Advice
Easy vegetables
For a relatively easy vegetable garden, it's best to go for plants that can be sown directly where they are to be harvested with little or no thinning.
Cut-and-come-again salad leaves are ideal for this providing a succession of leaves. Vegetables with large seed, such as beans, are a good choice as they are easy to sow. Radish are hard to beat for the speed from sowing to harvest, but many of the suggested veg can be harvested in three months from sowing.
Station sowing - sowing two or more seed and thinning to the strongest at the final spacing - allows seed that is easy to handle to be sown at their final spacing. Beetroot or lettuce, for example, can be station sown.
If sowing under glass large seed such as pumpkins and squash or courgettes and marrows are ideal as they can be sown individually in pots - but they can also be sown directly outside once the weather has warmed up.
Beetroot
Beetroot seed is easy to station sow, but can be tricky to germinate. Sow every few weeks from mid-March to August and thin early to one seedling per station. Choose cultivars not prone to bolting, such as ‘Boltardy’. Round varieties are ready for harvest from 11 weeks after sowing. Golfball-sized beets are delicious hot or in salads. Any left over in autumn can be used in winter soups and roast vegetables. Even the leaves can be used as a tasty and colourful alternative to spinach or added to salads.
Broad beans
The hardiest of beans grown. Sow broad beans in large containers in late winter or spring allowing about 20cm (8in) between each plant. Tall cultivars are best, but you will need to support them; dwarf cultivars require less space and staking. They must never be short of water when in flower or the crop will fail. Use the young pods whole or wait until the beans swell, but before they become coarse and hard. You can use the tender tops as greens. Harvest beans sown from March to May 14 weeks from sowing.
Carrots
For sweet small carrots, sow every few weeks from early spring to late summer for a succession of finger-sized carrots that are delicious hot or cold. Any left over in autumn can be used in winter. They are attacked by carrot fly, which ruins the roots, but this pest can be excluded by growing under fleece or, from early summer, under insect-proof mesh.
Courgettes and marrows
Marrows usually trail, courgettes are mostly bushy and are harvested young as small marrows. Sow seed in situ after all danger of frost has passed at the end of May to early June. Alternatively sow in pots in late April to early May for planting out. Harvesting begins 10-14 weeks from sowing.
French beans
Require a rich, well-drained soil. To avoid the need for staking choose dwarf cultivars such as 'Purple Queen'. Sow outdoors once the soil has warmed up in May to end June. Harvest eight to 12 weeks from sowing.
Leaf beet
Leaves can be cut from this plant every few weeks all summer for a constant supply of spinach-like leaves - as long as you take care to leave a few leaves in place to sustain the plant. A second sowing in late summer will give leaves in early spring after growing through the winter.
Lettuce
Choose small lettuces for containers, such as ‘Tom Thumb’ or ‘Little Gem’ as there is little wastage, and allow them plenty of space – 15cm (6in) between plants is enough for 'Little Gem', one of the sweetest and tastiest of lettuce. They are ready for harvesting eight to 14 weeks from sowing. Cut-and-come-again salads such as the Salad Bowl types, give a succession of leaves, from six to eight weeks after sowing. Sow lettuce every couple of weeks, starting from mid-March, as they don’t stand long in good condition. Prepare the site with lots of compost to create a fertile, moisture-retentive soil.
Onions, garlic, shallots
Onion are very easy to grow from sets planted out in early spring. You can plant quite close, 5-7.5cm (2-3in) apart taking half the plants when green to leave the remainder to mature and form bulbs. If you choose ones that are suitable for autumn planting, they mature in mid-summer leaving time for another crop, beetroot for example, to follow before autumn.
Shallots from sets are quick to mature, producing a further eight to 12 shallots per set. Plant sets in February or March 15cm (6in) apart.
Garlic needs a well-drained and sunny position. Plant in late autumn except in heavy soils when cloves can be grown in modules left out of doors over the winter and planted in the spring. Shallots will take 18 weeks from planting to harvesting. Garlic is ready for lifting and storing in July or August when the foliage starts to yellow.
Peas
For containers grow mange-tout peas where you get a useful crop off a few plants and sow as early as you can in spring. They will need some support even if only sticks and string. The pods can be eaten as soon as they are big enough. They must never be short of water when in flower or the crop will fail.
Potatoes
For a summer supply of new potatoes, early potatoes are best as they are usually harvested before potato blight or drought become problems. Plant chitted seed in from mid- to late March for first earlies, early to mid April for second earlies. Ready for harvest in 13 weeks. You can plant them in half-filled containers. As the potato shoots grow add more compost until there is only 5cm (2in) of space at the top to help retain water. Often you can pick out tubers as they reach usable size, but when you do finally have to tip them out, do it carefully so that you can replant the potato plant for another crop a few weeks later.
Pumpkins, squash
Most form large trailing plants, which can be trained in circles, over strong supports or left to sprawl. The large seeds are easy to sow, either in pots in April/May or in situ in June. Pumpkins and squash require a moist soil, but are otherwise easy to grow.
Radish
Ready to eat three to four weeks after sowing, sow at fortnightly intervals from March onwards for a continuous crop. Seeds should be sown thinly to avoid thinning.
Runner beans
Easy to sow, with attractive flowers and prolific. Runner beans need harvesting daily. The site should be well prepared and sheltered. Sow when soil is warm at the end of May/early June. Harvest 12-14 weeks from sowing.
Spinach
Sow spinach every few weeks from early spring to late summer, and again in early autumn, for a succession of leaves. You can pick them as needed for a long period of cropping. They must never be allowed to dry out or they will run to seed very quickly.
Turnip
Sow every few weeks from early spring to late summer for a succession of delicious tender golfball-sized turnips. Any left over in autumn can be used in winter casseroles and as roast vegetables. You can also sow in autumn for use as spring greens. Ideally grow under insect-proof mesh to exclude cabbage root fly. They must never be allowed to dry out or they become coarse and fiery.