I love a bit of allotment geek. Last weekend, I borrowed a surveyor’s wheel, and took precise measurements of my plot, ready to start this year’s plan. Then I found something tremendous – online allotment planners. What Does An Online Allotment Planner Do? If you’re planning shallow-rooted crops like tomatoes, they might not survive unless you can get there regularly to water them. A water butt means you won’t need to carry gallons of liquid in your car or on the bus.

Allotment Design Ideas for Beginners | Allotment Planning 10 Allotment Design Ideas for Beginners | Allotment Planning

Allotment planning is a very personal thing. At the end of the day you will want something that is unique to you yet fulfils all your needs. I know those that laugh and tease (in good spirit) those who have seating areas in their allotment, considering them a waste of time. I know others who consider a seating area as essential to their allotment experience. They like to sit and think about their plans, share wine with friends or have a BBQ. So, as I say this is a very personal thing. However, there are many things that everyone will want and to consider in their allotment design. What to Use to Design Your AllotmentFruit trees, raised beds, fruit cages and crop rotation. As an allotment owner, these are all elements you need to think about when planning your allotment design. And WM James has all the beginner allotment ideas you need.

VegPlotter | Vegetable Garden Planner and Allotment Planning

Apples, pears and plums prefer a more open position, but cooking apples can tolerate a partially shaded position. ‘Morello’ cherries are also productive on a shady wall. Vegetables in shade VegPlotter is an online software tool born out of a need to get organised on the allotment plot. Whether you call your Vegetable Garden an Allotment, Homestead, Urban Farm or just your Vegetable Garden, we provide an online planning tools to help.

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Garden waste can also be composted, and in doing so, it can become useful for your plants again and minimise the amount of waste you create. When it comes to planting your crops, take into account the companion planting tips we discussed above. Additional Allotment Planning Considerations And the great news is that if you need any gardening or allotment supplies, we have everything you need right here in our WM James online gardening shop. Keeping the weeds at bay is one of the biggest jobs in an allotment particularly if your neighbour has a wildlife plot or isn’t particularly neat. Use can use membrane around fruit bushes and permanent plants, but annuals will need some elbow grease. Again, mulch is your friend as it cuts out light and smothers weeds. It’s also useful if you can’t get there regularly to water. I can’t recommend mulching enough! Watering

VegPlotter | Allotment Planner and Planting Calendar Software

Traditionally, you’d need to dig up and turn over your allotment plot thoroughly before planting. However, no dig gardening is becoming a fashionable way to grow plants as well. You can buy fish bone and blood, growmore and other good quality fertilisers at garden centres and supermarkets if you don’t want to make your own compost. I really recommend home composting though – you’ll have plenty of clippings to get rid of and bonfires are not usually allowed at allotments. I use the growveg.com garden planner. Even though I’ve only got a small urban garden, not an allotment. But that planner is fabulous! Totally appeals to my inner OCD geek 😉 You can build out your raised beds on both sides of the path , with the beds running horizontally to the path. Last but definitely not least is what plants you want to grow. You probably have a good idea already. You need to know what will grow easily, how much space it takes up and if you are trying to save money is it really worth the effort.Ideally your new allotment will be in a sunny position but this, inevitably, is not always the case. If you have been given a plot which is partly or totally in shade, choosing fruit and vegetables that tolerant these conditions is essential. Fruit in shade Vegetation can be buried during digging after removing the roots of perennial weeds such as bindweed, couch grass, ground elder and nettles. Do not compost these If you're working with a larger plot, you can certainly add in an extra pathway and more raised beds . It has several purported benefits, including pest control and increased yields. To put it simply, they can help each other to grow. So when planning your planting efforts bear that in mind. Veg usually takes up most of the space. You need at least enough beds to do a minimum of a three though preferably four year crop rotation so that you do not encourage disease and pests. So you will need equal size beds for this so your crops can be rotated.

Ultimate Beginners Guide to Starting an Allotment - DIY Garden Ultimate Beginners Guide to Starting an Allotment - DIY Garden

When it comes to controlling weeds , catching them early is advised. You can pull them out by hand as they occur or hoe them out. In reality, this is pretty unlikely – you’re likely to find an unkempt plot that’s overgrown and requiring a lot of TLC. People often abandon their allotment plot before officially giving it up, so it may be a while since it’s had much attention. This guide will walk you through every stage: from finding an allotment in the first place, to harvesting your first crops.The traditional style is to plant in rows. Not all plants suit rows, like sweetcorn for instance that are better grouped for improved pollination. Also rows are harder to maintain and may result in compacted soil where you keep walking over it. Then there are beds raised or otherwise. Raised beds are great to control planting and weeks and if you struggle with bending down. These beds take up more room as you have more paths between them.