Gardeners Checklist: Here Is What to Do on the Week of Dec. 23

By Ron Kujawski

* Ring in the New Year by sorting through packets of leftover seed from the past growing season. Check viability of the seed by placing a few on damp paper towels. Roll up the paper towels, put them inside a plastic bag and place it in a warm place. Discard any of the seeds that do not sprout after 10 days. Yes, that’s about as exciting my New Year’s Eve gets these days.

* Don’t waste a dark and stormy night. It’s a perfect time to curl up with a gardening book and envision brighter and warmer days ahead. Don’t overlook the local library as a source for gardening books.

* Save wood ash from the fireplace or wood stove. Wood ash can be scattered over lawns and gardens as a substitute for ground limestone. Generally, wood ash has about half the liming effect as ground limestone. Store wood ash in a metal trash can until ready to apply to gardens in spring. The nutrient value of wood ash is low but it does contain significant amounts of potassium, an essential plant nutrient.

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I do not make New Year resolutions, mostly because I know it is an exercise in futility. Nevertheless, that has never stopped me from making resolutions for other people. Hence, here is my 2025 resolution for you: Resolve to grow some vegetables if you have not done so or haven’t given any thought to it.

Need some motivation? Go to the food market and check the price of vegetables. Be prepared for “sticker shock.” Need more motivation? Jostle your memory banks and recall the numerous news reports of bacterial contaminated produce that have occurred in recent years. Still need more motivation? Do you know what pesticides might have been used on those store-bought vegetables? No, but you will know how your garden vegetables are grown.

OK, so you don’t think you have time for a garden. Look, you don’t need to plow up the south 40 to raise vegetables. Vegetable growing can be as simple as growing a single tomato plant in a large flower pot. That single plant could yield as much as 10 to 20 pounds of fruit. With some of the market prices I’ve seen this past summer, that converts to earnings of as much as $50 or more. That beats the stock market even in its best years.

Think small, start small, and hopefully you’ll find vegetable gardening so rewarding that you will want to plow up the south 40.

Ron Kujawski began gardening at an early age on his family's onion farm in upstate New York. Although now retired, he spent most of his career teaching at the UMass Extension Service. He serves on Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Horticulture Advisory Committee. His book, Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener’s Handbook, is available here.