Probably the best allotments in England
Smitham Allotments Society is a self-managed site in Chipstead Valley in the south of the London Borough of Croydon.
Covid-19 information
Guidance from the National Allotment SocietyPlease read this guidance around staying safe on the plot during the Covid19 Emergency
Gardening Diary
May is the busiest month for planting and transplanting and is the ‘transition’ month when direct sowing and thinning of crops begins to take over from transplanting.Root vegetables, apart from onions and leeks, should never be transplanted but this month the main crop of winter greens and brassicas – cabbage, broccoli, brussels sprouts etc., as well as summer cauliflower and broccoli, leeks, lettuce, asparsgus and calabrese, are to be transplanted. However, the transplanting of tender vegetables, including cucumber, courgettes, marrows, pumpkins, aubergines and peppers, is best left to the end of May, or even the beginning of June in our allotments as late frosts are the rule, rather than the exception, in Chipstead Valley.If you are not desperate for an early crop, dwarf and runner beans and sweetcorn can be sown directly into the ground from the end of May onwards and you can continue to sow other tender vegetables in the greenhouse for transplanting next month.The popular crops for direct sowing this month include beetroot, cabbage, cauliflower, peas, carrots, turnip, chicory, fennel, kale, lettuce and pak choi.
Slow Worms
This is one of the many slow worms who live in our compost bin on the allotment, photographed in July 2019. They enjoy a cosy fugg in there all through the winter, and there always seem to be a good number of babies in the spring!
Keep calm and carry on digging!
Having an allotment in these difficult times means we are doubly blessed. Not only do we still have an abundance of winter vegetables to harvest and enjoy, and summer produce to look forward to, but we can get fresh air and exercise whilst obeying the government...
Early globe artichoke
This is incredible! A globe artichoke where the winter has been so mild and wet that the seeds have germinated in the dead flower.
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