Catching up with allotment crops

Sometimes you don’t have time to get to your allotment and sometimes it’s the weather that’s against you, or – especially for those of us relatively new to the business – you just forget that something you want to eat in six month’s time needs to go in the ground now!

It doesn’t have to be a disaster though – garlic stuck in the ground now, especially if it’s sprouting, will still produce a respectable crop at summer’s end, lettuce can be sown and harvested at almost any time of year, if you give it the necessary shelter in the cold months and enough water in the summer – look out for cut and come again or ‘all season’ packs of lettuce seed as these are best for sowing whenever you have a moment.

Potatoes and parsnip don’t catch up well, sadly, so if you miss planting season, there’s not a lot you can do to obtain a crop by playing catch-up. Carrots though, will be a bit more forgiving, and if you missed the potato planting season, it’s said that sweet potatoes, which are even more nutritious and serve the same purpose on your plate, can be planted up to six weeks later.

Labels: allotment-planting-crops