What to Grow and When Our guide will help you plan your growing season to make the most of your plants through the year. Keep an eye out for our other guides including; Companion Planting, Your guide to Greenhouse Growing, & Making the most of your Coldframe. 1
Contents Introduction to Planning your Season... 4 Baby Steps Assess your Space... 5 Raised garden beds Pots a Plenty Planning, Placement, and Prep... 6 Planting Layout Find your Companions Climbers or Crawlers Access the Excess Avoid the Crowds... 8 Space for you and them 2
Contents Continued Beginner Plants for your vegetable garden... 9 Tomatoes Peppers Garlic Herbs Leafy Salads Potatoes Grow your own Planner... 5 Vegetables Plants/ Flowers Fruits Summary... 13 Get your FREE seed collection kit 3
Introduction to Planning your Season When planning a new planting regime, it can be easy to get swept up in the excitement and try to grow EVERYTHING in the first year This can lead to disaster as the maintenance and weed control alone can become overwhelming quite quickly. Baby Steps Here s a few things to think about when you re planning your season; Decide whether you want a produce or bloom based garden, or a bit of both! If you re growing veg, make a list of your favourites and try to narrow down your choice from there. Start with a few growing beds and expand a little each year when you are feeling confident enough to. ** Handy Hint ** It s worth looking at how much fresh items cost in the shops and narrowing down your veggie choices from there. That way you ll be growing your favourites AND saving yourself money 4
Assess your Space If you don t already have planting areas set out it s worth taking some time to step back and assess your gardens potential. You want as generous a space as you can afford for your plants to thrive, but still give yourself enough room to enjoy your garden. Raised garden beds If you have the space, raised beds are a great way to section out growing space, with the added benefit of them being a more manageable height to work from. You can construct your own using recycled timber or buy pre-made, whatever suites you best. Pots a Plenty With a smaller, or more paved garden you may wish to utilise plant pots or coldframes for your growing needs. These are smaller containers that are more easily moved as and when is needed. You can choose to have your pots on the ground, or use hanging baskets and bracketed pots to grow vertically depending on the style you are going for and the space you have available. 5
Planning, Placement, and Prep Here s one of our team members garden plan. With a mainly paved garden they ve tried to make the most of their garden, setting out separate areas to grow from; Planting Layout The gardener has utilised hanging and bracket baskets to inject floral displays without taking up too much floor space in a small and mainly paved area. The bottom patio has been sectioned off for produce with a coldframe to bring on seedlings and grow bags to house taller crops, the gardener also plans on introducing a container to grow leafy salad through the season. Finally, the flower bed has been turned over and mixed wildflower seeds planted. This will encourage good pollinators to the garden as well as provide a seasonally changing and low maintenance floral boarder. The gardener plans to add a bee hotel and small water feature to aid in attracting wildlife. 6
Once you have a general idea on where you re going to be planting in the garden; raised beds, containers, greenhouses etc. you can start to think about what plants will suit what areas; Find your Companions It s worth taking a look through our guide on companion planting; As well as having your plants growing harmoniously together, it can also promote better pollination and, with the right flower power be a great pest deterrence, as well as saving on much coveted space in smaller gardens Climbers or Crawlers Tall plants such as tomatoes or corn can hog the limelight so to speak. It s important to place them where they won t overshadow shorter plants. Likewise, roaming plants like melon or squash can end up covering your other plants with their broad leaves and vines. If they re on your list try to plant them as close to the boarders of your beds as you can, that way the leaves can hang over the edge of your space. Access the Excess It s important to think about what plants you ll likely be wanting to get to the most i.e. the family favourites and the fast growers Placing your herbs and salad crops as close to your kitchen as possible will help you make the most of your yield, as well as keep an eye on weed and pest control! 7
Avoid the Crowds An easy trap to fall into when planting up your patch is overcrowding, especially as your young plugs and seeds look so tiny against the vast backdrop of bare earth Most plants have a grower s guideline on how much space to leave between plants ranging from a couple of inches to feet apart. Space for you and them It may seem obvious but it s easy to forget the most important aspect of your garden the gardener Make sure you plan out walkways wide enough for you to access all your growing areas easily. Aim to keep any garden beds at no more than about 4ft wide, that way you can still access the centre of your patches with relative ease (which you ll be thankful of come harvest and weeding times!) ** Did you know ** The health of your plants roots are just as important as the resulting yield. So much so that scientists have done extensive studies into their correlation, and its effect on overall plant health, called the shoot to root ratio. 8
Beginner plants for your vegetable garden Here are some of our favourite picks for a new vegetable grower, they re low maintenance, fairly quick producers, and generally easier to protect from pests; Tomatoes Super easy and quick to grow, tomatoes can be grown from ground, in containers, in growbags.. Basically wherever you can find space. You can offer stakes for support or allow them to spread out, whichever suites your space best Tomatoes can be prone to fungal diseases in humid weather, go for smaller varieties like cherry or pear as these are the hardiest of toms. Sow: Feb-Apr Plant Out: May-Jun Harvest: Jul-Oct Peppers Hot peppers are easier than bell peppers, but both will give you a great yield which you can harvest at any stage; from green and sweet yellow to fiery red. They are rarely targeted by pests and grow brilliantly in containers. You ll need to sow them on a windowsill or somewhere sheltered and insulated. When the time comes you may need to stake them for support as their fruit will come thick and fast. Sow: Feb-Apr Plant Out: May-Jun Harvest: Jul-Oct 9
Garlic Garlic is the ultimate low maintenance bulb Plant your cloves (you can regrow store bought garlic to do this, but be weary of their origin as they may be susceptible to disease or climate differences!), keep an eye on weed growth and harvest when the plant stems turn yellow. Plant Out: Oct-Feb Harvest: Jun-Sept ** Did you know ** Garlic makes a great companion plant to fruit trees; their aromatic nature deters pests, and they enrich the soil if left to mulch. Herbs Having an herb garden gives you a real sense of accomplishment in your growing skills. Your herbs can generally all grow harmoniously together, whether that be in a windowsill container, or a garden/ greenhouse plot, and add real variety to your everyday cooking. You can sow seeds as quick as a fortnightly basis for a continuous supply through the year. Popular herbs include basil, coriander, chives, sage, and thyme but really it s whatever suits your tastes. Sow: Early Spring Plant Out/ Harvest: Check individual packet guidelines 10
Leafy Salads With a multitude of lettuce varieties to choose from, all with different growing times, choosing the right combinations will have you in good salad stocks for most of the year. Grow loose leaf varieties in containers close to your kitchen, and hearting lettuce in veg patches or grow bags. Like herbs you can sow new rows as close as fortnightly together to ensure a continuous crop. Sow/ Plant Out: March-Sept Harvest: May-Nov Potatoes Potatoes are wonderfully diverse and can be categorised as either earlies, which have a much quicker harvest time, or maincrops, that have a slower harvest, but a much larger yield. Potatoes can be grown in containers, growbags, or in the ground. Starting with your seed potatoes, plant until leaves are showing through, then fill over with more compost. Repeat this, gradually building up your plant until you are a few inches off the top of your container/ grow area. Plant: Mar-May Harvest: Jun-Oct **Our planting advice is based on general plant varieties being grown in a UK climate, you should always double check your individual seed/ plug guidelines for specific care instructions. 11
Grow your Own Planner We ve made a list of popular veggies, plants and fruits to grow with a guide on when to sow, plant out, and harvest. Vegetables Jan Feb March Apr May Jun July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Aubergine Bean Beetroot Broccoli Carrots Cauliflower Cucumber Kale Leek Sow Indoors/ Covered - Sow Outdoors Plant Out - Harvest - 12
Vegetables Jan Feb March Apr May Jun July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Continued Lettuce Onion Pea Pepper Potato Spinach Sweetcorn Tomato Turnip Sow Indoors/ Covered - Sow Outdoors Plant Out - Harvest - 13
Annual Flowers Indoor Sowing Date Outdoor transplanting Perennial Flowers Geraniums November - February 14-16 weeks after sowing Pansy Ageratum Alyssum Coleus Impatiens Petunias Salvia Aster Cosmos Marigolds Baby s Breath Daisies Sunflowers Sweetpea Achillea November - February 6-10 weeks after sowing Dahlia December - March January - April February - March 8-10 weeks after sowing 6-9 weeks after sowing 5-6 weeks after sowing (excluding sunflowers that can be planted straight out) Daisies Foxgloves Primrose Viola Coreopsis Delphinium Geraniums Lupine Penstemon Black Eyed Susan Poppy Rudbeckias Sowing Date March - May September - November Anytime 14
Fruits Jan Feb March Apr May Jun July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Apple (bare root) Apple (pot grown) Blackberries Fig Grapes Pumpkin Raspberries Redcurrants Strawberries Sow Indoors/ Covered - Plant Out - Harvest - 15
Summary Here s a quick run through of the topics we ve covered in our what to grow guide; Try not to get swept up in the excitement of new planting - Choose a few crops that you and your family enjoy to grow - Plan out your space so you can enjoy your garden as well as your growing Pots and grow bags are a great way to make temporary growing areas if you are short of space. Read up on your plants and the growing space they need to avoid overcrowding or planting bad companions together. We hope you found value in our What to Grow guide. Be sure to look out for our other guides including; Making the most of your Coldframe, and Companion Planting. Get your FREE seed collection kit posted to you by filling out our form here: www.gabrielash.com/contact 16