At the community centre where I volunteer, I’ve been tasked with growing some vegetables over winter. There are 4 raised beds roughly a meter squared Zone 9a.

I’ve done some reading and understand that beans, garlic and onion are good places to start?

I’m just looking for any advice for the best/easiest things to grow? Or the best resources to learn from.

While I’m definitely a plant person, I’m an indoor plant person, so I’m nervous on where to start with these and the immense pressure of potential failure 😅

Thank you in advance! 🌱

I tried to find an answer for this, but all I could find were average allotment sizes. Is there a maximum size limit with these things? Thanks!

We've got one plot in the corner of the site that's heavily shaded by nearby trees. No one has really cultivated it for years and years. It occasionally floods in winter (and last month during the heavy rains).

I was thinking maybe we could build some large bins and turn it into a site-wide compost site. Does anyone have this? Any advice or experiences that might help us as a committee decide whether or not to move forward?

Hey everyone,

Looking for next year to get a better late season fruit haul. I have autumn raspberries but was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for other late season fruit people have had success with and to give a go?

I wonder if anyone came across any cheap hack to check IBC level, I heard an option is the tone when you knock the tank, also I have used a hack before that I could try here as well which is a long dowel with cork at the end and measure the top when empty and when full so I wonder if this could be done for IBC tank as well? Bigger cork of course to balance the struck weight. Any thoughts from allotment community? I just acquired an allotment a month ago and installed 2x IBC black IBC tanks to capture rainwater.

I’m really tempted to get pallet collars to make raised beds. The 1.0 x 1.2 metre ones with hinges on the corners, that fold flat. Seems so easy, 1 or 1.2m is a great width, could put them end-to-end to make a longer bed, no messing about buying timber and getting it delivered and building a raised bed yourself. Can be bought for £7-10, so cheap to replace eventually. Can be stacked for double height. I've seen them on our site and they look neat.

But I don't believe the wood they are made of is treated to prepare them for soil contact, so longevity is questionable.

Is there a brush-on wood treatment to extend their lifespan, which would also be ok in contact with soil that food crops are grown in?

Husband and I are in our mid 50s. We just got an allotment and we were hoping to be next to a wise old man or lovely elderly lady who makes jam. We met our allotment neighbours today: a young couple in their twenties (maybe early thirties), younguns anyway. The young chap was showing us some big roots he'd dig up while clearing his plot. He didn't know what it was. It was rhubarb. We told him how to split it and replant it. Gave him some advice on his inherited fruit bushes. Seems we're the wise old geezers...how on earth did that happen!?

Discovered the dried stems of the honesty plant are really beautiful. Are there other plants I could grow in my garden that are also decorative when dried?

I've been looking into getting an allotment but it seems overwhelming. Perhaps that just means im not ready for one yet but surely the process could be streamlined a bit no?

One for next year really at this point, but how on earth do you do it if so? Mine get decimated before I even see them 90% of the time. I've even started using slug pellets but they're still gone rapido

Please use this thread to discuss whatever you've been doing on your allotment lately. Feel free to share or ask any question related to it. And please mention which region and what weather you had this week if you've been planting or harvesting.

Was it just me being inexperienced or did anyone else have a bad garlic crop this last year. Mine just never really got going and we're just very small but very potent.

Planted mine in Oct/Nov.

Probably a random question but I have inherited about 15m2 of 8/9ft brambles which I’m allowed to burn once dry, any ideas how long it’s gonna take me to burn that huge amount?😂😅😅

I took on my first plot in February and have a giant Bramley apple tree in the middle of it. Firstly, this causes lots of sunlight issues on my plot, but the main issue it causes is the volume of apples that fall on the plot, most well before ripening in Autumn. I’m talking at least 150+ apples. As soon as I pick them up there’s twice as many on the ground the next time and they have battered my corn and courgettes below. It has been the bane of my time on the plot over summer.

Does anyone have any advice on managing this? I feel bad cutting the tree down as it’s been there so long but it’s ruining my experience of having the plot. I haven’t even got to use any of the apples as they rot so quickly.

I think that it is justified based on their rules, I don't think it's justified on my lack of effort.

I believe the rules are too stringent.. don't get me wrong I understand why, there are long waiting lists and people not properly using their plot are taking it away from someone who will.

But I work on average 50 hours a week. I also work away a lot. When I joined the waiting list this wasn't the case.

I don't maintain it as much as I should, and yes the grass is often overgrown, but i also have 5 raised beds and had just started a normal bed. I've grown multiple crops, I'm just not great at keeping it tidy because of my work.

I was on the waiting list for years. Unfortunately in that time my work got hectic. Whenever I manage to get to the allotment it's always the same old retired guys there. I don't want to be selfish and stop someone else getting the plot, but why should I not be allowed a destressing hobby? Why should only the retired people get to enjoy growing and nature?

I have planted loads this year. Almost nothing grew as its been a terrible summer, there was actually snow one day during summer.

Sorry, not nothing grew, weeds grew. I'm planting seeds, constantly contending with weeds, spending a small fortune on fancy soil that didn't help, gardening equipment...

I guess I'm just ranting. I'm just sad and dissapointed. It's my fault I've not been up enough. Maybe it's not the allotment association.. maybe i just need a new job lol

Rant end