Allotments

Well all you allotment owners and users help and advice for a newbie, please?

DM you have tempted me.

I have made enquiries about an allotments, there are some at the top of my estate and the council have revamped them in the hope of encouraging people to use them so I have enquired. Just got to wait for a response.
May go for flowers on mine I love cut flowers and the price is scary.

Whats a good veg to start with?

I seems that men grow veg and women (who are taking over Alloments) grow more flowers.



Best veg to start off fallow ground is patatoes, breaks up heavy ground

Oh Kazz - that's it, you now have another addiction!
But this one is much healthier than DW

What sort of state is the land in now? Is it overgrown or have they cleared it for you ready for planting?

It's a little late in the season but it's never 'too late'. As Galty said, potatoes break up the ground well and will fill up space nicely. Hope you'll be able to find some late seed potatoes. The courgette, marrow, squash, ridge cucumber spread well and will keep down the weeds. They are also incredibly easy to grow.

It's bean planting time, so put in some runners (either a line of sticks or a wig-wam) and a couple of rows of french beans - they grow well and quickly. There's still time to put in some peas too.

Spinach and/or leaf beet, all the cabbage family and lettuce.

Sow fennel after the longest day and they will give you nice crunchy salads right up to first hard frost.

Start off a herb corner - you can add to that over time.

Think about whwre you will put your permanents like raspberries and similar, goosegogs, other soft fruit. Plant them in the autumn. Tap up people already there for strawberry runners for your fruiting plants next year.

Take a bucket when you take the dogs out and you can bring back some of that cow-muck they roll in to start your manure heap

The bbc site has a good gardening section, with 'tips for the week' etc. It's very useful.

If you've got a whole standard size allotment (30 yards x 10 yards) that's lots of work. You might think about concentrating on half and covering the other with old carpet/weed supressant fabric etc till later.

Enjoy! I will enjoy hearing how it's going.

oh i love allotments when i was young i used to go with my grandad on a sunday it was great i would love to have one now but oh says i have a big garden to grow things in but its not the same

No, it's not the same. We like our personal gardens to be 'pretty' places to relax - not arable land!

my point exactly dinah but i will just have to dream or by a big house so i can have my own plot for veggies

or get an allotment, or a share of an allotment?

maybe its just a dream i have tending my veg sitting by my shed on a summers evening but it sounds a nice dream

Well DM I met the man who seems to be in charge of the allotments this Sat and I have to say having a look through the "fence" it don't look good. But I may be being pessemistic because people are def growing things there and as they are pushing the allotments I figure I may be able to swing a deal where they will dig it over well I can only hope.

There were a few old blokes there so may pop up there on Thursday daytime and talk to them and see whats what.

I will let you know how it goes. But thats for the info and advice I am sure I'll be back for more.

when you get your allotment kazz you will need to put up pics so we can see before and after shots