Do you have an allotment or garden plot you want to make more productive? This series of seven sessions throughout the growing season will introduce you to the essentials of allotment gardening, including preparing your plot, planning what to plant, protecting your crops and keeping them healthy, maintaining your plot through the season, and then harvesting and considering winter options.
Ian Smith, RHS Garden Advisor, will show you the different productive areas at Rosemoor and talk you through them, helping you consider how to replicate them in your own garden or allotment. There will be plenty of time for discussion and encouragement.
Tutor: Ian Smith has over 20 years of horticultural experience across a variety of creative, practical, and educational roles and has a passion for gardening. He has designed a range of gardens for clients, from compact spaces to large country estates. He has studied many aspects of horticulture, including completing the RHS Master of Horticulture in 2015.
Ian has taught horticulture and garden design with Bicton College and the RHS, is an RHS Horticultural Advisor at RHS Rosemoor and the RHS Flower Shows, and is a trustee for the Devon Gardens Trust. He is interested in historic gardens, their research and future development, and is keen to inspire more people to garden.
- Session 1: 14 March 2026: Productive garden site review and preparation, crop planning, indoor seed sowing techniques and other March tasks.
- Session 2: 11 April 2026: Outdoor seed sowing techniques, fruit planning and April tasks.
- Session 3: 9 May 2026: Plant health and keeping the productive garden at its best.
- Session 4: 13 June 2026: Advanced seed sowing and making the most of all of your allotment.
- Session 5: 11 July 2026: Keeping your allotment productive through the summer and what to do now to maintain cropping
- Session 6: 12 September 2026: Harvesting and extending the growing season, and preparing for the winter
- Session 7: 10 October 2026: Growing year review and plan setting for next year.
Location and arrival information: The workshop will be split between the Peter Buckley Learning Centre and outside in the Garden. Please allow 15 minutes to park in the main visitor car park, enter the garden, and reach the Learning Centre.
Catering: Tea/coffee and biscuits will be available in the classroom at the start of each session
For this workshop,
you will need:
- Your booking reference number to show to the team at the Garden Entrance
- A notebook and a pencil to make notes
- Clothing and footwear suitable for being indoors and outdoors, appropriate to the weather on the day
Skill Level: Upskiller – I have mastered the basics of gardening and would like to build on horticultural knowledge and skills
