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.
Gardening Diary
By now you should have the allotment manured and dug and ready for planting. This is the month for potatoes and brassicas. Most of us have already planted the first earlies but by the end of April all the potatoes should be in the ground …
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.
Summer 2025
It's been a pretty miserable year for veg but the fruit has been magnificent!
Elephant Garlic Experiment
Eddie grows elephant garlic round areas to deter unfriendly insects. They're not heat treated so tend to bolt. Advice varies on whether or not it makes any difference to snap off the flowers so Eddie tried an experiment. He snapped off half the flowers and left the...
July in the Allotment 2024
So far, 2024 has been a very difficult year except for potatoes which seemed to love the excessive rain!
See more features …