Grow your own
You don't need an allotment to eat something you grew. A sunny patch of border, a raised bed or a few big pots by the back door will keep you in salad, beans and herbs from late spring into autumn. These guides cover 24 of the most rewarding crops for UK and Irish gardens, each with a sowing-to-harvest calendar, spacings and the problems to watch for.
Where to start
If this is your first year, pick three or four crops you actually like eating and give them your best spot. Radishes, lettuce and courgettes give quick, generous results; potatoes and garlic are forgiving in almost any soil; and a pot of chives or mint will happily come back every spring. Leave fussier crops such as parsnips and blackcurrants until you know how your soil behaves.
Most vegetables want at least six hours of direct sun in summer, shelter from strong wind and soil that has had compost or well-rotted manure worked in. Rotating crop families around your beds from year to year helps keep soil-borne troubles such as clubroot from building up. Timings below suit lowland southern and central Britain; further north, or on a frost-prone site, push spring sowings a couple of weeks later.
Vegetables
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Beetroot
Beta vulgaris
Beetroot is quick and forgiving. Sow little and often from April to July, thin the seedling clusters, keep the soil moist, and pull the roots young while they are sweet and tender.
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Broad beans
Vicia faba
Broad beans are the first beans of the year. Sow hardy varieties in autumn or start them in spring, support the rows with string, and pinch out the tops once the lowest pods form.
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Carrots
Daucus carota subsp. sativus
Sow carrots thinly where they are to grow, in light soil without fresh manure, keep them evenly moist, and cover the rows with fine mesh to keep carrot fly out.
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Courgettes
Cucurbita pepo
Two or three plants feed most households. Give each a square metre of rich soil, water heavily at the base and pick fruits small, every couple of days, to keep them coming.
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French beans
Phaseolus vulgaris
French beans hate cold soil, so wait until late May to sow outdoors. Dwarf types need no support and suit pots, while climbers crop for longer on canes.
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Garlic
Allium sativum
Plant single cloves in autumn so they get a spell of winter cold, keep the bed weed-free, and lift the bulbs in early summer once the lower leaves start to yellow.
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Kale
Brassica oleracea (Acephala Group)
Kale is the toughest brassica you can grow. Plant it firmly in summer, cover it with netting against butterflies and pigeons, and you can pick leaves from autumn until spring.
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Leeks
Allium ampeloprasum (Porrum Group)
Sow leeks in spring, transplant pencil-thick seedlings into deep dibber holes in early summer, and you will have a hardy crop to lift whenever you need it from autumn until April.
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Lettuce
Lactuca sativa
Sow a few lettuce seeds every two or three weeks rather than a whole packet at once, keep them watered in warm weather, and protect young plants from slugs.
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Onions
Allium cepa
Sets are the easiest route: push them into firm, weed-free soil in spring or autumn with the tips just showing. Keep weeds down, and dry the bulbs thoroughly before storing.
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Parsnips
Pastinaca sativa
Parsnips need fresh seed, a long season and deep, stone-free soil. Sow direct in spring, wait patiently for seedlings, then leave the roots in the ground until frost turns them sweet.
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Peas
Pisum sativum
Peas prefer cool, moist conditions. Sow little and often from March to June, give them netting or twiggy sticks to climb, and eat them soon after picking, before the sugars fade.
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Potatoes
Solanum tuberosum
Buy certified seed potatoes, chit them on a cool windowsill, plant from late March and keep pulling soil up around the shoots. Choose earlies if blight usually strikes your plot in late summer.
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Radishes
Raphanus sativus
Radishes go from seed to plate in about a month. Sow a short row every fortnight, keep the soil damp so the roots stay crisp, and pull them as soon as they are ready.
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Runner beans
Phaseolus coccineus
Build a sturdy wigwam or double row of canes before sowing, plant out after the last frost and keep the roots moist. Pick pods young and often or the plants slow down.
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Tomatoes
Solanum lycopersicum
Sow in a warm spot indoors in March, plant out only once frosts are over, and water little and often at the roots. Consistent watering prevents most fruit problems.
Fruit
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Apples
Malus domestica
The rootstock decides how big your tree will be, so check the label before you buy. Then make sure a compatible apple or crab apple flowers nearby for pollination.
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Blackcurrants
Ribes nigrum
Plant blackcurrant bushes deeper than they grew in the nursery to encourage a multi-stemmed bush, feed them well, and cut out about a third of the oldest stems every winter.
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Raspberries
Rubus idaeus
Decide first whether you want summer or autumn raspberries, because they are pruned completely differently. Autumn types are the easiest: cut every cane to the ground in February and they fruit again that year.
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Strawberries
Fragaria × ananassa
Plant strong runners in late summer for a proper crop next June, keep the fruit off the soil with straw or mats, and replace plants every three or four years as yields fade.
Herbs
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Basil
Ocimum basilicum
Basil hates cold and wet more than anything. Sow it warm, water in the morning rather than at night, and keep pinching out the tips so plants stay bushy instead of flowering.
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Chives
Allium schoenoprasum
Chives are the easiest herb you can grow. Cut leaves close to the base rather than snipping tips, shear the whole clump after flowering for fresh growth, and divide it every three years.
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Mint
Mentha spicata
Mint is almost impossible to kill but very easy to regret. Grow it in a pot, sunk or on the patio, cut it hard after flowering, and divide it every couple of years.
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Parsley
Petroselinum crispum
Parsley seed can take three or four weeks to appear, so sow it warm and don't give up. Once established, pick outer stems regularly and sow again each summer for a continuous supply.
Sowing and harvest at a glance
A quick reference for planning the year. Follow the links for the full calendar, spacing and care for each crop, or open a month page to see what's due now.
| Crop | Sow | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apples | — | November–March | August–October |
| Basil | March–June | June | June–September |
| Beetroot | February–July | April–May | June–October |
| Blackcurrants | — | November–March | July–August |
| Broad beans | January–April, October–November | March–April | May–July |
| Carrots | March–July | — | June–November |
| Chives | March–May | March–April, September–October | March–October |
| Courgettes | April–June | May–June | July–October |
| French beans | April–July | May–June | July–September |
| Garlic | — | February–March, October–December | June–August |
| Kale | March–May | June–July | September–March |
| Leeks | February–April | June–July | September–April |
| Lettuce | February–September | April–June, September | May–October |
| Mint | — | March–May, September–October | April–October |
| Onions | January–April | March–April, September–October | June–August |
| Parsley | March–August | May–June | May–December |
| Parsnips | March–May | — | October–March |
| Peas | February–June | April–May | June–August |
| Potatoes | — | March–May | June–October |
| Radishes | February–September | — | April–December |
| Raspberries | — | November–March | June–October |
| Runner beans | April–June | May–June | July–October |
| Strawberries | — | March–April, July–September | June–September |
| Tomatoes | February–April | May–June | July–October |