The Allotment Experience: Everything You Need to Know about Allotment Gardening - Direct from the Plot

by Binney, Ruth

• ISBN13: 9781905862269
• ISBN10: 1905862261
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-08-15
• Publisher: How to Books Ltd

Summary

There is no better way to grow your own food and to benefit from the physical and mental enjoyment that gardening brings than by working an allotment. But getting an allotment into shape and keeping it that way is a challenge. The Allotment Experience is the inside story of having an allotment, And of cultivating your garden away from home. it is told with the help of the wise and often witty words of Ruth Binney - and more than 40 other allotment gardeners she has interviewed for The book. This is not a book about 'perfect' gardening, but a practical guide that is totally true to life. Apart from hundreds of invaluable tips and techniques it also contains stories of failures and disappointments because, As one allotment gardener so rightly says, 'It's all trial and error'. Whether you are a thinking of having an allotment, or have one already, this book will prove an excellent guide to growing vegetables, fruit and herbs as well as favourite allotment flowers. it is also packed with good ideas for cooking and preserving the fruits of your labours. From spade to table, The Allotment Experience covers: A* Allotment Passions - the joys and woes of allotment gardening. sheds, wildlife and recycling. A* on the Plot - from clearing the site to sowing, watering and dealing with pests and diseases. A* Growing Vegetables, Fruit, Salads, Herbs and Flowers - how to cultivate everything from beans and broccoli to raspberries, radicchio and gladioli. A* Allotment Harvest - the best way to harvest your crops, with lots of ideas about how to cook and preserve them. REVIEWS: 'An excellent book for all allotment holders, which offers practical advice on all aspects of allotment gardening...It stands head and shoulders above many other books on this subject because of its honesty' www.gardenaction.co.uk AUTHOR BIOG: Ruth Binney has, with her husband Donald, been cultivating allotments for more than 25 years, In London and most recently in Dorset, where she now lives. She is an editor and author who, during a long career in publishing, has been involved in the creation of books on gardening and many other topics, particularly country wisdom. She is secretary of her local horticultural association and an occasional prize winner at its annual shows. This is her sixth book. CONTENTS: Introduction 1. Allotment passions 2. On the plot 3. Growing vegetables 4. Salad leaves, herbs and flowers 5. Growing fruit 6. Allotment harvest Index.

Author Biography

Ruth Binney has, with her husband Donald, been cultivating allotments for more than 25 years, in London and most recently in Dorset, where she now lives. She is an editor and author who, during a long career in publishing, has been involved in the creation of books on gardening and many other topics, particularly country wisdom. She is secretary of her local horticultural association and an occasional prize winner at its annual shows. This is her sixth book

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. xi
Allotment Passions	p. 1
Making the decision	p. 3
Getting on the waiting list	p. 7
Choosing a plot	p. 8
The communal store	p. 12
City, town and country	p. 12
The allotment community	p. 13
Formalities	p. 15
Involving your children	p. 16
Pets	p. 18
The shed	p. 19
Assembling your new shed	p. 21
What to keep inside	p. 21
Shed sharing	p. 24
Shed-free plots	p. 25
Outside growth	p. 26
Recycling	p. 26
Welcome wildlife	p. 28
Bees	p. 29
Wasps	p. 29
Hover-flies	p. 30
Ants	p. 30
Ladybirds	p. 30
Frogs and toads	p. 30
Butterflies	p. 31
Hedgehogs	p. 32
Worms	p. 32
Spiders	p. 32
Birds	p. 32
Foxes	p. 33
Wild flowers	p. 33
Rarer sightings	p. 34
Allotment treasure	p. 35
Giving up your allotment	p. 36
On the Plot	p. 37
Beginnings	p. 37
Spit by spit	p. 38
Planning the plot	p. 39
Tools	p. 40
Spades, forks and shovels	p. 41
Towels and hand forks	p. 41
Hoes	p. 42
Rake	p. 42
Secateurs	p. 42
Shears	p. 42
Wheelbarrow	p. 43
Power tools	p. 43
What will you grow?	p. 43
Wind and weather	p. 44
The annual round	p. 45
Clothes	p. 45
Digging and rotovating	p. 46
Rotovating - and more	p. 48
Soil	p. 48
Clay	p. 50
Chalk	p. 51
Sand	p. 51
Peat	p. 52
Acid or alkaline?	p. 52
Boundaries and paths	p. 52
Paths	p. 54
Trees and overhangs	p. 54
Raised beds	p. 56
Compost and manure	p. 57
What to compost	p. 59
Growing success	p. 60
Buying it in	p. 61
Chicken pellets	p. 62
Grow your own	p. 62
The wormery	p. 63
What to do with manure - and when	p. 63
Compost	p. 64
Sowing and planting	p. 64
Choosing seed	p. 65
Straight in the plot	p. 65
Pots, trays and cells	p. 67
Hardening off	p. 67
Planting out	p. 68
Rows or blocks?	p. 68
Sowing in succession	p. 69
Water and watering	p. 69
On tap	p. 71
Equipment	p. 72
Good watering tips	p. 72
Health warning	p. 74
Food for plants	p. 74
Extra feeds: choice and application	p. 75
Ready-prepared	p. 76
What feeds contain	p. 76
Plant protection	p. 77
Cold frames	p. 78
Cloches	p. 78
Fleece	p. 79
Polytunnels	p. 79
Netting	p. 80
Weeds and weeding	p. 81
Types of weed	p. 82
Weeding	p. 84
Other good tips for coping with weeds	p. 84
Suppressing weeds	p. 85
Weedkillers	p. 85
Pests and diseases	p. 86
Pests	p. 86
Diseases	p. 95
Greenhouses	p. 101
Temperature and air control	p. 102
Watering	p. 102
Greenhouse health	p. 103
Bonfires and allotment rubbish	p. 103
Rubbish solutions	p. 105
Keeping records	p. 105
Growing Vegetables	p. 106
Beans and peas	p. 106
Broad beans	p. 107
French beans	p. 108
Runner beans	p. 109
Peas	p. 112
Brassicas	p. 114
Cabbage	p. 115
Kale	p. 116
Brussels sprouts	p. 117
Sprouting broccoli and calabrese	p. 118
Chinese broccoli	p. 119
Cauliflowers	p. 119
Leafy crops	p. 121
Spinach	p. 121
Swiss Chard	p. 122
Pak choi, mizuna and oriental greens	p. 122
Edible stems	p. 123
Asparagus	p. 123
Celery	p. 125
Florence fennel	p. 126
Root vegetables	p. 127
Radishes	p. 127
Beetroot	p. 128
Carrots	p. 129
Celeriac	p. 131
Parsnips	p. 132
Turnips and kohl rabi	p. 133
Swedes	p. 134
Potatoes	p. 135
Sweet potatoes	p. 139
Jerusalem artichokes	p. 139
The onion family	p. 140
Onions and shallots	p. 141
Garlic	p. 143
Leeks	p. 143
Vegetable fruits	p. 144
Courgettes and marrows	p. 145
Squashes and pumpkins	p. 146
Tomatoes	p. 147
Cucumbers and gherkins	p. 150
Peppers and chillies	p. 152
Aubergines	p. 152
Sweetcorn	p. 153
Globe artichokes	p. 154
Salad Leaves, Herbs and Flowers	p. 156
Salad leaves	p. 156
Lettuce	p. 156
Rocket	p. 158
Chinese cabbage	p. 158
Salad mixes and oriental greens	p. 158
Radicchio	p. 159
Chicory	p. 159
Sorrel	p. 160
Corn salad	p. 160
Land cress	p. 161
Allotment herbs	p. 161
Rosemary	p. 162
Sage	p. 162
Bay	p. 163
Thyme	p. 163
Tarragon	p. 164
Mint	p. 164
Marjoram (oregano)	p. 165
Lemon balm	p. 165
Lemon verbena	p. 166
Lovage	p. 166
Chives and garlic chives	p. 166
Parsley	p. 167
Basil	p. 168
Chervil	p. 168
Coriander	p. 169
Dill	p. 169
Fennel	p. 169
Borage	p. 170
Horseradish	p. 170
Allotment flowers	p. 171
Edible flowers	p. 171
Sweet peas	p. 172
Dahlias	p. 174
Asters	p. 175
Zinnias	p. 176
Gladioli	p. 176
Roses	p. 177
Sunflowers	p. 180
French marigolds	p. 180
Growing Fruit	p. 181
Soft fruit	p. 181
Strawberries	p. 181
Raspberries	p. 183
Gooseberries	p. 185
Blackcurrants	p. 185
Red and white currants	p. 187
Blackberries	p. 187
Hybrid fruit	p. 188
Cape gooseberries (Physalis)	p. 188
Blueberries	p. 188
Rhubarb	p. 188
Tree fruit	p. 190
Apples	p. 190
Plums and gages	p. 194
Damsons	p. 196
Pears	p. 196
Allotment Harvest	p. 197
Your allotment produce	p. 198
Vegetables	p. 198
Brassicas	p. 201
Salad leaves	p. 214
Herbs and flowers	p. 215
Herbs	p. 215
Flowers	p. 217
Fruit	p. 217
Soft fruit	p. 217
Tree fruit	p. 219
Index	p. 221
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