Page 14 - Simply Vegetables Autumn 2023

A new allotment for an
enthusiastic beginner
ANDY WHITE
In November 2022 I was given tenancy of a 120 m2 plot on a small allotment
in south-east Hampshire. After a celebratory lap around the house at finally reaching the top of the three-year long waiting list, the first thing was to measure the plot so that I could make
a plan before I put spade to soil. I also looked at Google maps satellite view to see the orientation and how much of the plot was in shadow from a large nearby oak tree. The plot is aligned north/south, and my plan has north at the top, the sun rising on the right-hand side and setting on the left.
I drafted a plan of the plot with narrow paths between 1m x 3m beds, oriented north/south. I had read that this was the ideal size of bed for reach and scope for multiple crops.
The plot suited larger beds at each end and central main beds which were numbered in 1m x 1m sections to allow small crops and multiple crops during a season.
The plot had been vacant for more than a year and was very overgrown with every type of weed. There were several existing plants, so I had to make a decision as to
what was worth keeping and what needed to go. My new allotment neighbours told me the well-established rhubarb gave a good crop so that was on the keep list. The blackberries and a mystery currant bush were very old and straggly so these would have to survive a severe prune
or be removed. My wife and I discussed the crops we wanted to grow, not only vegetables and fruit but also flowers to cut for the home.
Given the time of year, my first job
was to order bare root raspberries and gooseberries as these would take a couple of weeks to arrive and needed to be planted before Christmas.
In December I established the plot boundary and marked out the beds, I then started the mammoth task of digging. Finally, by the end of March I finished clearing the scrub and digging the beds, resulting in several trips to the council tip to get rid of the 60+ bags of bindweed, dandelions, bramble and various perennial weeds. I wouldn’t put these weeds on my compost heap as they don’t rot down or go away - this is a reason to be careful when buying peat free compost as many brands incorporate council green waste which I know contains the weeds no one wants.
Milk Bottles
a small unheated greenhouse, so I started sowing seeds early in the year. My thinking is that if they don’t germinate or survive the cold then I’ve only lost a few seeds out of the packet and can start again. Tomatoes and leeks were sown in early January and germinated in the house; they were moved to the porch mid-February and then lived in the unheated greenhouse until they were planted out at the beginning of April. These were followed by chillies, sweet peppers, peas and beans in February as there was now space in the house, they followed into the porch then greenhouse before planting out early-April. I had a bit of a production line based on how much space I had on each windowsill, porch and greenhouse shelf. Sweetcorn, beetroot, spinach and celeriac were sown early- March and planted out mid-April.
I’ve only got so much space for seed trays so bought courgette and butternut squash plugs at the end of March which I planted out at the end of April, in between are sweet peppers as these should be
tall enough to be above the spread of the
Spring started looming and I’m impatient. We live in Emsworth which is based within a large harbour area, we have the sea less than a quarter of a mile
away but are still four
miles inland from the
open sea of the Solent.
We’re also close to the
hills of the South Downs
to the north so have a
microclimate that means
we’re quite protected
from the cold and harsh
frost. Knowing this and
reading Kelvin’s column
on ‘Sowing and Planting
times for the UK’ in the spring 2023 vol 29-part 2 issue gave me the confidence
to plant everything as early as I can so
that we benefit when produce is more expensive and also extend the harvesting period and maybe get two plantings in one year. Treating this as an experiment, I made a list of the vegetables I was planting, and decided to note when seeds were sown and planted out so that next year I can change if things don’t work out.
I grew as much from seed as I could. I have a porch on the back of the house and
courgette - time will tell if this is correct.
I ‘planted’ plastic milk bottles next to each courgette and squash plant to create a reservoir to slowly soak the soil around the roots which should help when it finally gets warm and dry. Each bottle has the cap on and a hole cut in the bottom and a slit cut in the neck pointing towards the plant
to direct the water into the soil.
I have recorded the crop in each bed
together with the date sown and planted out, from this year’s lessons I have made an initial plan for next year, adjusting timing and noting the protection I will give the young plants. I will adjust the quantities at the end of this year when I have a better idea of the total yield and our consumption of each crop so by recording what I plant, how many and when, I should have a more productive plot next year.
In autumn I will start to create raised
most exhibitor growers will be quite aware to get 12 tomatoes ready for the show is no easy task
14 Simply Vegetables