Allotment/Veg patch thread 11 'We bid farewell to rainbow leaves but will keep plotting along'

[bookbook]

Well, nights are drawing in, leaves are starting to turn, harvesting carrying on
What a summer it has been!
Join in with the ups and downs of growing our own into autumn.
Last thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/2951768-Allotment-Veg-Patch-Thread-10-Plotmenters-busy-into-summer-and-loving-James-Wong?msgid=71770088HERE

Quick question for anyone who knows - we're going to give some seeds and compost and pots to several staff who are thinking of getting involved with our work allotment plot so they can have a go at germinating them at home, chitting potatoes etc. Do I need to give them seed compost or multipurpose? I use seed compost for growing bedding plants and annuals at home, but not sure if I need to do the same for vegetables? Any advice on this gratefully received!

Hello! What a lovely thread!! I hope you don't mind me jumping in. I don't have an allotment but I do have a very big patio and am hoping to grow my own veg this years. Have never had any outside space growing up or since so am very much a newbie gardener.

Can I ask for tips about the best veg to grow for beginners? I'd really like to grow potatoes, carrots, garlic, spinach, courgettes and strawberries. Is that too ambitious? I'd have to do them all in pots.

Evening!
serendipity - onions actually grow better from seed from what I can see. I am thinking of going down that route , I haven't really bothered with onions in the past
chock - I use multipurpose for everything! The only thing I would say - I have tried those little peat pots which are biodegradable ( so you can plant out in the pot) , but they are really tricky to keep from drying out or alternatively stay too damp.
Welcome Saxophone :) Whereabouts are you East/West/North/South ? Those are all doable , depending on what you plan to use to grow them in. The bigger the growing pot/bed the better -it cuts down the problems of watering. You are too late for garlic this year - it needs to be planted in the autumn to overwinter and harvest in summer . I would work out what space you have , most things grow and taste better if they are in good light - it doesn't have to be in full sun all day, but best not in the shade. Just jump in and ask away ! Seeds are for sale now - anywhere from garden centres to Wilkos and Aldi do a range. Strawberries you will need to buy as plants .

onions actually grow better from seed from what I can see
How weird that we faff about with sets when we sow seed for virtually everything else!! Well I’ve already got sets planted for 2018 so looks like onions from seed might be a project for 2019.

I spent a few hours last night online placing seed orders for Feb-Apr sowings, all very exciting! Need to go through my seed trays and propagators and things and see what condition they’re all in.

Saxophone welcome! My biggest tip is to start sourcing not just pots but bigger containers too. I have an allotment, but at home I have my “yarden” which is small, concrete, but slowly filling with container-grown plants, some edibles but mostly focusing on colour and scent. Almost anything can be converted into a container. I have an old steel water tank, pallets leant against the walls with pockets of weed membrane inside to plant in, old fruit/bulb crates lined with weed membrane, as well as purpose designed containers. I’ve salvaged metal mesh panels from skips to use as trellis. Soil/compost is an expense - I found a discount garden club nearby which is great you pay £5 membership a year but then can buy everything much cheaper. Also a lot of stuff both for home & allotment I’ve got from free cycle and gumtree. You can start ordering seed potatoes now - there are even patio kits available with growing bags. Strawberries you’ll buy as bare root plants, they can do really well in planters. I’m not sure when you plant garlic in spring as I do mine in autumn but I’m sure someone else will know! Carrots and spinach I’d sow direct later on, I think perpetual spinach is a good thing to start with as it’s super easy and just keeps going. I had problems with my spinach bolting last year. Courgettes I start inside probably sometime in April and plant out when they’re a bit bigger. Big courgette tip - don’t do too many plants unless either you absolutely LOVE courgettes or don’t mind being that mad woman giving everyone you’ve ever met marrows whether they want them or not during August! They can be very prolific. 2 plants is enough for me, one green one yellow.

Thank you book and serendepity that is brilliant advice and so helpful!!!

I'm in London. I'll look for perpetual spinach and I think I'll copy you serendipity and go for one green and yellow courgette plant.

Do you recommend any particular website for buying seeds?

I also found a packet of seeds for baby carrots which I picked up late last year from the garden centre and was thinking of growing those in pots just to try. I'm struggling for containers at the moment. And everything I have looks rather small.

Also - I'm probably being very paranoid here - but do I need to wash/bleach/disinfect any containers and pots I'm using to grow veg in?

I'm so excited to get started! I'm going to have a root around for some wooden crates and containers like you mentioned and see what I can find.

I'm also going to order the potato growing kits!

Bit spendy but how cool is this for a potato planter! Just came across it whilst looking for raised bed kits.

www.primrose.co.uk/original-wooden-potato-barrel-h60cm-d35cm-lacewing-p-10354.html

The biggest problem with these kits - they tend not to supply the compost! I was given a kit for Christmas a few years ago - 3 very large green tubs, and the 9 seed potatoes to go in them ( 3 per pot). I needed bags and bags of compost, mixes with soil from the garden to fill them up. Potatoes grow really well in rubble bags ( just remember to poke some drainage holes in them ) But they are not particularly pretty!

I grow carrots and herbs at home in them now, with home made compost/soil mixed

yes Serendipity - nearly everyone who grows good onions on my allotment site grow from seed , usually in those little modular plastic trays . You get a lot more for your money too. I have kept to growing shallots in the past, but its making me think :)

Afternoon all
a bit sharp here today, but dry and bright.
I am going away on holiday for 3 weeks , so wanted to do a quick trip to check everything over, and harvest as much as I could. Which was enough sprouting broccoli for a meal for us tonight, and a shedload of sprouts
See you in February !

Have a good holiday Bookbook!

Have a good break!

As an aside, when do other allotmenters plan their holidays? I don’t want to be away from the plot in late spring/summer, I was ill last year for weeks in May/June and it all went to pot with not being able to do stuff then. This year I have a week away end of April.... then I think no leaving the plot until autumn!

My seed orders have started to arrive which is all very exciting, having fun organising them into batches that will be sown together. Might start some sweet peas now actually, just so I can play with some compost !

I’ve been reading a lot about growing ingredients for skincare, herbal remedies, dyes etc. Getting ahead of myself as usual as I struggle enough growing food and cut flowers but it’s always nice to dream! I would like to have a go at soap making this year perhaps though, using some of my own flowers/herbs.

We are constrained by school holidays. If we go away at half term (last week of May) it's a bit of a judgement call as to whether to plant out tender seedlings before or after as we live in an area prone to late frosts. After means they are likely to dry out in their trays and pots while we are away and can be late getting established. Before is a slight frost risk. Otherwise we go away in late July / Aug and get a plot neighbour to water if necessary, apart from watering you can usually get away with it by then.

For the last 7 years we've gone away for 2 weeks in mid May which is cheaper but bang in the middle of the growing season. I tend to plant as much as I can early on in the hope that it will be robust enough to be planted outside before we go, then I plant everything else as soon as get back, plus buy plants to replace anything that gets hit by frost or just wasn't strong enough.

This year we have the additional problem that May is peak swarming time for bees but we have some beekeeper friends who will come and keep an eye on our hive for us while we're away.

However, from next year we'll be constrained to school holidays so hopefully that will work out better from a gardening/beekeeping point of view!

PS. Must. Stop. Buying. Plants.

We are going away in August. Thankfully other plot holders will check my plot but I’ve also just got a water butt auto watering kit. Runs off two battery’s and times when to water once a day which I will rig up in the poly.

Hello- meant to pop in last weekend as I finally had a proper afternoon in the garden clearing the raised bed, topping it up with soil etc and then going slightly bonkers on seed in garden centre with some vouchers I’d forgotten about from last year. The chickens are very taken with the raised bed which is fine as it is currently empty ( apart from the garlic chives they have comprehensively thinned for me) but I need a plan for when I plant it up. Trying to think of a way of protecting the seedlings whilst also still being able to get at them easily and weed. I’m a bit stumped.

Hi Cathpot - could you possibly tell me how you grew your garlic chives? I've just bought some seed.

Also any hints on spring onion also welcome!

I sowed spring onions in bunches last year - I think I saw this on the colliery garden YouTube channel, I highly recommend her for allotment solidarity and inspo! Sow a bunch of seeds in a big module, plant them out as a clump (I fit them in between garlic plants in the allium bed) and then they grow as a group and you can pick them as a whole bunch. They don’t need lots of space you only want them small! I’ve liked a purple one called Lilia I think, quite sweet and lovely in a colourful salad, and a white one called Lisbon. Worked well and I had a few bunches of each last year. I have a different variety to try this year can’t remember the name though!

Chattymummy that watering kit sounds interesting, which system do you have? I’ve been looking at various options for both containers at home and greenhouse at the lottie, but not chosen one yet. No power or taps at either location so water butts and gravity all the way!

Snowing here today, not much but it's sticking.

Need to do some rearranging so I have some space to start things off indoors, I don't have the space we had last year since we actually got round to renovating the lounge and find something so I can have a few different things on tiers. It's a pity our hallway doesn't get more light as I have plenty of space there.

Hi all, sorry I dropped off the thread for a while. I seriously thought about giving up the plot this year as it's such hard work managing it with 3 kids and working. All my friends told me I was crazy to give it up and to have another go. So here I am.
I've made a good start this week, taking 10 barrowfulls of manure up to the plot over 3 afternoons (the food shop got bumped to 9.30pm last night, and I was surprised to find how nice and quiet it was at Tesco at that time of night).

I'm thinking of ordering a small cherry tree. Does anybody have any recommendations? Will it just be a battle to eat the fruit before the birds get to it? I don't really want to do nets.

I’m going to steal the spring onions in bunches idea! Ive found spring onions, lettuce and chard the most forgiving things of my being a beginner. Also peas, although I now get them to about 30cm before I plant them out as I kept losing the seeds to birds. Garlic chives were seeds sprinkled in a line into a raised bed. The second year they threw up lovely flowers at the end of the summer and now I just cut the flowers when they go to seed and leave them to it. Chickens really like them though and so I now have much less than I did....

Last summer garlic chives flowering

Needmoretea I'm afraid that if you want cherries you absolutely have to net them - not for long but they will all be gone if you don't! We have Stella which is nice. I suppose that the fundamental choice is sour or sweet.

Jealous of your garlic chives Cath - for some reason I have never really succeeded with those but really want some for my edible ornamental bed.

I saw an ad in gardeners world mag this month for a cherry ‘bush’ - ie very short tree, which I was tempted by as I have a cherry tree but it is sulking and in 5 years , 3 cherries all of which went awol before I could get to them. I thought maybe a bush version would be easier to net. Got my parents a weeping cherry for anniversary and they do get fruit forming but lose it all to birds and don’t want to net it as it is in the centre of the lawn.