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I have covered over an area at the bottom of the garden with an old tarpaulin in preparation for a new veggie patch I am planning.

So far I have grown courgettes in grobags, some pumpkins on a bare patch of flower bed and I have tomatoes and herbs in pots. But I need to expand!!

So, where do I start? Obviously I need to dig it over at some point, but should I put manure on it? Or if I do that does it restrict what I can put in for a while? Is there anything worth planting at this time of the year, or should I wait until the Autumn to do the planting?

As you can tell, I am pretty much a beginner, but I have a bit of background knowledge as for years I have been surrounded by people growing stuff which I often cooked and preserved.

I have vague ideas of what I would like to grow, but I'm not sure when to put them in. The patch is about 10 x 8 feet, so not huge. I am not going to bother with potatoes and onions, as I think they take up a lot of space. So far I have been thinking:

Chard
Beetroot
Carrots
Salad stuff, although I realise that will be next spring
Courgettes, ditto
Parsnips
Runner beans (again, next spring? And I guess I will have to build a wigwam)
Purple sprouting broccoli

I think that if I plan things I should be able to sow something else the minute a crop has been harvested maybe, and make the most of my limited space. I can also dot things around in between the flowers. Digging a bigger one is not an option as this is rented accommodation and they might object!!

Your thoughts, ideas and advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks
Jane

Hi Chickenlady, do you actually have chickens if so why not fence of the area and let the chickens dig it over and manure it for you, then pot some fresh topsoil or compost on top and plant in, chard is always a good grower for me as is beetroot (which makes great brownies, ice cream and is lovely roasted)

You could still do your potato crop if you creat a potato stack from unwanted tires or if you could fins some some large and tall wooden boxes.

you could also plant faster growing crops amongst your slower ones Ie radishes in with carrots, lettuces amongst amother crops to make maximum use of yoyur available space and in spring you could grow cherry viine tomatoes from hanging baskets as with strawberries, even pumpkins and courgettes can be trained up a pergola or trellis.

Hope this helps
cheers Richard

Hi, unfortunately you are a little late for sowing things this year, although there is still time to plant some winter brassicas, cabbages, cauliflowers, purple sprouting broccoli, etc if you can get hold of some plants. Otherwise you can plant a little later - garlic, japanese onions sets, broad beans and peas (overwintering type).
Homegrown gave some very good advice regarding the chickens, don't worry about digging the ground over, it is better to fork it over (removing any couch or bindweed roots as best you can) and mulching with any good organic material. If you can get manure, keep it in bags until it has matured (good dark brown colour).
Most things will grow through a mulch, except small seeds, if the mulch is not too thick. Peas and beans will come up through 2" or 3". For small seedlings you can always make a clearing in the mulch to sow the seeds.

potatoes are a good way of breaking up the earth for you but as said little can be grown now. I'd offer the advice of digging it over a bit at a time. 3 foot rows and have a break etc. Bung a lot of manure on it and cover with the tarp again. Come october etc dig it overagain and manure more then tarp it until spring.

I wouldn't recommend PSB as it is huge and 3 of them will take up most of your space. Go for smaller plants which you can jam in like salad stuff. If you prep a bit of soil now you can still sow lettuce, rocket and radish and then worry about the digging in of manure in the winter as I don't think the quick growing salady stuff is going to mind desperately whether the soil has been deeply dug or fertilised. There should be enough fertility in the soil for crops like that as long as you water them regularly.

Thank you all for your advice. I will keep sowing my lettuces in pots for now - I have been doing that all summer - and then clear the patch a bit at a time and dig in lots of manure if I can get hold of some.

Where do you all get your seeds? They do very cheap ones in Wilkinsons here but they aren't organic obviously. Can any one recommend a seed catalogue?

I no longer have chickens - they went when we sold up and I moved here. I don't have any space for them now, so I make do with a china collection on my dresser!!

Hiya! Carrots don't like soil that is too rich (it makes them fork, apparently). They enjoy light sandy soil with no stones (and not too much water or the tops will grow but the roots won't...). If you want to put them in your ground then you might need to designate an area for them and cultivate it accordingly. Alternatively, you can plant them in a deep container (my mum uses an old plastic "dirty linen" basket for hers!) full of suitable soil. As well as saving a little ground space it also keeps carrot fly away as they can't fly high enough to get to the top of the basket!

Hope you have a fun winter planning your patch!
Kate

I get my seeds from the real seed catalogue http://www.realseeds.co.uk/

I'm all for cheap seeds and buy some from Lidl.

kate, I love the idea of planting carrots in an old linen basket. I think I have something suitable lurking behind the shed actually. Although I said I wouldn't bother with potatoes, I might do some charlottes, as they are delicious and expensive, so might have a go at them in a container as well. I read somewhere a pile of old tyres is good for this. Anyone tried it?

The only thing I can add is don't be dissapointed if not everything is perfect and expect the local wildlife to help themselves to your crops........but they need to eat to but persevere as you will get a lot of satisfaction from growing your own and the taste is without doubt better for a lot of veg, do a test grow sweetcorn and when its ready buy one from a shop and cook both the difference is amazing
I will always grow my own even though I am rubbish at it as we live in Lincolnshire and the veg here is so cheap I think it costs me more to grow my own

Incidentaly we had some friends to stay for the weekend and they were most impressed when Sue said what she needed for dinner and I wandered down the garden and brought back the ingrediants..............................although they did laugh at my rude carrot

If you are interested in a quick crop a lot of garden centers are selling off their veg plants (eg courgettes) at the moment for a fraction of their origional cost. I don't have any space to jam them in but would be very tempted if I had the room.

Otherwise I usually buy seeds from the real seed catelogue (Big Al already posted the link) as not only do you get seeds but they are non-hybrid so you can save seeds for the next year and you can email them with any problems you might have. They also gave me advice on things to grow in a small area so really great customer service. If you are only buying a few packets then its not particularly cheap but is pretty good if you are planning a garden and bulk buying.

Spinach is something I have sown at all times of the year and it comes up without fail on all sorts of soil.

Good luck with the garden growing!