What to do with my new veg patch

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AledE

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What to do with my new veg patch
« on: October 26, 2009, 13:12 »
Hi all,

I moved into a new house about 3 weeks ago. I have adopted a vegetable patch and a greenhouse. There isn't much left in the veg patch except some Brussels sprout, and the greenhouse has 3 tomato plants and a vine.

I'm a complete novice, so I'm asking for advice as what to do over the next month. I know I need to keep watering the tomato plants and vine, but not too sure what to do with the veg patch.

Do I dig in some manure/compost now, or wait until spring, just before sowing?

Thanks for any help!

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mumofstig

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Re: What to do with my new veg patch
« Reply #1 on: October 26, 2009, 14:32 »
How lucky are you - getting a veg garden and greenhouse complete with a vine 8)
Think you need to think about picking the toms and bringing them in, for the green ones to ripen indoors, by the end of this warm spell anyway.
First thing I would do is give the plot a digging. This way you will get a feel for what sort of soil you have got and expose any pests in the soil for the birds :) If you have inherited any garden compost I would dig that in as well.
I'm a bit wary of buying in manure at the moment because of Aminopyralid problems (use the search button if you don't know about this) and would prefer to use chicken manure pellets, or fish blood and bone, and I add these in the spring a few weeks before sowing.
Lots of other ideas to come...........

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JayG

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Re: What to do with my new veg patch
« Reply #2 on: October 26, 2009, 15:08 »
First thing I would do is give the plot a digging. This way you will get a feel for what sort of soil you have got

Dead right! Sounds like your soil has been very recently cultivated, but you still need to know whether it is very light and sandy, heavy clay, or something in between. Whichever it is it will benefit from incorporating well-rotted manure or compost, do this sooner rather than later if the soil is very heavy, if very light leave it until spring to minimise the loss of nutrients you have added.

Another important aspect is actually the aspect of your plot; will it all get full sun in summer, is part of it shaded and/or sheltered from the prevailing winds? Working that out will help you plant the right veg in the most advantageous places, although I'm sure many readers would be envious of the flying start you already have!
Sow your seeds, plant your plants. What's the difference? A couple of weeks or more when answering possible queries!

One of the best things about being an orang-utan is the fact that you don't lose your good looks as you get older

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alfman

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Re: What to do with my new veg patch
« Reply #3 on: October 27, 2009, 15:00 »

 The first thing I would do AledE before all the good advice above is to sit down with a pencil and paper and map out what you want to grow/how much/ and where. Then you know where to manure (not root crops)and where to leave alone.

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Kristen

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Re: What to do with my new veg patch
« Reply #4 on: October 29, 2009, 11:12 »
I have a spreadhseet which may assist you with panning. If you are interested pelase see this post:

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=34306.msg411041#msg411041

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Kristen

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Re: What to do with my new veg patch
« Reply #5 on: October 29, 2009, 11:20 »
"Do I dig in some manure/compost now, or wait until spring, just before sowing?"

My recommendation is that you divide your plot up into 3, 4 or even 5 [depending on how big it is] equal-ish sized areas and allocate each "zone" a crop so that you can rotate the crops. See:

http://www.allotment-garden.org/vegetable/crop-rotation/index.php

Once you've done that it will define which areas of the plot need manure (you don't put it on the area for Carrots and parsnips, because it tends to make the roots fork).

I would recommend this book as a useful guide to what to plant when, and how to look after it. 

Dr D.G. Hessayon The Vegetable & Herb Expert

Its more of a reference book than a detailed "How to grow Veg". For a more descriptive book, covering digging, feeding, and all the other aspects of growing veg, have a look at John's books:

http://www.allotment-garden.org/book/index.php

order from this site and he'll send you a signed copy (and some seeds I think?)

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peapod

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Re: What to do with my new veg patch
« Reply #6 on: October 29, 2009, 21:34 »
Kristens post is spot on, you cant go far wrong with this level of planning, and it isnt confusing or difficult.  Good luck!
"I think the carrot infinitely more fascinating than the geranium. The carrot has mystery. Flowers are essentially tarts. Prostitutes for the bees. There is, you'll agree, a certain je ne sais quoi oh so very special about a firm young carrot" Withnail and I


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