A few weeks ago I walked with Corin in the Ashdown Forest and we, actually he, talked about the heather and grass ecology of the area.

During lockdown the Food Union’s CV5 allotment has been open only to essential staff. They have begun to open up to small groups, but you have to be a member of Food Union to access the site, so they can keep people safe.

You can join Food Union by filling in the form here.

During National Allotments Week last, Coventry University shared some photos and images from the Edible Garden outside the George Eliot building. Their estates team have shared some tips for starting to grow your own food.

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Top tips for your own edible garden

Getting started

Something easy to start with could be salad crops such as radish, spring onions, beetroot, carrots etc. that can be direct sown into cultivated soil. Runner beans will give a good crop during the summer months, as will squashes, but these will require a good rich soil and plenty of water to keep them growing and producing.

Small garden? Grow in pots

Of course if you don't have a garden, you can grow most salad crops and vegetables in pots, you just have to make sure that you keep on top of the watering and feeding.

Utilising vegetable garden waste

Any garden will produce 'garden waste', but none more so than a vegetable garden, as crops are dug up as they come to an end to make way for new crops. With this in mind, anyone who is thinking about starting a vegetable garden should establish a compost clamp – something simple made out of pallets would suffice – as over time it will give you decent compost to improve the soil it helps greatly in keeping the garden tidy.

Speak to others

If you're just taking on a new allotment, it's always good to talk to the 'old timers' – they are always pleased to see 'new blood' and will be very happy to tell you what grows best, what to avoid and maybe give you seedlings or cuttings or any amount of advice.

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The Edible Garden is publicly accessible via the pedestrian path between the back of the Herbert Museum and Cox Street:

A blog by Jack Monroe, blogger at Cooking on a Bootstrap. 

as if it were a scene made-up by the mind, that is not mine, but is a made place that is mine, it is so near to the heart,   an eternal pasture folded in all thought   

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