What to sow? What to do?!?!

[Farmer_Gyles]

I've been growing at home for years. I did have an allotment plot a few years ago but had to give it up due to bad health and work.

After a loooooooooong wait, I finally got a new full size plot mid-March - 4 big beds clear, ready for planting, but nothing to plant (except spuds)

I sowed hundreds of seeds but very few sprouted - out of 54 sweetcorn, I got 8 - out of 24 tomatoes, I got 3 - brassicas did sprout, but they all promptly died - I got a handful of courgettes etc - I planted all these at home with a row of runner beans (should have had 3 rows) - all this fills an 8x8 bed at home

I did manage to plant out some spuds on the plot - I also spent ages digging out dandelions and managed to sow a few rows of carrots - I've sown leeks at home, ready to replace the spuds on the plot and they're doing nicely

I can't be on the plot every day - anything that needs picking regularly will be grown at home (beans etc), while the plot is for things that take a lot longer and (hopefully) less maintenance (brassicas etc)

So my summer crops were a dismal failure - I've sown some PSB and cauliflower to grow over winter - still small seedlings (up to 4in high) so not ready to plant out yet

What else can I sow / plant now?
Or is it a case of waiting for late autumn to plant onions / garlic / broad beans etc?

[roitelet]

Green manure in the spaces will help to improve the soil and keep the weeds down.

[WPG]

During July you could still get away with sowing a lot of the salad crops (lettuce, rocket, carrot, mizuna etc) and root crops like turnip, swede, beetroot. Also things like swiss chard, radish and spinach should be fine to sow now. It's maybe getting a bit late, but I'm going to re-try sowing french beans, as the slugs got my earlier crop.

[chris]

Pak Choi can be sown now too

[chris]

Oh aye, and fennel. Does better for me sown now & next month.

[Penellype]

I'm just about to sow spinach (Bloomsdale). You could also sow lettuce, oriental greens (mizuna, pak choi, and ohter chinese cabbage), parsley, beetroot, spinach beet, carrots, turnips and radishes.

[Farmer_Gyles]

Cheers guys
Winter was so wet and I've been so busy since then, it feels like years since I did any proper growing - feels like I've totally lost track and forgotten everything! It's ok tho, will soon get back into gear

Salads and beans etc are more for home growing where I can pick and use, don't need to go to the plot every day

(No shed on the plot so every visit is about getting stuff out of shed at home, into car, carry it all from the gates to the plot, and bring it all home again etc etc - just a minor pain in the butt!)

Swiss chard / spinach might be viable - happy to grow the spinach really big for the leaves for winter
Will def do more carrots - possibly beetroot and turnips, although I'm unlikely to use them myself

Any other ideas??

[veggiechicken]

Hi Farmer G
There's a good guide here Summer Sowing Guide

[GrowMoon]

Calabrese and Cauliflower? I'll be sowing some tomorrow.

[Jay22]

Do you sow these straight into the ground or start them off in pots?

[Penellype]

I grow most of my stuff in pots, and direct sow thigns like spinach and carrots which don't like transplanting. For cabbages and salads I start them off in pots so that they have a head start before coming under attack from soil pests, particularly slugs. I find slugs can easily destroy a whole row of seedlings in a day.

[Farmer_Gyles]

good call there VC - kale!
i always start things in pots / cells (except carrots) - like penellype says, gives them a headstart against slugs and of course, weeds
heading for the potting shed this afternoon to get sowing ....