Hi there,
I've got an allotment :icon_cheers: It's all a bit new to me but I'm pretty excited. I've started to think about what I want to grow and was talking to a fellow allotment holder about it. He told me that the guy who had the plot before me grew nothing but potatoes for the last few years. He said it might be an idea to give potatoes a rest this year.
I don't mind not growing potatoes, but I was wondering what would grow well in a soil that has been used specifically for one thing? Or perhaps there is something that I should avoid?
Also, thanks for this great forum,
Joel
try this link https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=124 hope this helps
Cagn, welcome to A4a and congratulations on the new plot.
When I started allotment growing, I was told that 'old Cyril' had been growing loads of potatoes and never actually dug them up properly. Guess what - there was a definite reason to get digging fast. :tongue3: Needless to say I never found any of these mythical potatoes :BangHead: but the plot got dug.
Guess it is an old ruse to get new allotmenters to dig pronto.
Having got this out of the way (and maybe your allotment predecessor d i d only grow potatoes!) then it does make sense not to grow any and not to grow any tomatoes on the plot either as they are closely related.
But anything else is fine. Greens of all descriptions - lettuce, cabbage, kale, broccoli, leeks. Peas, beans and broad beans, courgettes, cucumbers and winter squash. Roots like carrots, turnips and parsnip. Onions, garlic and shallots - there is so much that isn't a solanum (like potatoes or tomatoes). Potatoes are cheap enough to buy although your own will taste much better. Perhaps you can squeeze in a couple of tomatoes at home and a few potatoes in buckets. Having them in containers on the allotment (and not filled with allotment soil but with compost from a packet), would also get around the potential problems.
If your predecessor only grew potatoes, you don't need to worry about what his crop rotation might have been and can start your own. Ask others what varieties grow well. You will definitely need to add fertiliser either organic or chemical and doing a soil test might also help to get you started. Good luck :wave:
Welcome to A4A and hope you enjoy your plot.
When I started it seems large so I started to fill it up, but then did not have enough space for some of the later things.
Potatoes are quite hungry so I would expect to keep the plot well fertilised. Potatoes tend to keep the weeds at bay so hopefully you will have a good time. A few early potatoes in bags are nice.
Have a look at what other people are doing. I watch the best growers. As soon as one puts in his parsnips then in go mine and another is great on sprouts so as soon as he get the plants then I am on to it as well.
Sometimes it is the quietest ones who are the best.
My basic rotation is:
Potatoes>> Brassicas>> Others >> Then I start again.
It has worked well for me over the years and like all good systems it is simple to carry out.
The only slight problem I sometimes get is that my brassica patch is generally bigger in area than the other areas due to the plants needs.
But I get over this by doing a bit of catch cropping in the small areas that get out of this sequence.
This link might help you:
http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Crop%20rotation/Crop%20Rotation.htm (http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Crop%20rotation/Crop%20Rotation.htm)
BTW welcome to A 4 A
Thanks for all the replies, really appreciated.
I think crop rotation is the way forward here. Can't wait to start planting....
Once I've finished digging......
:happy7:
i dont think you have much to lose by growing a few just get your rotation in order so you can start it from now
when i took my plot on i was told the previous tennant took it over in prestine condition and then only grew two 1m square beds of strawberries the rest went to pot with couch grass and bindweed and weeds
i started digging and clearing and planting as i went i got spuds garlic and butternut squash of it last year
spuds are good as you dig out the roots when you dig your spuds up
garlic i just love it and i lost all my onions to white rot
butternut squash is good ground coverage