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

Welcome Post

Had to google hugelkultur but now want to give it a try! We have a lots of old leylandii stumps from previous owners 'decorating' the garden right now!

Hi Post what an exciting time of year to get an allotment. We have had one for a while but after my last baby it has got into quite a state and this IS the year to reclaim it! My baby is now a toddler!

Where do people order seeds from? I am wanting Craigella tomato seeds and have been unable to source in local garden centres. I grew them once and they were our favourite. So will need to order online I think.

I like real seeds

yay. monty is back.
now he can tell me what I should have sown 3 weeks ago :)

I use Real Seeds too.

I like real seeds, I use them, King’s and Marshall’s the most.

My allotment neighbour has some hugelkultur going on. Doesn’t seem to produce much on it though to be honest.

Very happy GW is back! Snowy Longmeadow this week. Pleased that Monty is going to focus on reducing plastic in the garden, I’m trying to do this too. Everything we buy for the garden comes in bloody plastic.

I usually use Marshalls (and find them to be excellent), but have just ordered from Seedaholic and am very impressed - beautifully packaged, arrived in 2 days and came with really comprehensive instruction sheets.

I am sort of minimal dig, if there is such a thing - my allotment was so full of horrid stuff when I took it over, I am still digging out bind weed and couch.
Saw Monty - telling me I need to sow peppers and tomatoes - just No! - well, not for me anyway.
I am a member of our allotment and horticultural society, so get the majority of my seeds discounted from Kings through them , but I use real seeds and seedaholic too for particular varieties I cannot get from them .
I am free tomorrow, and guess what - forecast rain .
Roll on Sunday.......

Can I join? I was growing things in a small bed in my garden last year but had to move house. :( . However, I applied for (and just got told I have) a very small allotment. It's only 15 square meters but very exciting!

welcome Flop :) - . It may be small, but then again, it will be easier to manage! where abouts are you? :) Does it need much work to get going?

Welcome Flop!

Micro allotments sound like a good idea in some areas, if demand is high. I have a half plot, which is still a challenge for me, and I hate seeing some of the full plots that are just being wasted - people take them on but then can’t manage them and give them up again, they’re never properly cultivated. If they were divided up into micro plots there’d be a better chance of some people keeping them up I reckon.

What are your thoughts on what you want to grow? With a smaller space, I’d be looking at square foot gardening techniques perhaps, as a way of maximising yield.

I have had a seedling disaster this morning, an entire propagator of chillies and peppers was upended it was horrible! I’ve salvaged about 20, not really sure what’s what though, labels all went flying too so varieties will be a surprise if they do survive. Have potted them up individually, watered well and back in a heated propagator..... some look quite sad at the moment, but fingers crossed. Am very annoyed at myself. I can’t even blame the cats, it was my own clumsiness .

Aside from that I’ve sown my tomatoes, and a few extra chillies/peppers as back up. There’s some lettuces need pricking out, but I have to head out now.

Really annoyed at myself!

Thanks bookbook and serendipity :) I'm actually not in the U.K. But the Netherlands - the climates similar to england and very windy

And yes, it seems fairer in a way as there's no waiting list, but also everyone gets a plot in March and has to hand it back mid-November. So I suppose you don't get the satisfaction of developing the plot, but it's better than a window box, and I was able to grow loads in a small flower bed last year so am hopeful I'll be able to get a decent amount out of 15 square meters :)

everyone gets a plot in March and has to hand it back mid-November

That is a different way of doing things! What happens to the land for the other 4 months of the year?

Serendipity - there's the mystery. I assume it just sits there/they fertilize it. Which is mildly disappointed since I've always enjoyed pottering about soil improving etc but it seems to be a very common rule (the rules come from the municipality and when I looked at the rules for other areas it seems to be the same). It means that perennials aren't an option so no rhubarb, but I was thinking I might still be able to get decent parsnips since the first frost date is well before mid November and I can always transfer them to a pot of soil in my garden maybe... (I am determined to get parsnips for winter this year since the past two years there weren't any in the local shops for Christmas :o )

That last emoji should be I was not amused

Hi,I'm pleased to find this thread. I've just been offered an allotment, never had one before so could do with lots of tips and advice. I'm in the NW and it is 83m2, the allotment officer said to concentrate on just a third or half of it this year. It is all grass so needs dug over,but I really don't know where to start! I grew a bit of veg in containers last year with a little success but I am very much an amateur. Any book ,websites,YouTube videos or blog recommendations would be much appreciatedI haven't signed the tenancy agreement yet, it is feels very daunting but I really want to give it a go.

Una, hope the sun has appeared where you are as well!

WhoKnowsWhere Wilko have decently priced seed potatoes if you’re passing one and I think I saw some in Aldi last night though didn’t look at price.

I like Real Seeds, Moreveg, Seedaholic and Premier seeds. No good for now but Wyevale usually do a sale where all the packets go down to 50p late summer I think it is. No fruit trees in our Aldi but soft fruits for £3 each, got black, red and white currants and they have raspberries, £3 each.

That’s really sad about your propagator Serendipity Hope they survive. I knocked over a couple of pots of cuttings in mine yesterday whilst having to move it, hoping they will be ok, was also cross with myself.

Hi Flop and Dizzy, that’s 3 of us with new allotments this week then ! That’s good not much pressure for this year Dizzy. The growfruitandveg forum is useful and there’s a thread on Gardeners World forum fruit and veg section which is interesting. There’s no rush and it’s very early in the season yet.

Interesting that your neighbour’s Hugelkultur bed isn’t very productive Clarabellski. I’ve heard they can take a year or two to get going. Dumped some more manure in mine this morning so it’s gradually coming along.

Gussyfinknottle glad you can get back to gardening this year. I find gardening my therapy and love the feeling of going with the seasons, find it very grounding.

As I’m under some pressure to get mine cultivated I went down yesterday and got started . Only had an hour and a half but was pleased with my efforts, it does look like someone is doing something. What I thought was couch grass mostly isn’t so the non Couch has started compost heap and couch roots came home to go in garden waste.

Had a bit of a weed of inherited strawberry patch and found a camomile plant . Am going to be without a car for most of next week so am considering taking down a compost bin and storing my fork, a trowel and trug in it. Got my permission for a shed but don’t want to spend out for one at moment.

Hello everyone. I made it to the plot today, in between showers. It was the first time since the snow. I have planted some summer fruiting raspberries and another blackcurrant, also a couple of tarty red rose bushes. I blame poundland. Earlier in the week I bought some window sill propagators from The Range. They were reduced to £1.99 and should fit nicely in my mini greenhouse once I get things going. I am really trying to put off planting most stuff as I hate it when plants go all leggy, but I will get some broad beans in. I was envious of others sturdy bb plants at the allotments.

hi everyone, had a big clearout in the garden yesterday.
took fig cutting und dug out some anemone seedlings from the lawn.
today I want to dig out a couple of woodruff plants to give to a (german) friend.

I was pondering about the impact of what we grow our plants in.
coconut fibres vs compost vs peat. airmiles vs lorry miles ...

I like coconut, stores small is light and easy to transport (esp as I din't always can havd the car and can't lift heavy sacks easily). but is low nutrition...

oh, and I have the strangely satisfying gardeners muscle ache today.

• a blister on my hand

Morning!
welcome Dizzy - I always recommend The Allotment Book by Andi Cleveley , Carol Klein Grow Your Own Veg is good too . I think it would be best to take it steady . Maybe dig out of the grass a couple of smallish beds, a size that you can manage , get something planted/sown in them , keep on top of the weeding and gradually add beds as and when you can. Something along the size of 1.5 x 3 metres means you can reach all the way into the middle .
Flop - that is fascinating , shame about winter veg though.
Post - getting going good and quick!
I have had a lovely hour down at the plot this morning - warm and slightly damp. Too wet underfoot to do much on the land, but I cut down lavender and rosemary , and weeded around the bottom of the net covering the fruit cage . The fruit cage is going to have a new net this year, so nice to have it clear and weed free.
The blackcurrants are budding - I love the smell of them - its a spring call for me.
This afternoon, hoping to get some more broad beans sown - only about half germinated in the batch I did a few weeks ago, so need to get some more started , so I bought a new packet just in case.

Postnot - thank you, I did manage to grab some seed potatoes in Aldi, they were even the variety I wanted (Desiree). Chitting these ones in the house!

Half an hour at the plot late this afternoon, cut up a load of the raspberry canes I cut down the other day and made some nice looking stacks of them. I'm going to use long ones for pea sticks and short ones for protecting seedlings from birds, then anything that is left come the autumn can come home for kindling for the fire next winter. Then icy rain started, so I legged it home again.

Rhubarb We bought craigella from Thomson & Morgan 3 seeaons ago and are pleased with them (it was their heritage range). In fact I currently have some germinating on our windowsill (3 year old seeds!).

yay. monty is back.
now he can tell me what I should have sown 3 weeks ago

B'wah hahah! That made me guffaw. Although felt slightly smug watching this week as I did start my peppers, tomatoes and aubergines already.

I'm also going to need to sow some more broadbeans Book. Only around a third of my autumn sown ones survived the birds/pests and the ones I direct sowed a few weeks ago haven't appeared yet (I suspect the 16 inches of snow scared them away). Hope it is not too late. I was thinking of sowing mine in pots in the greenhouse then transplanting them...

when is a good time sowing peas?

Hello everyone.
I got a micro allotment at the tail end of the summer last year and am just about to start putting things other than daffs in the ground. Got a couple of afternoons this week to head up and sort bits out just hope the weather stays ok (NE Scotland).