Ground Rules

Position

Most vegetables grow best in a sunny position. If you have a shady spot then you can still grow crops like endive, lettuce, radicchio, peas and spinach.

Shelter from cold and strong winds is beneficial - essential for crops like aubergines and peppers - and will also ensure better crops of vegetables like peas and beans.

Try and choose a position away from large trees and hedges, as these will compete with your veg for water and nutrients.

Soil preparation

Digging in bulky organic matter - that is well-rotted manure, compost, leafmould, composted bark, mushroom compost, in fact, anything you can get in bulk - will help both soils. In light soils it provides something to hold the moisture and nutrients; in clay soils it helps break up the large particles so the soil doesn't crack, drains better and is easier to work. Even good soils benefit from a dressing of organic matter.

Digging in sharp sand and/or calcified seaweed into clay soil will improve the structure even more and make it even easier to work.

The best time for soil preparation is in autumn for clay soils and spring for light, sandy soils. Autumn digging allows the soil to be further broken down by frosts and rain. But do it whenever you can. Start by digging over the soil to a depth of 37.5-45cm (15-18in) and incorporating your organic material as you go.

Watering

Plenty of available water is vital for healthy growth and cropping. When a plant goes short of water it stops growing and often starts to go to seed prematurely - or just dies.

For healthy, strong growth and the highest yields of the best crops your plants will need a constant water supply. Watering dry soil in summer is often necessary. Plants growing in containers are almost totally dependant on you to supply water and you may have to water some container crops once or even twice a day in summer to prevent them drying out.

The aim should be to keep the soil or compost evenly moist - soaking dry soil can result in some crops splitting and becoming unusable.

Seeds and seedlings are the most critical stages for many plants, so make sure seed beds and seeds sown in containers are kept moist while plants are establishing. Always use fresh tap water for this; water stored in waterbutts may contain pathogens that could affect seedling growth.

Some crops - such as the greenhouse crops and runner beans - and most seedlings will suffer a shock if watered with cold water, so allow it to reach ambient temperature before using.

If water is in short supply then use it on the following crops: peas, beans and sweet corn when they are in flower; potatoes when they are producing their new tubers; large, leafy crops before they start to wilt.

Further information

Feeding

To get the most from your crops they also need a constant supply of nutrients. Adding compost and even well-rotted manure to the soil will only add small amounts nutrients; they are mainly used to improve soil structure.

Feeding with a fertiliser will usually be necessary. For most crops, add a general fertiliser a week or so before seed sowing or planting out. You can use Growmore, or blood, fish and bone if you garden organically.

Some crops will need additional light feeds throughout the growing season using a liquid feed. For leafy crops this should be a balanced feed containing equal amounts of all the major nutrients. For fruiting crops, you should change to one that is higher in potash - such as a tomato fertiliser - to improve the quantity and quality of the fruit.

Plants growing in containers will be totally dependent on you to supply nutrients and you should either feed weekly with a liquid feed after two to three weeks or add a controlled-release fertiliser to the compost at planting time.

Weeding

Yields of most crops - but especially onions and carrots- will be reduced if weeds are allowed to interfere with their growth.

Providing deep-rooted and other perennials are dealt with when the vegetable patch is started, the only weeds that should become a problem are annuals and the seedlings of perennials. These are easily dealt with if you hoe regularly. A good sharp Dutch hoe is a deadly weapon if it is used frequently.

Sometimes weeds will grow in the rows of vegetables in which case a spot of careful hand weeding will be required. Weeds growing in containers will also have to be dealt with by hand.

Mulching

A mulch is a soil covering used to keep weed growth to a minimum, to conserve soil moisture and help insulate plant roots from extremes of cold and hot weather.

Mulching with black plastic for instance is a good idea for marrows and can be used to produce crops of potatoes without having to earth up.

Most mulches, however, are made from organic material - such as those used to improve soil structure. To be totally effective they need to be around 5cm (2in) thick, but mustn't make direct contact with the plants.

Pests & diseases

Sadly, pests and diseases can affect some crops during their life. Ensuring your crops grow strong and healthy in good soil and aren't stressed by a lack of water and nutrients will help reduce attacks.

Some problems are specific to each crop, others will affect many types of vegetables. For instance slugs, aphids and whitefly will attack a wide range of crops.

Control varies from problem to problem, but identifying a problem quickly and dealing with it immediately will prevent the problem getting out of control. Crop rotation, for instance, helps prevent the build-up of soil-borne pests and diseases.

Covering plants with horticultural fleece (before the pests attack) will prevent some insect pests and birds reaching the plants. It's important to ensure the edges of the fleece are buried in the soil to prevent access and that the fleece is loosely held over the plants so that it can move with them as they grow. This is how many growers produce carrot fly-free carrots and cabbage rootfly-free brassicas.

In extreme case you may want to resort to using a pesticide. If you don't like using chemicals organic treatments are available.

In all cases, prevention is better than cure.

Seed sowing techniques

Which crops you grow determines how the seeds are sown. Some can be direct sown where they are to grow, others are sown in a seed bed and then transplanted to their final growing position, others need to be sown indoors in pots of compost with heat.

Fast maturing crops should be sown little and often to prevent the glut/famine cycle which occurs when long rows are sown in one go. By sowing shorter rows at 10 to 14 day intervals you will harvest just the amount you need over a much longer period.

Video on Seeding techniques

Direct sowing

The vast majority of vegetables are grown by sowing the seed directly into the soil where they are to grow.

To do this you make a shallow trench (called a drill) with a cane or corner of a Dutch hoe. The seed is sown directly into the drill and covered with soil that is lightly firmed down. Always sow evenly and thinly to avoid excessive thinning out of the crop afterwards. The soil is then watered.

Video on compostseed sowing techniques

Further information

Indoor sowing

To provide plants for earlier crops or for tender crops that can't tolerate early spring temperatures, seed is sown indoors with heat - preferably in a thermostatically-controlled propagator - although germinating on a warm windowsill or in a warm conservatory are other possibilities.

Once the seeds have germinated the seedlings will need to be kept at a cooler temperature, but a cold greenhouse will normally be too cold - especially at night - for the seedlings to grow on without a check to their growth.

The seedlings are then transplanted (pricked out) individually into small 7.5-9cm (3-3.5in) pots or cell trays for growing on.

Before planting outside they will need to be hardened off so that they acclimatise to the temperature. Move the plants to a warm, sheltered position outside on a warm, still day and then bring back in at night. Then leave them outside all day - either in an open cold frame or covered with fleece. This hardening off process should take between 10 and 14 days.

Further information

Protected outdoor sowing and growing

Most seeds won't germinate below a soil temperature of about 7°C (45°F), so early sowings must be delayed until the soil has at least reached this temperature.

One way to speed this up is to warm the soil by putting cloches, clear plastic sheeting or even bottomless plastic bottles over the soil a few weeks before sowing or planting out.

The protection should be kept in place over the seeds and plants for a few weeks or until the weather warms up or the sudden shock of lower temperatures can seriously affect their growth.

There's nothing quite like growing your own VEG!