ooh arr yarrilly from Cornwall

Hi there!

A few months ago I applied for an allotment at either of the two sites in the vicinity of my house. I was notified a week ago that a patch was free, and could be mine from the beginning of April after paying the rental fee.

With that paid I recently snuck into the allotment to have a look around (which was trespassing, but I had a good reason and didn't touch anything while I was there.) What I found was a plot with a very tall and slim but brightly coloured shed, some panes of glass or perspex lying about, some bolted cabbage, a few deteriorating raised beds, some of that weed suppressing material and a covering of low growing but lush weeds I was unable to identify. There was also a fair size pile of old blue fishing net about for some reason.

I want an allotment rather than a vegetable garden by house because my home is built on top of an old backfilled mining structure called a stope, I have had the occasional experience when digging a soakaway or ditches for pipes of finding lumps of arsenopyrite and various secondary minerals after dodgy metal ores in the ground. I have recently began a diet, a large part of which involves the consumption of vegetable matter instead of fatty foods, I hope to grow a large portion of my food. I intend to use my bicycle for the majority of my transport to and from the allotment, but I do have a small car to help with setting up.

On confirmation of getting the plot, i asked a couple of groups of friends on skype what they think I should grow. One group became increase with carrots while the other came up with a list of good things I could grow. So far the list stands at...

Carrots
Melon
Butter squash
Rubarb
Those long pale Japanese radish
Sweet potatoes
Chili peppers. All kinds
Sweetcorn
Usual range of kitchen herbs
Mint (you can't grow mint! It spreads everywhere and doesn't go with carrots!)
Onions
Garlic
Cherry tomatoes
There are probably others but I can't remember them right now.

Soils around here are all acid and we have a long growing season in these parts. Do you think this is a viable list?  What I'm really thinking about right now is what to start doing to prep the area and make it suitable to take plants. I'm thinking pull everything up and start over. What do you think?

Congrats on your new lotty.  What size is it?

Of your list, I'd only query sweet potatoes (may have left it too late to start these off this year), chillies (I *think* they're better under cover), and possibly melon.

Personally I'd grow herbs at home because you won't want to trek to the lotty just to get a spring of parsley when you're half way through cooking. Mint, as you say, goes in its own pot as it's a thug.

Now is the right time to be putting garlic and onions in.  Get yourself some sets and you can start them off in pots if you need a bit of time to clear the right space on the plot.

As you're in Cornwall your last frost date is likely to be earlier than mine (start of June) so I'd consider starting your squash, sweetcorn, melon & tomatoes off indoors at about Easter this year, perhaps a week or so later.

Carrots can go in when you've got space, particularly if you go for an early variety as they take less time to grow to maturity.

Don't know about japanese radish (mooli?).

It will help us answer your questions in future if you could add your location to your profile - click your username.

I live in Cornwall also over on Boconnoc, you don't mention salad really easy to grow, lettuce, rocket mixed salad.  I have my potatoes in sacks and it works really well when I have finished with the compost I dig it in to the veg plot.