Allotment Help Needed

Maccarone

Well-known member
Just got ourselves an allo, 18 month waiting list but approval came through last week.
Part of our retirement plans, size roughly 4 metres x 20 metres.
Plot already has apple tree, raspberries, gooseberries.
When do you order seeds and seed potatoes please? Looked at Dobies seeds? Any good?
Appreciate any advice.
 
I'm sure you've already looked online at books, but I have put a link in any case. I use to use something similar with my students at school.


 
Last year due to covid I ordered potato's, leak and parsnip seeds and tomato plants from Dobies of Devon. In a word Hopeless. Had to go through paypal to get my money back. Shop locally if you can.
 
Thanks, when do I order the seeds and seed potatoes? I can see when to plant but not when to order?
Don't want to miss the boat
 
Get the seeds any time. Potato's if you go for first early's April sow early May so the late frosts do not get them. Tomato's when you can get the plants, they will need to go indoors or under glass if outsides to get them established.
 
Put my order in for this years crops to a company called Mr Fothergill's - after reviewing their extensive catalogue - 'Ive already received berry plants for this year and a variety of seed packs are due imminently
Waiting for the worst of the frost to pass and also for the ground to dry out a little before planting as recommended

Tip for when you plant potatoes - don't plant them all at once otherwise you'll end up with a huge crop of spuds that you can't possibly use ! Plant in smaller batches over aperiod of time and then they harvest as and when you need them
 
Hi I've had allotments. For many years don't order your seed pits on line you will pay though the nose for them get them from your local garden centre I get mine at the e d of January then chit them in a frost free place other types seed can be bought anytime from now
 
This year we are going to plant our potatoes in large plastic planters. We normally only sow salad potato's. If you have rabbits or squirrels watch what you grow. We lost all of our Sweetcorn to squirrels last year. After we lost the crop I reduced the squirrel population with my trusty air rifle.
 
Thanks, when do I order the seeds and seed potatoes? I can see when to plant but not when to order?
Don't want to miss the boat

Thanks, when do I order the seeds and seed potatoes? I can see when to plant but not when to order?
Don't want to miss the boat
You can always get packets of seeds and on the back it will tell you when to plant and harvest.

Tomato plants are really easy to grow, unless you forget and need to scrounge some - thanks Guisborough_Rob.

Peas are also easy to grow and can make a good show in your garden - mine never get out of the garden, we all tend to pick and eat them.

I plant my potato's in plastic bags in the garden, dead easy to do and always fun when you dive into the bag. I never planted nay last year but the bag I transferred the soil in started to sprout shoots. I covered these over and when it came to harvest I had a lovely crop.

We use to have hedgehogs in our garden but hadn't seen them for a while. We started using ground egg shells instead of slug pellets and they have returned. Although I don't see them often, it is great to know they are there.
 
Hi I've had allotments. For many years don't order your seed pits on line you will pay though the nose for them get them from your local garden centre I get mine at the e d of January then chit them in a frost free place other types seed can be bought anytime from now

Good advice

Also some things are worth growing from seed, others from young plants you can buy

Tomatoes are easy from seed, just use the seeds you get from a tomato in the supermarket, very easy I have done this many times
 
I generally order my seeds from Premier Seeds on eBay, cheap and they refund postage from all but one of you order multiple items (only 50p postage I think), never had a problem with them.

This is my first year with a raised bed, I’ve always grown in pots / grow bags until now, so I’m planning my space. It will probably be Uchiki Kuri squash along one side, and then Sweetcorn, broad Beans and courgettes. Tomatoes and Chillies in the greenhouse.

Ive actually just got last years chillies (red + Choc Habaneros, Lemon Drop and Thai chillies) out of the freezer and made a proper mash which is fermenting and will be used for some hot sauces this year

Potatoes I always grow in large pots, I love digging through to see what treasure is below. Mainly salad potatoes.

Good luck, there’s nothing better than walking round the patch on a summers evening as the temp is dropping surveying what you’ve got growing. It’s even better with a cold beer in hand!
 
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Good advice

Also some things are worth growing from seed, others from young plants you can buy

Tomatoes are easy from seed, just use the seeds you get from a tomato in the supermarket, very easy I have done this many times
Hi Red. I had mixed results with several varieties of tomatoes I tried to grow last year. I think they were a couple years old, would that make a difference?

If I use the seeds from bought tomatoes do I need to dry them out, any other prep?

Planted your pumpkins yet? 🤣
 
Superb advice, if I'm buying seed potatoes and chitting them, can I buy the seed potatoes now, store them indoors and then plant in,what April time frame?
 
Hi Red. I had mixed results with several varieties of tomatoes I tried to grow last year. I think they were a couple years old, would that make a difference?

If I use the seeds from bought tomatoes do I need to dry them out, any other prep?

Planted your pumpkins yet? 🤣
Old seeds can be hit and miss, I tend to sow double what I need if they are out of date and pick the best seedlings. Also make sure you have the right growing conditions for the type you’re trying to grow.

Last year I got very mixed results. I think It was down to where they were, how much sun they got and whether the variety could handle the slightly below optimal sun I offered. I’m

I find cherry tomatoes grow best for me in my greenhouse, sweet million did well for me last year. I tried to grow some San Mazarno for cooking with, but they were a disaster, I think I got one tomato. I got a couple of beef masters but they weren’t great.

Saying that the year before I grew Marmande and they were fine if a little slow to ripen so may be talking codswallop.

Edit- if there’s one thing that can get rid of the January blues, it’s looking through your seed box and planning what you’re going to grow and when. My Chillies are already in the Germinator, been there a week or so, and starting to sprout. only two varieties (Red Hab / Thai Chilli) as hoping to commercially sell some hot sauce this year, so thought I should focus.
 
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IMHO it far to early to buy your seed potatoes now, they take less than 3 weeks to chit if you keep them on a sunny window sill. If you sow them before early May they will mostly likely get nipped by frost. We get frosts well into the second week of May. If the plants have sprouted above the soil level they will be nipped. The weather is amazing when you are a gardener. Today we still have 2 inches of frozen snow over our raised beds. Two weeks ago the leeks were frozen into the ground they would not pull out of the soil
 
Don't forget to check the soil for nutrients, you can get a kit from a garden centre if you need to. Its always good to use a rotation system, so you don't plant the same plants in the same soil year after year, there's good tips on line.
Can't stress enough that fertiliser etc is important, veggies and fruit get very hungry, especially over the growing time, so you'll need a good regime. Seaweed is great for strengthening the cell wall in plants, making them more disease and pest resistant, and there are now some excellent organic sprays that you can use, even better if you can companion plant and encourage natural hunters to eat the pests. Ladybirds are great at reducing the aphid population.
My dad also used to put a bit of seaweed down under his seed potatoes when he planted, a tip he got from Jersey.
Have fun.
 
Hi Red. I had mixed results with several varieties of tomatoes I tried to grow last year. I think they were a couple years old, would that make a difference?

If I use the seeds from bought tomatoes do I need to dry them out, any other prep?

Planted your pumpkins yet? 🤣

I dry mine just on a plate, don't use paper or it just gets stuck to the seed. Plant as many as you like and keep the strong ones. In the end you will only need 3 - 4 plants anyway.

Pumpkin goes in early April. Aiming for 1600lb this year but I don't want to tempt fate all kinds of things can go wrong!!!
 
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