Winter veg

[Blakey]

Hi

I am quite new at this allotment game. Ever since a very early age, I have fond memories of working with my dad on his veg patch and loving it. Before my dad moved thousands of miles away, he persuaded me (well my husband) to fence off some garden and make some beds for growing. I have a greenhouse and a large shed and now 4 large beds. I have been successful at the summer stuff, but today a friend has cleared all the beds of weeds and it looks like new.

Please help me to learn what I can grow or sow during these darker nights and days of not much sunshine. My beds are very very prone to nettles and I won't be using all of the beds during the winter so is the cardboard and manure the best and easiest way to keep the weeds at bay until spring? I am hoping to get some heated propagators for Christmas but I really don't know what I can do for now.

Please help as my son and daughter love picking the veg for dinner but the cupboard is bare!!

Thanks so much.

[Two_Sheds]

I won't be using all of the beds during the winter so is the cardboard and manure the best and easiest way to keep the weeds at bay

Yes, unless you can get a green manure sown.

By the time winter actually rolls around, it's too late to be thinking about winter crops. Winter veg (PSB, cabbage, kale etc) needs to be sown about April, and planted out around July.

You can still get some garlic, Japanese onion sets and broad beans in this year though (for May+ cropping)

oh, and welcome to the Vine

[Bigmallly]

Welcome Blakey........follow "Two Sheds" advice on anything & you won't go far wrong.

[walldanzig]

i've put in onions and garlic loads and loads of garlic

[Incy]

Welcome Blakey........follow "Two Sheds" advice on anything & you won't go far wrong.

What Bigmally said. Two Sheds really knows her stuff!
Welcome to the vine

[Seamus]

`hi blakey, u could order some fruit bushes bare root for planting next month, u obviously wont have any return on them till next summer at least, but its something 2 do in the garden at this quiet time of the year!!

[Storming Norman]

You can still buy winter veg plants from ebay - bit risky but possibly worth a gamble.

[miffy]

Some garden centres stock winter veg plants too.

[Reb Williams]

..and you can always make nettle soup out of your weeds...


Reb
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Finally published, thank you for voting: adventures in self-sufficiency - Grow Your Own Cows

[Snadger]

Just planted up Spring Hero (Ball headed cabbage) and Durham Early (pointy) today. All planted up in old tomato compost, one to a pot, and put on greenhouse staging.
Also planted up Senshyu seed grown Japanese onions @ 5 to a pot!

[Jeanied]

Surely it's not too late to start a few broad beans off? Maybe with a bit of cloche protection if it looks like getting very frosty - but the forecast for next week is quite mild. And I'm going to go for some new sowings of winter lettuce to go under cloches - I'll never forget harvesting a few lettuce leaves from under cloches with a covering of snow!

[Snadger]

......................... I'll never forget harvesting a few lettuce leaves from under cloches with a covering of snow!

Now there's another use for the turkey on christmas day.............turkey salad!