisville, Baltimore and 6 more
plant sets	Onion	Asheville
start indoors, plant out in February or sow direct	Cabbage	all
start indoors, plant out in February	Broccoli	all
start indoors, plant out in February	Leek, parsley, Brussels sprouts	Louisville, Lexington, Frankfort and 2 more
start indoors, plant out in January	Kohlrabi	Louisville, Lexington, Frankfort and 2 more
plant bulbs	Crocus, daffodil, hyacinth, tulip	all

Compared with November: new — leek, parsley, Brussels sprouts and kohlrabi; no longer sown — lettuce, arugula and turnip.

Not starting in December: tomato (February, started indoors), bell pepper (February, started indoors), zucchini (March, started indoors), green beans (May, sown direct) and lettuce (January, started indoors) — dates for Washington, D.C..

Ready to harvest in December in Washington, D.C., if sown in the right month: broad bean (September), peas (October), lettuce (October), radish (November), Swiss chard (October), beet (October), pumpkin (August) and parsley (October).

How we work it out

For each city we use its average weather in December and the months after (highs, lows and rain for 2016–2025, ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo) and its average frost dates. A crop starts in December if the month's mean temperature reaches the minimum soil temperature for germination on its card (we use the mean air temperature as a stand-in for the soil's) and if, over its first months (up to three), the average highs stay within its group's range, with no frost for crops that cannot take it. Crops started indoors count from the month they are planted out.

Temperature groups from Colorado State University Extension: cool-season crops prefer 60–80 °F and lose quality in heat; hardy ones grow in days as cool as 40 °F, semi-hardy ones from 40–50 °F (we use 50 °F); warm-season crops need days above 55 °F, and the most tender (tomato, pepper, eggplant, melon, watermelon, squash) above 60 °F, up to 95 °F. Crops the guide does not name go into the stricter group by their frost hardiness. Fava (broad) beans, which the guide does not name, count as hardy: hardy varieties are sown in fall and overwinter (RHS). Garlic and bulbs: a month before the first frost, and later only while the ground is not frozen (as on each city's page).

This is a general rule from averages: your garden can be a week or two earlier or later, and a greenhouse or a cold frame brings the season forward. Greenly works out the dates for your location.