Topic: New Allotment

[Easywriter]

Hi everyone

I'm new to this site, pretty new to gardening. I'll be (allegedly) getting an allotment in the 2nd half of April. The site, a marked-off area in a farmers field, has been rotovated, waiting to be fenced.

Assuming an April start, what are the FIRST THINGS I should do? If it's been rotovated, do I need to dig it again? Mark out the site and make a note of what I'm going to plant where? What should I be doing NOW (get some seed potatoes going under cover?). What about manure, compost, fertiliser - use these now or wait until autumn to get soil ready for next year?

I've been reading lots of books, but they all say slightly different things about the same topic. I really need a step-by-step Getting Started Guide. Help!

[saddad]

Well first of all congratulations... on getting an Allotment. As you say once marked out I'd be deciding where to put my paths, compost bins, shed if allowed... getting some seeds sown so I have plants to plant out and so on...
 :)

[Robert_Brenchley]

Get your seed potatoes now before they disappear. You may well find the plot is full of bits of weed the rotovator's chopped up for you, and they'll all grow. There are various ways to deal with this, but spuds are pretty good at swamping the weeds, and you get what's left out when you lift them. So don't worry about the potato bed.

[Le-y]

welcome to A4A and to allotmenting

well i'm a novice this is my first year (we got our plot in july last year but spent that time clearing it)  but i'd be getting stuff ready now for when you get the plot, potatoes chitting, seeds started.

i've got manure even though its not being used till autumn because the stuff i managed to get hold of wasnt well rotted, some was rotted some fresh so its in a pile getting ready.

i made my compost/manure structure and set up my water saving system had a general clear up etc.

if its already rotavated  i wouldn't bother digging but keep your eye out for any weeds/roots and get them out if you do see them.

my seeds and potatoes are on the window sills and on our old changing station near the back door.

but saying that, i didnt have to do those now (except for the tatties) because everything i've sown now could wait till april/may and go straight in the ground then.

[Tee Gee]

This link might answer a few of your questions;

http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Allotments/Introduction.htm

[lincsyokel2]

Hi everyone

I'm new to this site, pretty new to gardening. I'll be (allegedly) getting an allotment in the 2nd half of April. The site, a marked-off area in a farmers field, has been rotovated, waiting to be fenced.

Assuming an April start, what are the FIRST THINGS I should do? If it's been rotovated, do I need to dig it again? Mark out the site and make a note of what I'm going to plant where? What should I be doing NOW (get some seed potatoes going under cover?). What about manure, compost, fertiliser - use these now or wait until autumn to get soil ready for next year?

I've been reading lots of books, but they all say slightly different things about the same topic. I really need a step-by-step Getting Started Guide. Help!

The point about this is that there isnt a definitive a-z.

It your allotment. YOU need to decide what you are going to grow and where, and when. You need a plan on what you want out of it.

You can start by marking it into  4 or 5 equal sized  beds. That forms the basis of your crop rotation system. Then you need to work out what goes in each bed, and therefore how many plants or seeds you need. Knowing that, you then need to plan out what beds need fertiliser, or manure, or lime or nothing, and when.

Heres an example;

I have 20 foot x 20 fot bed thats going to grow brassicas this year.

Im going to grow Turnips, Broccoli, Kale, Cabbage, Caulis and Calabrese.

Turnips need final planting 6 ins apart in rows 6 ins apart (6 x 6). So i get  40 plants per row, and three rows  needs 120 plants and uses 18 ins of bed.

Broccoli need  to be planted 30" x 30" in theory, but i know i can get away with 20 x 20. so thst 12 plants per row x 2 rows  = 40 ins of bed and 24 plants

Kale 18 x 18 x 2 rows = 24 plants and 36" of bed

Cabbages Rodeo 18 x 18 but ill cheat and do 15 x 15, so 16 plants per row x 3 rows = 48 plants  and 60 inches of bed

Calabrese 18 x 18 x 2 rows   = 24 plants and 18 inches of bed.


That all takes up my 20 foot of bed . All i do then is work out when to plant (the kale and calabrese wil be for winter so wont want planting till later on int he year) and the cabbages and caulis ill stagger over the next 10 weeks.

This is the plan ill use every year, so once its done, its done.  It will also include what to do to prepare for the next rotation.

I planned every bed like this, so i have an at-a-glance no-thinking-required guide :D

[macmac]

Welcome Easywriter and many congratulations on getting a plot they resemble hens teeth on our site  ;D
You'll get splendid advice on this forum from better gardeners than me so I'LL leave it to them.
Just two pieces of advice
1,never be afraid to ask ANYTHING we all started out knowing nothing,and ask again if you don't understand the first answer.
2,Remember "You can't eat an elephant in one sitting !"don't try do do everything at once-small bites.
Good luck  :)

[reddyreddy]

get some pots chitting NOW in a light frost free place (mine go on top of the kitchen cabinets)

Decide what you want to grow in your first year and get some seeds going inside now, either a greenhouse or warm windowsill. I already have purple sprouting brocoli, cauliflowers, sprouts and peas in pots in my greenhouse so I can plant them straight out.

when you get the plot mark out your beds, I would suggest you make them long narrow beds so you can weed from either side at a comfortable stretch.

If April comes and you feel behind on the seed front buy some small veg plants, it's your first year so cut yourself some slack! Do a google search for vegetable plants and you'll get loads, some will have a mix selection perfect for a new allotment.

Personally, I would cover with a thick layer of manure any beds you don't think you will realistically get planted this year.

Next year worry about crop rotation, liming, manure, etc.

Only plants things you like to eat!!

Enjoy!!

[Easywriter]

Thanks EVERYONE for your advice. Looks like my own thoughts weren't far short of the mark, I just need to get some EXPERIENCE, see what works for ME on my site.

I still don't know key facts like WHEN the site is to open and the SIZE of each plot (although I'm guessing it'll be back end of April, and I've been told by the 'allotment coordinator' on the Parish Council here that each plot will be smaller than the 'traditional' allotment size, and that some people have already expressed a preference for sharing a plot). Site is about 3 minutes walk from my front door, so I don't think I'll be bothering about a shed. Water available from a natural spring about 50 yards from site.

Thanks again, everyone, I know I'll be back with more questions later and throughout the coming 12 months.

 ;) Easywriter

[antipodes]

There are lots of thing you can start sowing in pots now, in your house, like aubergines and peppers (better hurry for those even), tomatoes, cabbages, herbs etc. In your first year if you haven't had time to sort it out, grow a whole load of French beans, courgettes and pumpkins. These tend to outgrow weeds, give you a crop and cover lots of ground with  minimal work. Then you will have the whole of next autumn and winter to plan things more carefully. Courgettes and tomatoes can be grown thru weed suppressant, so you just fertilize the soil a bit and shove them in.
Mulch and cover a lot to minimize unnecessary work.
And the others are quite right, there is no right way. on my lot, some people are retired and are down there every day all day so have plots that are flattened with a spirit level, not a blade of grass, rows with razor edge precision. I have a couple of hours a week, so mine is higgledy piggledy, covered in vast bits of heavy cardboard and mulch to stop weeds and has a lot of extra grass and weeds. But i still manage to grow the veg regardless.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I should grow climbing French beans rather than dwarf, as they'll soon get out of range of the weeds.

[Unwashed]

Tatties.  Lots of tatties.  Just stick 'em thraight in, ignore all the weeds.  Tatties are strong growers and with just a bit of help they'll out-compete everything and won't need any watering.

Sweetcorn's also quite a strong grower, as are the squash tribe.

Leeks and onions are lovely, and easy, but you might lose them to weeds in the first year.  Hey ho, have to start somewhere.

Best of luck.

[Mortality]

Congrats on your new allotment, have fun ;)

[cornykev]

I would mark out a 1/4 of the plot and just give it the once over pulling out the big weeds and get some spuds in.
Then the harder work begins, start digging a bit at a time, pulling out all the weeds and sow some spring onions,parsnips, carrots and beetroot straight into the ground as you go along and so on.        ;D ;D ;D

[lincsyokel2]

I would mark out a 1/4 of the plot and just give it the once over pulling out the big weeds and get some spuds in.
Then the harder work begins, start digging a bit at a time, pulling out all the weeds and sow some spring onions,parsnips, carrots and beetroot straight into the ground as you go along and so on.        ;D ;D ;D

It helps if you keep the undug portion smothered with carpets or black plastic, that helps weaken the weeds, if you dont get it all dug, keep it smothered, in 6 months you'll have bare earth under there anyway.

[powerspade]

When I took on my plot the first thing I did was to build my compost bin as compost is the power house of any plot after that I listed the stuff I like to eat and get in seeds and plan the site out on paper