Overview
Having your own allotment is an excellent way to ensure that the fruit and vegetables you and your family eat are fresh, organic and actually have flavour. This book takes you step by step through the process of finding and obtaining your allotment and then offers practical information and tips on starting, and then maintaining your plot. In three parts it covers all you need to know about: applying for an allotment, preparing the soil, organic principles and planning and laying out your plot; the vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers you can grow, plus useful shrubs and trees; and. maintaining the allotment, including gardening techniques, pest and weed control, crop rotation, composting, harvesting and storage and tips on maintaining productivity throughout the year. Contents: About the author; Preface; Part 1: Good Grounding - The Basics; 1. All About Allotments; 2. Our Allotment; 3. Getting Started; 4. Getting to Know Your Soil; 5. Digging; 6. Climate; 7. Understanding the Basics; 8. Tools for you Allotment; 9. Shed and Tool Stores; 10. Organic Principles; Part 2: Know Your Onions - The Plants; 11. About our Crops; 12. The Life Cycle of a Plant; 13. Plant Families; 14. Brassica - The Cabbage Family; 15. Legumes - The Pea and Bean Family; 16. Solanaceae - Tomato and Potato family; 17. Alliaceae - The Onion Family; 18. Apiaceae - The Celery Family; 19. Asteraceae - The Lettuce or Daisy Family; 20. Cucurbitaceae - The Gourd Family; 21. Chenopodiaceae; 22. Fruit; 23. Perennial Crops; 24. Herbs; 25. Cereals and Grasses; 26. Flowers and Trees; Part 3: Maintaining Your Allotment; 27 Planting; 28. Organic Matter; 29. Dealing with Pests, Diseases and Weeds; 30. Crop Rotation; 31. Protecting Your Crops; 32. Enjoying the Fruits of Your Labour; 33. Food for Free; 34. The Allotment Society - Getting Involved; 35. Allotment Tips; 36. The Allotment Year; Index.
Full Product Details
Author: Neil Russell-Jones
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Imprint: How To Books Ltd
Dimensions:
Width: 14.00cm
, Height: 2.50cm
, Length: 21.50cm
Weight: 0.816kg
ISBN: 9781905862191
ISBN 10: 1905862199
Pages: 370
Publication Date: 19 March 2008
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.
Reviews
'The advice given clearly comes from personal experience. The level of detail is impressive, the author even describes how to set a totally new set of allotments. For both the new and established allotment holder, I would advise keeping a copy of this book in the allotment shed, its a gem. Clear, concise and accurate information presented in easily readable format. Covers all the subjects an allotment holder needs and represents very good value for money. We thoroughly recommend it.' Gardenaction.co.uk 'A veritable bible of information, accessible to both novice would-be allotment gardener and to those looking to maintain more established plots. Buy it, and you may never need to buy another book on growing your own food.' Four Shires 'This really is a well presented, easy to use guide not only for newcomers to allotments but also for the experienced growers too.' Allotment & Leisure Gardener
Author Information
Neil Russell-Jones is a prolific author and a management consultant. He has an allotment in South London, which he tends with his wife and two daughters. He is treasurer for the allotment society, which is run on organic principles, and maintains the website: www.dulwichallotment.org.uk. As a family they grow potatoes, onions, garlic, cabbages, broccoli, lettuce as well as squashes, pumpkins, sweet corn, beans, peas, rhubarb, carrots, parsnips, turnips, asparagus and herbs, berries and currants, so not only do they get abundant fresh produce they also enjoy working together on a combined project that takes them away from the usual routine of work and school.
