Winter Sowing for a Beginner

[Hypnotic Monkey]

Hi all,

My name's Luke and I'm a university student. I've never grown my own vegetables before - I used to have a pot of basil one in the kitchen but that's about it!

I'm just about to move into my new house for the upcoming academic year and intend to start a vegetable patch. Unfortunately due to the nature of the academic calendar I won't be at the house for July and August so that rules out most crops.

What can you reccomend to sow at this point in the autumn and do you reccomend any suppliers?

Are there any really fast growing veg that would be ready to harvest before Christmas (or in the next 10 weeks preferably because I will break up for the Christmas holidays in about 10 weeks).

Many thanks,

Luke

[Capsid]

You can plant onions sets, garlic and broad beans now. All will be ready in June or earlier. There's not much that will be ready in 10 weeks at this time of year.

[Hypnotic Monkey]

I thought the 10 week limit would be somewhat optimistic.

So what are the best types of onions/garlic etc to go for? I really haven't a clue where to start.

[zazen999]

Salads might be ready in the 10 weeks, if you sow some now...look for winter lettuces/raddichios.

To find the best onions/garlic - there are a few threads running at the moment...

And if you pop your location into your profile, so it shows at the top right hand side of your posts, those in your region will be able to give you better advice.

[SarzWix]

Whereabouts are you going to be staying Luke? (Great ID btw ) That will make a difference on what you will be able to grow over winter. You can get varieties of lettuce and oriental greens which are ok to grow under cloches/polythene tunnels over-winter, but you have more chance of success in the South. There's a variety of carrot called Nantes Frubund, which is ok to sow in autumn, but will also probably do better with a cloche. Peas can be sown late Sept/early Oct to overwinter, try Meteor or Douce Provence.
As Capsid says, there's also broad beans, onion sets and garlic, so there's plenty you can be doing
A quick link to Thompson & Morgan's What to Sow and Grow in September will give you some other ideas maybe.
Good luck with it

[Alice]

Welcome to the Vine Hypnotic Monkey and every best wish for your growings. This is a difficult time of year and a shoet growing season for you. I don't think you can achieve miracles but you could grow some salad leaves. Look for packets of mixed leaves suitable for winter growing.
You could also grow some garlic in containers. They might not be ready until July but if you have to move you could take the containers with you.
Since you've no idea this could be the best bet for you without spending much money.
Buy a garlic bulb in the supermarket.
Find any container more than 4" deep and whatever size you want. 12" x12" would be fine, but bigger if you want. Fill it with compost.
Break the garlic into cloves.
Push each clove into the compost until it is under the compost - spacing 4" apart.
Stand back and wait for results and be ready to eat next July.
Good luck.

[BrideXIII]

Welcome to the Vine Hypnotic Monkey and every best wish for your growings. This is a difficult time of year and a shoet growing season for you. I don't think you can achieve miracles but you could grow some salad leaves. Look for packets of mixed leaves suitable for winter growing.
You could also grow some garlic in containers. They might not be ready until July but if you have to move you could take the containers with you.
Since you've no idea this could be the best bet for you without spending much money.
Buy a garlic bulb in the supermarket.
Find any container more than 4" deep and whatever size you want. 12" x12" would be fine, but bigger if you want. Fill it with compost.
Break the garlic into cloves.
Push each clove into the compost until it is under the compost - spacing 4" apart.
Stand back and wait for results and be ready to eat next July.
Good luck.

sound advice from alice as usual.

I have just planted 4 cloves myself straight into pots, another four I have stood on wet kitchen roll, 2 days ago, and they are already throwing rootlets, cant wait to see the results next year, although I would never be able to grow enough for our needs.

Pak choi is supposed to be something you can grow during the winter. sadly i couldn't get any seeds locally, I don't drive and there is not a decent garden centre within 15 miles of me, very frustrating, and buying one pack via t'internet is not cost effective. ( anyone with spare seeds, think of me)
good luck with whatever you choose to try, and bear in mind if you plant in tubs, you can take em with ya when you go

[Hypnotic Monkey]

Whereabouts are you going to be staying Luke? (Great ID btw ) That will make a difference on what you will be able to grow over winter. You can get varieties of lettuce and oriental greens which are ok to grow under cloches/polythene tunnels over-winter, but you have more chance of success in the South. There's a variety of carrot called Nantes Frubund, which is ok to sow in autumn, but will also probably do better with a cloche. Peas can be sown late Sept/early Oct to overwinter, try Meteor or Douce Provence.
As Capsid says, there's also broad beans, onion sets and garlic, so there's plenty you can be doing
A quick link to Thompson & Morgan's What to Sow and Grow in September will give you some other ideas maybe.
Good luck with it

Thanks for your help. I'll be living in Leamington Spa in Warwickshire. Somewhat annoyingly my 'home' is in kent so i'll be moving away from a better climate.

Oh and cheers for the kudos on the ID - I got it from a random name generator about 5 years ago!!

Welcome to the Vine Hypnotic Monkey and every best wish for your growings. This is a difficult time of year and a shoet growing season for you. I don't think you can achieve miracles but you could grow some salad leaves. Look for packets of mixed leaves suitable for winter growing.
You could also grow some garlic in containers. They might not be ready until July but if you have to move you could take the containers with you.
Since you've no idea this could be the best bet for you without spending much money.
Buy a garlic bulb in the supermarket.
Find any container more than 4" deep and whatever size you want. 12" x12" would be fine, but bigger if you want. Fill it with compost.
Break the garlic into cloves.
Push each clove into the compost until it is under the compost - spacing 4" apart.
Stand back and wait for results and be ready to eat next July.
Good luck.

Thanks Alice - I'll certainly try the garlic! I should also say that when I say I have no idea I mean I have no idea as to the details of what to get, where to get from etc. I help out my mum a bit in the garden and we used to have an allotment when I was a kid so the whole process of maintaining a garden/vegetable patch etc isn't completely alien to me.

I was looking on Marshalls website and found these:

Marshalls Seeds Product Detail- 1160-6047: Marshalls Complete Autumn Planting Onion Collection

Marshalls Seeds Product Detail- 1020-2243: Cabbage January King 3* Hardy Late Stock 3 Seeds

Marshalls Seeds Product Detail- 1020-2588: Lettuce All The Year Round Seeds

Are they go-ers?

[Paulottie]

Welcome to the vine. Hypnotic Monkey
You might try some pak choi- can be used as baby leaf or hearted up it does pretty well in the cooler seasons..cloches are handy though.

[Demeter]

hi Luke - just saying welcome.
What you studying?

[SarzWix]

Are they go-ers?

Can't see why not
The cabbage might not get huge, but you'll be able to eat them as 'greens' anyway.
'Winter Density' is another good lettuce to look for, or something like this; Baby Salad Leaf Mix
You can get spring onions for winter too.

[Hypnotic Monkey]

hi Luke - just saying welcome.
What you studying?

Cheers Demeter - I'm studying Law at Warwick :-)

[Hazel at the Hill]

I'll be living in Leamington Spa in Warwickshire.

...So you will benefit from one of the world's best kitchen shops. I travel 20 miles just to browse!

Kenilworth's nice too - although I appreciate that we may hold differing gernerational opinions on what makes a good town!

[Hypnotic Monkey]

...So you will benefit from one of the world's best kitchen shops. I travel 20 miles just to browse!

Kenilworth's nice too - although I appreciate that we may hold differing gernerational opinions on what makes a good town!

I LOVE Kenilworth. When I went to the cobblers to get some bootlaces my housemate said "Only in Kenilworth will you still find a fully functioning independent cobblers" and it's true!

Where is this brilliant kitchen shop in Leamington then, may I ask?

[taff]

You could grow in containers, especially the salad leaves, either on the floor by a window or on the windowsill.
Or, if you're feeling adventurous, knock together a greenhouse type thing, some 2x2 and some nails, cover it in clear plastic and grow stuff in containers inside that.
You can probably grow potatoes in containers, which would either be ready for the end of december/beginning of January.