[Citygardener]

I am trying to get to grips with the vegetable patch in my new city home. I have managed to grow a good crop of runner beans and leeks so far which has been satisfying. However, I am wondering if instead of taking notice of what other people are planting at this time I should just give the whole thing a good dig in of compost? I look forward to some advice, please

[Kleftiwallah]

Sit down and work out a cropping plan.  Think seriously about what veggies you like to eat and what veggies are expensive in the shops. There is no sense in 'wasting' manure on the area you have reserved for root crops.

Then get digging.     Cheers,     Tony.

[jay001]

Sit down and work out a cropping plan.  Think seriously about what veggies you like to eat and what veggies are expensive in the shops. There is no sense in 'wasting' manure on the area you have reserved for root crops.

Then get digging.     Cheers,     Tony.

sorry if this sounds a little bit thick tony but i thought every veg had to have manure to gain nutrients that maybe your garden soil dosnt have,i went to the trouble of digging shallow trenchers at beggining of the year and filling them with container compost ( i figured that a hole in the gound is still a container --- you just car,nt move it  and later sowed carrot & parsnip this might explain why carrots did,nt germinate but then again the parsnips did -- so to recap root veg = no manure ok .
cheers jay 

[DD.]

Manure has lumps in it, which can make root veg fork. They don't need a lot of nutrients.

[sunshineband]

Tony is right

Get organised about what you are going to grow and where from next year, and then you will be able to treat the soil to meet the needs of that crop.

You could put some autumn onion sets in and there are winter and spring brassica plug plants available at Garden Centres and on-line too, so that you don't have completely empty plot

[Kleftiwallah]

There is no such thing as a thick question, only thick answers.  Keep 'em coming.

Cheers and best wishes.     Tony.

[jay001]

There is no such thing as a thick question, only thick answers.  Keep 'em coming.

Cheers and best wishes.     Tony.

cheers tony  and dd yeah that makes sense to me now thanks 

[Yorkie]

Manure is not really a fertiliser which adds nutrients to the soil.  Its main benefit is in improving the soil structure so that its drainage is better.

As others have said, avoid manuring where you will grow carrots and parsnips the next spring.

The only thing really going in now is overwintering onions, garlic and overwintering broad beans.

[jay001]

ooh crikey    forget over wintering broad beans on my list will put them down now cos were out in morning thanks   

[ryetek]

The only thing really going in now is overwintering onions, garlic and overwintering broad beans.

I don't know about you Yorkie but I'm in the same area as you and never get much joy with overwintering broad beans. Find it much better to wait until March.

[Yorkie]

I've never grown them - I was just going by what we're selling in the allotment shop! 

I guess some people must keep growing them every year, or we'd have stopped stocking the seeds by now.  But I do agree, there have been better years than others ... 

[ryetek]

I guess some people must keep growing them every year, or we'd have stopped stocking the seeds by now.  But I do agree, there have been better years than others ... 

I guess with a mild Winter we may get away with it