Topic: New to gardening - advice needed

[jo9919]

Hi,

I'm new to gardening of any sort. I only have a tiny garden with one raised flowerbed, which I created last year and have done remarkably well with, for a novice.

At the end of last summer I purchased a 4 X 6 greenhouse, which I am going to use for tomatos and peppers. I grew some tomatos last year and they did very well on my patio.

This year I would love to get more involved with growing edible plants but don't have any spare earth, so this would need to be done in containers or alternatively I am considering purchasing a link-a-bord raised bed kit, which would be able to stand on my patio and would give me 2 squared metres of growing space.

I would like your opinions on this and also on what would be good first things to try. Also, I would appreciate information on where the best place would be to look for full instructions on the things I intend to grow. Would you recommend a particular book or website?

Thanks,
Jo.

[supersprout]

Hello jo, welcome to the forum :)
You'll get plenty of good advice, lots of people here grow their veg in containers. It sounds like you're set for a good growing season.
Recommendations?
Joy Larkcom, Grow your own Vegetables - tackles all the basics, friendly, lots of helpful planning, cultivation and propagation tips, and veg by veg guide :)
If you're anywhere near Oakham, contact Barnsdale Gardens and go on their Vegetables in Containers course - or as many as you like the look of - their courses aren't expensive, and you learn so much!

[jo9919]

Thanks for your reply, Supersprout. I will look out for that book, it sounds just what I need.
Unfortunately, I'm nowhere near Oakham, I'm in Leeds in Yorkshire.

Jo.

[kt.]

Just because you dont have any more soil - dont let that stop you. You can grow plenty veg direct from a growbag plonked on the ground. You can also buy trays that for growbags to sit in. So you wont even end up with any other mess.

[cornykev]

Hi Jo and a big welcome to the site, plenty of fruit and veg grown in containers, potatoes,carrots,leeks,tomatoes,all herbs and strawberry's. If you go on Amazon.co.UK you will find plenty of gardening books, good luck.

[kitten]

Hi jo & welcome!  I'm a newbie to gardening too and we've just taken on an allotment  :o so need all the help we can get!  This site has taught us loads, everyone's v friendly so don't be afraid to ask for answers or advice.  Do take some pictures and post them for us to have a nosey at, would love to see your progress!  Good luck with your veggie growing! x

[okra]

I agree with Kitten, I'm also new to this site and people are so helpful.

[saddad]

Hi Jo, which part of Leeds? I've lived in Hunslet, Armley, Headingley... Hyde Park and now have friends in Pudsey...
 8)

[jo9919]

Thanks everyone for your welcome.

I've been looking around the web and have found some great information about growing veggies in containers on the RHS site. Also, i've looked at the Dobies website and they have loads of seeds especially suited to container gardening.

I live in Garforth in Leeds, though I was born eerrrrrr 38 years ago in Upper Wortley. We moved to this side of Leeds when I was 2.

Everyone on the site seems so friendly, just as well as I'm sure once I get started I'm going to have LOADS of questions for you all.

Just as a matter of interest, has anyone built or bought raised beds to put on their patio or do you all just use buckets and growbags if you don't have an allotment or have lack of space?

I've also been reading some gardening blogs and they are great, I'm sooooo nosey!!

Looking forward to lots more advice, and if anyone has any tips or anything to point me in the right direction before i start this and make mistakes I'd be eternally grateful.

Jo.

[macleaf]

A little piece of advice,if you want to grow for instance tomatos in a grow bag cut the bag in half stand them on end and then you can insert canes for the plants to grow up,sorry this may sound like im telling you how to suck eggs ,but you never know

[manicscousers]

good idea, macleaf, will pass it on to grow bag users on our plots  :)

[Mouseski]

Hello Jo!

We're in Garforth too! We got our allotment last year and have found avidly reading A4A invaluable ;D! Swillington nursery on the hill have reliable good seeds and 'stuff', they are very friendly and always give good sound advice to the novice! We grew a great deal of salad veg - lettuce, rocket, salad onions hanging basket toms on our patio v successfully, all in wall troughs or hanging baskets.
We have used Susan Berger book Allotment Gardening and found its calendar particulalrly helpful.

All the very best of luck

Mouse

[emmy1978]

Hi Jo, I'm a newbie to allotmenteering, but when I had a little garden I grew lots of edible things in pots, all the things already listed plus sweetcorn! Some great books for beginners out there- I found Alan Titchs How to be Gardener books really helpful to understand growing from 'roots' as it were!!
As for making mistakes, gardening is all about that and as long as you learn year on year, they don't matter- the things that work make up for them!! It depends on what's right for you and your garden.
Best of luck, Emmy  :)

[cornykev]

As Mouseski says the Susan Berger's Allotment Gardening For beginners is very a useful read. ;D ;D ;D ;D

[jo9919]

Thank you for all your advice.

I will certainly look out for that book.

Thank you for that tip, Macleaf. I am going to grow tomatos in my new greenhouse (which 3 panes have blown out of today!!!) so I will bare that in mind.

It's good to know that there's someone not too far away, Mouseski. Where abouts in Garforth do you live? I live just off Fairburn Drive. I know all about Swillington Nursery, my hubby bought lots of my Christmas pressies from there!!!! Where do you have your allotment? My hubby's uncle has an allotment at the back of Church Lane and his brother has one in Colton. Hubby's uncle grows most things on his.

Don't forget everyone, I need lots more tips!!!

Jo.

[jo9919]

Hi Emmy,

Thanks for your tips. I'm pleased to hear that you grew sweetcorn in pots as this is one thing that I would LOVE to grow. I absolutely LOVE sweetcorn. Can you give me any tips?

I should explain that one of the main reasons for me wanting to start growing my own veg and salad is that I'm the only one in my family who will eat it!!!  Even hubby won't eat veg and very little salad. I have a son of nearly 12 and daughter of 8 and try as I might they just won't touch veg or salad. Well.....daughter will eat parsnips by the bucket full and a few carrots and very few peas, son will eat a little cabbage and a few carrots but hubby won't touch anything!!!  I LOVE my veg and salad and could eat plate on plate of veg so I really can't understand why they don't like it.  Anyway, last year I started growing bedding plants and the kids were so enthusiastic about it that I thought that if I start growing veg and salad it might encourage them to eat it.......they might even pass the enthusiasm onto my hubby!!!!

Thanks everyone for listening to my ramblings,

Jo.

[gary]

Hi Jo,

My garden is mostly hard landscape due to my dog and GF liking to sunbathe that's why I have gone for a plot this year.

I may be wrong (please someone correct me if I am) you might want to look at Morrison flower buckets. I plan to grow tomatoes in these this year, am sure there must be other things you could plant in these.

Last year i had lettuces next to lobelia and even in pot on top of the daffs when the died back.Strawbeery planter was 3 gravel boards in a horse shoe shape with end caps filled with compost just laid on my gravel. As is my tomato planter, that is 3 boards along the bottom and 1 high enough room for six toms marigolds down the middle and more lettuce at the front.

Gary

[Amazin]

Yup! Good ol' Morrisons' black buckets (the ones they use to display their cut flowers) are ideal, and at only 99p for 8, you can't go wrong.  I use them in my garden for my salad/ summer/ tender fruit & veg.

Last year I grew cucumbers, courgettes, gherkins, chillies, aubergines, peppers, cape gooseberries, squash and... MELONS!!!

At present I'm using them as temporary planters for young fruit bushes I bought recently, and I'm overwintering my edible passionfruit - which are going great guns - before planting them direct in spring.

As for books, if you go on to Amazon (via the A4A link of course!) you'll find several good books on container gardening.

You'll be amazed at how much you can grow in a small space. Good luck!

[manicscousers]

we got some buckets from Morrison's last week, 8 for 99p, we got  13 in our stack, and, they don't split when drilled for drainage !!   ;D ;D ;D

also, jo, what about home made tomato sauce for topping pizzas and pasta, will your hubby eat them ?
it's amazing what you can hide in there, onion, garlic, peppers, chilli  ;D

[sally_cinnamon]

Hi Jo,
I grew all my stuff in pots last year as I have no lottie and no available ground to plant things in (well, managed to sneak some strawberries in one corner!).  I grew all sorts, like - carrots, tomatoes, sweet peppers, chillis, spring onions, herbs, aubergines... I imagine most things will grow in pots with varying degrees of success I guess!  I think peas and beans need more root space?

I also use the black buckets from Morrisons and managed to get 12 or so in a pack a couple of times!  You could always bat your eyelashes at a male staff member to wangle a good deal with them! (not that I am encouraging manipulation and exploitation of men using feminine charms, of course!) ::)

As for books, I have Andi Clevelys "The Allotment Book" which I have found really good, and also Sarah Ravens "The Great Vegetable Plot", also good.  Just got Alan T's "The Gardeners Year" so will stick my thoughts on the Wiki when I've read it!

Check the book section on the Wiki http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/joomla/component/option,com_mambowiki/Itemid,61/

 ;D