A Poignant Pause for Reflection.

It's the eve of moving to Richmond! Which means, quite simply, time to say a fond farewell to the tiny piece of concrete that afforded me the opportunity to discover this love for gardening...

Grow Potatoes with the London Vegetable Garden!

Forgive the frequency with which these blog posts are coming; however I'm keen to rattle off a few before a weekend that will be spent moving, sorting out a million different things and waiting for internet access! Anyway, as promised, here's the very first vegetable venture of 2010 – and it's one that any of you with a balcony, patio or generous doorstep can join me in as well.

When I knew that I'd be growing vegetables on an allotment this summer, my thoughts initially turned to new possibilities, of which the humble potato was one! The potato is a tuberous crop, which means that the actual potato is an edible 'tuber' which supports the potato plant by storing nutrients. Following rice, wheat and maize, potatoes are the world's fourth-largest food crop, meaning the plants I'm attempting to grow this summer really will be the 'staple' of the London Vegetable Garden allotment.

Now, rather ironically considering that I now have an allotment in which to play (you can take the man away from the balcony, but not the balcony from the man...), I'll be planting my potatoes in these dedicated potato-growing bags, which are designed for small spaces such as balconies and patios – perfect for urban vegetable gardeners with minimal space.

These can be purchased online and in all good gardening shops relatively cheaply; I purchased these three bags from eBay for £6.99 (plus £2.99 delivery), so they're easy to get hold of. Now, if you have a tiny balcony or patio, there's no reason at all why you can't go out, buy some of these bags and have a go just like me! If anything, a balcony or doorstep affords a degree of shelter, whereas my potatoes will be well and truly out in the open, but hopefully the results will be exactly the same.

The only other thing you'll require to have a go at growing your own potatoes (aside from compost and soil!) are some seed potatoes! Now, I have bought two packets – one 'first early' variety, 'Rocket', which should crop in early summer, and a 'main crop', 'Juliette', which crops in late summer. By sowing a 'first crop' and a 'main crop', you're hopefully guaranteed a steady supply of potatoes throughout the summer as opposed to a huge harvest condensed into a short timeframe!


Whilst growing your own vegetables obviously has a positive effect upon the environment (and tastes great!), it can also save you some considerable money. The total cost of my potato project is as follows:

3 x potato-growing bags delivered: £9.99
1 x bag of 'Rocket' potato seeds: £1.99
1 x bag of 'Juliette' potato seeds: £1.99

TOTAL COST: £13.97

I shall also revisit this cost come the autumn and see just how much I have saved, providing I actually manage to grow some potatoes... it'll either be an incredible cost-saving venture or an exercise in growing the UK's most expensive potatoes!

I shall soon be 'chitting' these potatoes, which involves exposing the seed potatoes to light in order for them to sprout shoots and take better when planted. Needless to say, I'm waiting until I'm in the new house on Friday before setting these potato seeds up and getting started properly, which of course, will all be recorded here at the London Vegetable Garden for your perusing pleasure!

Until then, why not think about growing potatoes on your balcony? Chris, over at Elevated Agriculture, is also having an attempt on his balcony, using similar grow bags, so there really is nothing to stop you having a go. Good luck – I hope you'll all give it some thought! And remember, check back next week for some updates and further advice!

River Cottage? Try Rocket Gardens!

Whilst the excitement caused by Saturday's allotment visit has not yet abated, reality has certainly started to kick in. Along with packing copious boxes ready for the impending move, all the energy of recent weeks has been spent looking for land, rather than thinking about what to put into it! Now that the London Vegetable Garden has secured a new home and the move is but a few days away, it's time to start thinking seriously about what to start planting – and how to go about this.

Although the quantity of balcony produce produced last year could hardly label me 'self-sufficient', I took great pride in growing all of my crops in pots from seeds. A good sized balcony and a huge windowsill afforded me a makeshift 'greenhouse', which enabled me to nurture seedlings until they were strong enough to endure the climes of life on the London Vegetable Garden balcony!

Now this year, I may have a share in an allotment, but this does not mean that problems no longer exist! My new flat has no real 'growing area' in which to grow seedlings on the scale that I managed to last year. Whilst I will be starting off this year's tomato plants (and a few other vegetables) from seed on a windowsill or two, the majority of this year's plants are going to be planted in situ in the ground.

Whilst this avoids root damage and disturbing young plants when transplanting seedlings between flower pots, it also means that one cold snap can prove much more of an obstacle to young plants. Although it's now British Summer Time, the weather this Bank Holiday weekend has shown that BST tends to exist mainly in name only!

One solution is to bring in baby plants and transplant these into the ground. Along with a National Trust book on allotments, my mother has kindly posted me my very own window box garden! Now obviously she hasn't send me a 'real' garden (I'd have soil all over my doorstep and letterbox!), but she has sent me a card that, once sent off, ensures I'll be delivered fresh vegetable plants to use in my allotment.

Much akin to farm-produced 'vegetable boxes' that are delivered to your doorstep weekly, 'Rocket Gardens' delivers a box of baby vegetable plants for budding gardeners to bed in on the allotment, in the garden, the patio, or even (as the name suggests) a windowsill! Set up by the aptly named Mike Kitchen back in 2005, Rocket Gardens is based in Cornwall and grows thousands of baby vegetable plants that are then sent to people to grow on themselves. As the website states:

“At Rocket Gardens, we take out all the risk and hard work that comes with growing your own organic plants from seed. We look after the plants when they are young and vulnerable, only letting you have them when they are the perfect size, ready to be transplanted straight into your garden.”

Now, I shall still be attempting to see what I can grow from seed in the new flat (the trials and tribulations of which will naturally be chronicled on the blog), however these baby plants will enable me to get stuck right in once I officially arrive at the allotment. The card states that my plants will be delivered in around 10 days from receipt of the card, so once I'm moved and set up at the allotment, this will be one of my first tasks – watch this space!

If any of you have used a similar 'plant delivery' service, I'd like to hear from you! Simply leave your comments on this post, or write on the London Vegetable Garden's Facebook page!

Pastures New: The London Vegetable Garden 2010

If you're not one of the London Vegetable Garden's more regular readers, a perusal of previous posts will inform you that my better half and I will imminently be moving to pastures new – pastures, if you'll permit the allegory, that do not come with a balcony.

But fear not, dear reader! Delve deeper into posts and you'll also be informed that after much campaigning, I have kindly been handed half of an allotment in order to continue my organic odyssey and keep the London Vegetable Garden running!

So this morning, I rose early and made the trek from Hackney to south-west London (no mean feat considering that the UK's planes, trains and automobiles are all on strike / undergoing engineering works / old and decrepit) to meet with the two ladies that had kindly answered my gardening SOS.

A gloomy, drizzling day met me (it's Bank Holiday Britain – sunshine is outlawed) and I made my way to my new horticultural home. The two ladies met me at the gates and walked me down the allotments to their plots, half of one which has been kindly given to me!

After quite a while discussing gardening, the whole London Vegetable Garden project and my imminent move to Richmond, I managed to whip out my phone and take a few snaps for readers of the blog. So here we go – this is the new, revamped London Vegetable Garden 2010!

First off, we have my 'main' plot:

This area is approximately 4m x 3m (give or take), which in all honesty, is more than I ever thought this allotment share would provide. In addition to this, the following 2 raised beds are also for my use, which measure approximately 1m x 1m each.

When I saw how much I was being given, I really was genuinely amazed and feel very lucky indeed. Yet another added bonus to the new London Vegetable Garden is the view directly from my plot, which is as below:

So there we have it – the London Vegetable Garden 2010! I now have the complicated (yet thoroughly enjoyable!) task of planning what I'm going to grow and where!

Not only does this 'real' piece of land (I still can't quite believe it!) offer me the opportunity to apply my learnings from the balcony, but it also affords me the chance to attempt things that really were unfeasible on a balcony, such as plants requiring deep ground and lots of space – step forward potatoes, leeks, courgettes et al!

Anyway, the arrival of 'proper' gardening space does not mean the London Vegetable Garden has sold out – far from it. I have an absolute wealth of gardening knowledge still to learn and several issues to address in the ensuing months. Here's what you can expect from the London Vegetable Garden this year:

i) A lively blog from a gardener who's no longer an amateur, but by no means authoritative. I want to share my experiences as I go along and learn from a community of like-minded people – you.

ii) A real delve into gardening issues in London. We live in one of the world's greatest cities, yet the bureaucracy surrounding allotments (40-year waiting lists??!!) and community gardening needs to be addressed – I aim to highlight these issues and campaign for action with your support.

iii) An entertaining read! I love writing this blog, so hearing from people who enjoy it really is the icing on the cake. I hope that over the coming year, you'll all continue to share in my successes, help me when I have problems and console me when things don't quite work out!

So there we have it – the start of a very exciting new adventure. Stick with the London Vegetable Garden and I'll attempt to inform, entertain and hopefully educate – this really is a project driven by the people who support it, from the kind ladies that have given up part of their allotment to the readers who email me tips advice and their own experiences.

Here we go – exciting times ahead!

Callum.

P.S. As if they hadn't done enough to make me feel at home, my two lovely ladies gave me a unique and very appropriate 'moving in' present:

Want to follow the London Vegetable Garden this year?

Twitter - @londonveggarden
Facebook - London Vegetable Garden
Social Networking - The London Gardeners' Network

Competition: Win a Year's Free RHS Membership!

To help celebrate the International Year of Biodiversity, The London Vegetable Garden has teamed up with The Royal Horticultural Society to offer one lucky winner a year's free membership!

In order to enter this fantastic competition, simply email us a photo of your garden and tell us in 100 words what you are doing to promote biodiversity in your garden. The winner will be chosen on {insert date} and in addition to a year's RHS membership, will get their picture featured on both the RHS website and the London Vegetable Garden.

Simply email londonvegetablegarden@yahoo.co.uk to enter.

Good luck!

Terms and Conditions

i) All entrants must submit a photograph of their garden and write in no more than 100 words about what they are doing to promote biodiversity in the photographed garden.
ii) In entering, the participant agrees that the RHS and the London Vegetable Garden has free use of all photographs and blurbs submitted and is able to use these as and how they please.
iii) The winner will be selected by Callum Saunders of the London Vegetable Garden on 23.04.10. His decision is final.
iv) The winner will receive one year's free membership to the RHS. The prize is supplied by the Royal Horticultural Society and is non-negotiable.
v) Offer is open to UK residents aged 18 and over.

Biodiversity on the Balcony, Patio, Porch...

For many, the concept of 'urban gardening' is limited to filling a flat with foliage, placing pots sporadically on the balcony, or even pottering around Kew Gardens one afternoon. As the London Vegetable Garden project prepares to celebrate its first birthday, I hope that many of these blinkered views have at the very least, been allayed; the simple truth however is that city dwellers remain unaware of just how much they can do, regardless of how much garden space they have.

You may not consider your humble balcony, porch or patio an 'ecosystem', but the small section of city concrete that houses washing lines, bicycles and cigarette stubs could very easily be transformed into an urban oasis that encourages plants and wildlife to grow. The reasoning behind this, aside from turning a bleak city space into a pleasant natural environment, is simple: the promotion of biodiversity.

It is no secret that on a global level, biodiversity (the variation of life within a certain ecosystem) is in decline. But did you know that this year is the International Year of Biodiversity? The Royal Horticultural Society is marking the IYB on May 22nd and aims to promote a collective effort that draws attention to this loss – as well as spurring us on to do something about it.

Whilst there are several things that those fortunate enough to have gardens can do to help mark the IYB, those with smaller spaces needn't think they are limited to smaller efforts. Here are simply a few of the things that the RHS recommends followers of the London Vegetable Garden can do to help promote biodiversity – and the best thing is, you don't need a sprawling garden on a country estate!

For those limited to a balcony (a category in which I currently include myself), there are several plants that attract bees – a campaign that is currently gaining some serious weight. For the more adventurous, a few bits of wood and some hollow bamboo canes are all that is needed to create a 'bee hotel' – simply click here to find out how to make one.

Urban gardeners with patios have slightly more free rein. Rotting wood is both home and food for an array of bugs, with log piles offering shelter in summer and frost-free hibernation in summer. Alternatively, compost cafés are one of the most positive things anyone with a garden can do to reduce landfill and enrich their soil, as well as attracting wildlife in their own right – see how you can make one right here.

These are simply three ways in which urban gardeners can get involved with the International Year of Biodiversity and help to stop the worrying trend for declining biodiversity. For more details on the IYB and to see how you can get involved using your urban garden, patio or balcony, simply visit the dedicated page on The Royal Horticultural Website by clicking here.

Now check the following post to see how you can win a year's free membership to the RHS!

London Vegetable Garden: The Next Chapter…

What with packing boxes for the move, re-arranging flights at the last minute for a wedding this weekend (thank you SO much British Airways), walking 17 miles for charity yesterday and generally being rushed off my feet at work, it’s been a busy few weeks!

In my previous blog post, I told you all how I was looking to try and find a small plot of land – be it an allotment or some garden space – to continue the London Vegetable Garden project and carry on the urban gardening bug!

Well, after weeks of appeals on Twitter, Facebook, gardening forums and blogs, as well as sticking up posters in local allotments (very guerrilla gardening style!), and after some promising leads, I have secured half of an allotment in the local vicinity!

First of all, it really has overwhelmed me how much opportunity is out there if you push hard enough. Although England’s bureaucratic local authorities seem determined to make it as hard as possible for people to grow their own produce in their local boroughs, the response of like-minded people has been truly touching indeed.

I’ve had two offers of people’s gardens and very nearly got somewhere with a plot on Channel 4’s ‘Landshare’ website. However, this week I received a phone call that I’d been longing to get and have been offered half of an allotment for the summer whilst the owners landscape their garden.

As you can imagine, I’m truly ecstatic to think about the opportunities this now brings – and also very aware at how genuinely lucky I am. Allotment waiting lists in some London boroughs top 40 years – making this more of a token statistic than a viable ‘waiting list’.

Anyway, the London Vegetable Garden blog has been a sparse place in recent months, but the securing of an allotment space means we’ll be getting stuck right back into amateur urban gardening issues next month! I’m thrilled to have the space to try growing things on a more serious scale now, and the blog will play a key role in this. The London Vegetable Garden (as it will remain – despite the move to Surrey!) will focus on:

i) Gardening progress – what I’m doing, how I’m doing it, tips and advice and learnings!
ii) Issues surrounding urban gardening, allotments, sharing land and local politics – I remain committed to getting more city dwellers out and gardening.

I hope to have an update, some more information (and possibly some photos!) after going to view the allotment on Monday. Until then, I’d just like to say a huge thank you to the local gardening community for their kind help, support and offers of garden space; your help and assistance has restored some of my faith in humanity and has allowed me to continue pursuing the organic odyssey that has captivated me so completely.

Watch this space!

The poster that secured my new allotment is featured at the top of the page!