Allotment tips for a beginner

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I apologise in advance if there is already a beginner thread for allotment holders, I did look but couldn't find anything.

I've got myself a lovely plot at our local allotment I have no experience (but plenty of enthusiasm) and the initial excitement is beginning to make way for nerves to kick in.

In the next few weeks the plot will be cleared and then I'll need to start making headway with it.

I was thinking about getting a small shed to store thing in. Should I also get some sort of potting shed for growing seeds etc?

I'm hoping to grow mainly peppers, cucumbers, onions, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, peas, parsnips and berries. I'd also like to have a patch of bee loving flowers.

Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated, particularly the best way to deal with slugs and snails!

Oh I am so jealous, congratulations! I no longer have my lovely allotment .

Best think we did was cover some with weed suppressant and tackle bit really well bit by bit, rather than getting overwhelmed.

Also grow some big crops - we did sweetcorn -that will fill lots of space.

And don't let anyone talk you into doing things you don't want to do - we had to really put our foot down cos we wanted to do organic.

Look into Nemaslug to help deal with slugs and snails.

Fruit trees, or rasperry canes are another good way to take up space, but your allotment society may stipulate a maximum size so check your root stock. Cheapest bare rooted, so a good winter job!

It's late in the season for getting something started for this year, but if you like broad beans and garlic, these can be planted in the autumn and harvested next year. Bee patch is a wonderful idea. Comfrey is a bit of a thug, but bees love it and you can make comfrey feed.

Shed is a great idea but we do all our seedlings at home.

Congrats. I remember getting our allotment and it was an excellent way of getting fresh air, exercise and veg and chatting with other plot holders was great! Sadly we had to give ours up when our kids were young but we grow a bit in the garden these days.

Anyway, as PPs have said, not much left to start this year except prepping for next year. Work out what you want to grow and what it might like in terms of nutrients added to soil now. Work out what the soil type is or ask other plot holders - I found they were rarely short of advice! Be selective about the advice you take from other plot holders - some is great, some not so much!
For slugs and snails we used to use coffee grounds (ok but not great), sharp grit (again, ok), grapefruit shells (slugs hide in them during the day and you can 'dispose' of them) and cloches. Most plants survive the odd attack once they're a bit bigger but unless you want to remove all bugs and beasties, you have to accept some loss of plants or produce.

A shed is very useful - tool storage, somewhere to wait out the rain or just something to sit in with a cuppa. Our plot was in a bit of a rough area and our shed was broken into twice so we were careful not to leave the nice tools in there...they lived in the mobile shed, also known as my car! Seeds best started where they will get daily care and good light so a shed may not be ideal.

One note: be realistic about how much time you can give your plot and plant accordingly. Good luck!

Oh OP, that’s brought some memories back for me too. I only had my allotment for 3 years but it was the best thing. I absolutely loved my time on there despite my initial near absolute lack of gardening know- how.
It’ hard to tell which method is best for slugs. I tried beer traps – they work to a point but really only useful if you go there a few times a week to top up/change the beer. Other than that it’s probably going to have to be copper collars, slug pellets or netting. My cabbages for example sadly got gobbled up by slugs but my neighbour managed to grow his successfully under netting.

If it’s of any use.. on my plot I used to grow swiss chard, green beans, broad beans, courgettes, Jerusalem artichokes, potatoes, sweetcorn, lettuce (slugs), fennel, pak choi, beetroot, spinach (the last two with not much success though). I think that my most favourite were the broad beans and the swiss chard – an absolute star and always plenty of produce every week. Also something the slugs would not try to eat - which was a bonus!
I personally wouldn’t bother with carrots or parsnips for how little they cost to buy. Also, not sure but I think that peppers and tomatoes need a lot of warmth and a lot of sunshine. I don’t know where you are but I consider them to be mostly greenhouse projects in the UK climate.

It’d be great to have somewhere to store your tools, watering can etc.
Just not sure how good a potting shed will be for helping to propagate plants.

Other than that - you’ll be surprised how much knowledge you’ll pick up naturally and just from chatting to others. I can tell that you have the enthusiasm and with time I think that you’ll find that it’s easier than you think.
Have fun!

Can you afford a greenhouse? Excellent if you want to grow tomatoes, peppers etc. We start all our seeds in the greenhouse (in the garden) but you do have to be able to check and water every day. Greenhouse tomatoes can need daily watering during hot weather.

I would start off with some easy veg to give confidence. Things that are pretty reliable in our garden are courgettes, beetroot, lettuce, runner and french beans, spring onions. Raspberries are a pretty easy fruit to grow too. We grew broccoli for the first time this year but it takes up so much space!

An obvious piece of advice, grow things you actually love to eat 😄. Hope you enjoy it. My dad has had an allotment for many years, has made great friends there and it's become such an important part of his life. 🌱 🌷 🌶 🌽

I personally wouldn’t bother with carrots or parsnips for how little they cost to buy. Parsnips I agree, but home grown or organic carrots taste so much better that standard supermarket ones.

I find fruit easier than veg - veg you have to do the right thing at the right time - sow, prick out, plant out, water, weed, harvest - whereas fruit needs to be harvested, and then pruned once a year, which can be done any time from September to March. Tayberries/loganberries are even easier than raspberries, and not virus-prone.

It's true that homegrown carrots do taste nicer.
To be honest my allotment plot was quite small and so I had to really think about what I wanted to grow. When I was writing my post I was kind of remembering that.
But obviously OP don't let me discourage you from growing anything you want :). First young carrots of the season especially are a lovely thing!