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Hi,I am new here (first post). I'm in the UK (Wales actually) and am thinking to get an allotment (*). Daft not to really - we have them right behind our house ... like RIGHT behind our house and accessible through our garden!Trouble is, I don't know where to start!!! :-\It's March now - can I start one up now? Or rather, is it worth starting one up now ... or maybe better to wait until some other season? I'd like to start soon-ish to ease myself in with some good weather to work in.Also, I am not blessed with green fingers so am something of a novice there too (but I guess we all start somewhere). So I'd need something fairly simple at first (also, something with a quick return and not something that won't be ready until, say, November - that would be quite de-motivating for a total newbie!).Some details on the allotments behind us...Nasty, nasty, thick clay soil that can break industrial rotivators!!! On a very exposed hill that gets a fair bit of rain down it during wet weather and a nasty wind that blows down it when it's blowy.It's a successful field though and there are some great allotments there growing fantastic stuff. Here are some photos taken recently in the snow.That's our garden fence at the top of our garden in the second one with the allotments directly behind.So what I am thinking is...Turn the top of the plot over roughly, cover with a porous membrane (to prevent the weeds and nettles, etc., polluting from below) and place raised beds (maybe a foot high) on top (some frame filled with good topsoil) and plant in that. I don't know if this would be deep enough! I know this may seem a bit nonsey to you hard core growers but I can assure you that I am unlikely to persevere if I have to spend two back breaking months making good the concrete clay that's there before I can even drop a seed in there! :-\Lots of questions - sorry!To recap...1. Is now a good time to start an allotment?2. What quick yield, easy stuff can be planted now?3. Would 1' raised beds of topsoil work?Thanks for any suggestions/advice.Steve(*) We already DO have an allotment actually - the top of our garden. The allotment people were quite happy for us to use the plot right behind our existing garden to extend it and allowed us to fence it and lay it to lawn. frankly, it was in their best interests because the plot had gone to rack and ruin and was a mess and THEY were having to keep it clear so we saved them a job.
where in sunny wales? I'm Rhondda ;D ;D ;D