Getting startedYour first month on a new plot
Taking on an allotment is exciting, but a vacant or neglected plot can look like a whole season’s work before you h…
Read guide · 15 min
ALLOTMENT HUB UK
Grow your know-how
Practical help for every stage of your growing year.
Practical advice for growing crops
Growing Guides provide practical crop-level advice covering the journey from sowing and planting through to care and harvesting.
Browse or search the guides, then open one for its full advice. Relevant parent-crop guides can also be reached from crops and varieties elsewhere on Allotment Hub where supported.
Getting started
SowingFrom seed packet to sturdy seedling
A seed packet tells you the crop and variety, sowing window, method, depth, spacing, expected germination time and …
Read guide · 4 min
Plant careWater less often, but more effectively
Do not rely on a fixed daily schedule. Push a finger or trowel into the soil near the crop and check below the dry …
Read guide · 4 min
SoilMake a useful compost heap
Put a bin or heap somewhere accessible, with enough room to add material and remove finished compost. A sheltered, …
Read guide · 4 min
SeasonalWork with the UK growing season
The UK growing year is shaped by light, temperature, rainfall and frost, and each plot has its own microclimate. Sh…
Read guide · 4 minPlanningA practical approach to crop rotation
Crop rotation means moving groups of annual crops around beds from year to year. Gardeners use it to reduce the rep…
Read guide · 4 min
HarvestingHarvest and store without waste
The best harvest stage depends on what you are growing. Pick runner and French beans while pods are young and tende…
Read guide · 3 min
WildlifeMake room for helpful wildlife
A wildlife-friendly allotment can support pollinators and natural predators while remaining productive. Start with …
Read guide · 3 min
Fruit vegetablesGrowing tomatoes on a UK allotment
Sow: late February to mid-March for greenhouse plants, or late March to early April for outdoor plants; germinate a…
Read guide · 5 min
Roots & tubersGrowing potatoes on a UK allotment
Plant: first earlies around late March, second earlies early to mid-April and maincrops mid-April to early May; del…
Read guide · 5 min
Fruit vegetablesGrowing chillies and sweet peppers
Chillies and sweet peppers are tender, long-season crops. Sow indoors from January to March if you can provide warm…
Read guide · 3 min
AlliumsGrowing onions and shallots
Onions can be grown from seed or sets. Seed gives a wider choice and can be economical, but seedlings need care and…
Read guide · 3 min
AlliumsGrowing garlic
Plant: autumn types from October to December; spring types from February to March when soil is workable.…
Read guide · 4 min
AlliumsGrowing leeks
Leeks are slow-growing and useful through autumn and winter. Early and maincrop varieties are usually sown indoors …
Read guide · 3 min
Roots & tubersGrowing carrots and parsnips
Carrots: direct sow March to July; early sowings may need cloches or fleece. Harvest young roots from summer and ma…
Read guide · 5 min
Roots & tubersGrowing beetroot, radishes, turnips and swede
Beetroot: sow late March or April to July; harvest from early summer to mid-autumn.…
Read guide · 5 min
LegumesGrowing peas and mangetout
Sow: outdoors mainly March to June once soil is workable and about 10°C or warmer; use modules for an earlier prote…
Read guide · 4 min
LegumesGrowing broad, French and runner beans
“Beans” covers crops with different habits. Broad beans are relatively hardy and can be sown earlier; French and ru…
Read guide · 3 min
Fruit vegetablesGrowing courgettes, pumpkins and squash
Courgettes, pumpkins and squash need warmth and are damaged by frost. For an early start, sow individually in pots …
Read guide · 3 min
BrassicasGrowing brassicas: cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and kale
Sowing: windows differ widely by crop and harvest season, from late winter to early summer; follow the cultivar pac…
Read guide · 4 min
FruitGrowing apples in a UK garden or allotment
Apples are long-lived, productive trees, but their eventual size depends largely on the rootstock as well as the cu…
Read guide · 4 min
Perennial vegetablesGrowing asparagus
Asparagus is a perennial crop: a well-prepared bed can crop for many years, but it occupies the same ground and nee…
Read guide · 3 min
Fruit vegetablesGrowing aubergines in the UK
Aubergines need more warmth and time than many outdoor vegetables. In most of the UK, a greenhouse, polytunnel or v…
Read guide · 3 min
HerbsGrowing basil
Basil is a tender, warmth-loving herb rather than a hardy outdoor perennial in the UK. It is easy to grow in a pot,…
Read guide · 3 min
Leafy greensGrowing chard
Sow outdoors: usually April to July once the soil is workable; small successional sowings can extend baby-leaf pick…
Read guide · 3 min
FruitGrowing cherries
Sweet cherries are eaten fresh and usually need a warm, sunny, sheltered position to ripen well. Sour cherries are …
Read guide · 3 min
Fruit vegetablesGrowing cucumbers
Sow: indoors in April or May around 20–25°C; seedlings often emerge within about a week in suitable warmth.…
Read guide · 4 min
Salad cropsGrowing chicory
Chicory is a diverse group of leafy crops with a pleasantly bitter flavour. Forcing types are grown for roots that …
Read guide · 4 min
Salad and bulb cropsGrowing Florence fennel
Florence fennel is grown for its swollen, layered leaf bases, often called bulbs. It is not the same as perennial h…
Read guide · 3 min
Salad cropsGrowing lettuce
Lettuce is quick to grow and fits beds, containers and gaps between slower crops. The best variety changes through …
Read guide · 3 min
Fruit vegetablesGrowing melons
Sow: mid-April to mid-May under cover; germination is most reliable around 18–21°C and often takes about a week.…
Read guide · 6 min
FruitGrowing pears
Pears need a long season and a sheltered, sunny position to flower and ripen well in the UK. A warm wall suits a fa…
Read guide · 3 min
FruitGrowing plums
Plum trees need more room than a vegetable bed, so check the eventual size of the rootstock and training form befor…
Read guide · 3 min
Salad cropsGrowing rocket
Rocket is a quick-growing leafy brassica with a peppery flavour. Salad rocket is usually quicker and makes a flush …
Read guide · 3 min
Leafy greensGrowing spinach
Spinach is a fast-growing leafy crop that prefers cool conditions. Sow in spring for early leaves and again in late…
Read guide · 3 min
SweetcornGrowing sweetcorn
Sow indoors: mid- to late spring, singly in deep pots or modules; germination is reliable around 18–21°C.…
Read guide · 4 min
FruitGrowing strawberries
Plant: spring, late summer or early autumn; August and September planting often establishes well for the following …
Read guide · 4 min
FruitGrowing raspberries
Raspberries grow as perennial roots that send up canes. Summer-fruiting cultivars crop on floricanes: canes grow on…
Read guide · 3 min
FruitGrowing blackberries
Blackberries and hybrid berries such as tayberries and loganberries are vigorous cane fruit. Traditional floricane …
Read guide · 3 min
FruitGrowing blueberries
Blueberries need acidic growing conditions, usually around pH 4.5–5.5. Many UK garden soils are too alkaline, so a …
Read guide · 3 min
FruitGrowing gooseberries
Gooseberries are hardy, productive bushes that suit many UK plots and can crop in sun or light shade. Plant bare-ro…
Read guide · 3 min
FruitGrowing black, red and whitecurrants
Blackcurrants, redcurrants and whitecurrants are hardy shrubs, but they do not fruit or prune in exactly the same w…
Read guide · 3 min
Perennial vegetablesGrowing rhubarb
Rhubarb is a long-lived perennial, so choose a position where it can remain for years. It grows well in sun or ligh…
Read guide · 3 minHerbsGrowing perennial and annual herbs
Culinary herbs are not one crop with one set of needs. Annuals such as basil, coriander and dill are usually raised…
Read guide · 3 min
Leafy and stem vegetablesGrowing celery
Celery can be grown in an allotment, but it is less forgiving than many crops because it needs fertile soil that re…
Read guide · 3 min
Root vegetablesGrowing celeriac
Sow indoors: usually March to early April, in warmth and bright light; seed is slow to germinate and needs a long s…
Read guide · 4 min