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We'd Love To Hear From You If you have any queries or concerns, please feel free to drop us a line via the form above. A member of our team will get back to you as soon as possible (messages are... … Read more
How to plant a bare root hedge

I'm not sure what the weather is like where you are but it has been dry in the Quickcrop garden for the last week which means the soil is dry enough to work. As you probably know, digging saturated so … Read more
The Benefits of Raised Bed Gardening

Why I Grow in Raised Vegetable BedsI guess the best place to get started is why should I grow in Raised Vegetable Beds in the first place? For me, growing in raised beds was my only option at first. … Read more
Fencing with James

This is a follow up to a weekly newsletter post where I mentioned a guy who worked with me a number of years ago who was always good for a funny turn of phrase.To set the scene, James was an older … Read more
Grow Your Own Onions from Sets or Seeds

Onions are some of the easiest things to grow and require very little looking after. As our friend Dermot Carey (last head gardener of Lissadell House) says if you can't grow onions you might as we … Read more
Polytunnel Pest Control

When it comes to dealing with garden pests, the enclosed space of the polytunnel can be something of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, your crops are protected from the outdoors - which can make … Read more
Sowing Seeds in Early Spring

As you may know my preference for most plants is to sow indoors in modular trays as you have a much greater chance of success. Freshly germinated seeds sown outdoors can be demolished overnight by … Read more
Do I Need Planning Permission For A Polytunnel?

Generally speaking, you won’t need planning permission for a polytunnel that’s used to grow your own food in a domestic garden. There are some exceptions and things to keep in mind. If the polytunnel … Read more
How To Grow Tomatoes

Tomatoes are one of the most rewarding crops for the home gardener to grow, simply because their flavour is so much better than their shop-bought cousins. Tomatoes grown for the supermarket shelf hav … Read more
Garden Pests & How To Deal With Them

Vegetable Garden Pests Seeing your vegetable crops decimated by garden pests can be a very disheartening sight and it can happen seemingly overnight if proper preventative methods aren't applied. Onc … Read more
Sustainable Gardening

You’ve probably seen the word 'sustainable' a fair bit, but we wouldn’t blame you if you’re not entirely sure what it means. With the way it’s used, it can sometimes seem like another word for ‘eco-f … Read more
A Guide To Planting Bare Root Trees

As regular readers will know, I had to take down over half of my trees due to ash die back disease. Sadly, that has left my little patch of land looking very different and in need of some repair. I m … Read more
How to Build a Timber Raised Pond for Your Garden

Timber raised ponds can create a beautiful water feature centrepiece for your garden. With a raised structure you can have an instant garden pond in your garden, patio, or deck without the need for l … Read more
An October Weekend in the Quickcrop Vegetable Garden

After a wet week last week, the weekend looked promising (well, Sunday at least) to get some work done in the garden and start preparing it for the Winter. As you may know, my garden is in an area of … Read more
The Art of Fermentation - Milk Kefir & Korean Kimchi

It is rare that my wife and I agree on anything but I was pleasantly surprised when my liking for pickled vegetables converged neatly with her interest in the health benefits of home fermented prod … Read more
Is Chicken Moat a Good Slug Control Method?

I suspect I'm not the only one but I am fighting a battle (and losing) with the quite unbelievable number of slugs I have this year. You can see them here this morning (below) having climbed my broad … Read more
Greenhouse Irrigation

One of the key differences between growing plants inside and growing them outside in your garden is that indoor plants don’t benefit from rainfall. As such, irrigation becomes even more important as … Read more
Planting Bare Root Fruit in Winter

I sometimes throw my vegetable garden a guilty look as I skip past it on my way to the fruit cage or down to look at my young apple trees. The vegetable garden, though not as glamorous, does the heavy … Read more
How To Grow Raspberries

Raspberries are one of the most popular summer fruits and are very easy to grow. Different training techniques mean raspberries can be grown in gardens of any size and in containers.Preparation R … Read more
How to prune mature apple trees

This article covers pruning old and neglected fruit trees, if you would like to learn how to prune younger or freshly planted trees please read ' An introduction to pruning apple trees'. I get … Read more
How To Grow Blueberry

Blueberries are delicious and extremely high in antioxidants which is why it is regarded as a super food. Plants are easy to grow provided you use an acidic or 'ericaceous' compost. Site and S … Read more
How to feed fruit and vegetable plants

As we are coming into the main planting and sowing time I thought I would cover soil and plant feed as they are such an important part of the garden. I know I covered feed in January but I have been … Read more
Garden diary 2020 - transforming a large space into a perennial paradise.

As I mentioned in my mail the week before last, I have a lot planned for the garden this year and just to prove it wasn't a load of old waffle I include some photos taken over the weekend of the large … Read more
Burtown Kitchen Garden Diary - Dividing and Planting Rhubarb

This week we are starting a new series of reports from a country house in Ireland, the beautiful Burtown House in Co.Kildare. The reason for the connection is I know Dermot Carey who is now in charge … Read more
How To Grow Parsnips

Parsnips are easy to grow members of the cow parsley family. This family includes carrot, dill, fennel and parsley among others. These seeds tend to have a short period of viability, so new packets … Read more
Bare Root Hedge Plants & New Gro-Grid Planting Mat

You might remember from a post a few weeks back that we are now manufacturing the fabulous 'Gro-Grid' weed control planting mat. We have the machinery set up in our warehouse and have been building up … Read more
How to Grow Chard

Chard is basically a beet without the bottom. It's a biennial that is grown as an annual for its big crinkly leaves. The stalks are red or white with large, dark green leaves that can be used as sa … Read more
How to Grow Herbs at Home

I guess it is important to say from the outset that herbs are very easy to grow. Considering what they add in flavour - and how often you will use them - they are probably the best value plants in th … Read more
How To Grow Tomatoes In Containers

Tomatoes can be grown in containers like pots, planters, growbags, and hanging baskets, they may not be the easiest plant to grow at home but they are definitely one of the favourites. There are many … Read more
How to Grow Chilli Peppers

Unlike other countries in the world, we just don't get the weather to grow chilli peppers successfully outdoors. It is possible but the results and cropping levels aren't as good. From my own persona … Read more
How Do You Use A Greenhouse (for Beginners)?

The greenhouse has a long and interesting history. Did you know that a proto-greenhouse structure was designed by the Romans to support Emperor Tiberius's one-cucumber-a-day habit? Or that the Victor … Read more
Privacy Policy

  Quickcrop.co.uk is committed to respecting the privacy rights of visitors to its website. This Privacy Notice aims to be transparent and helpful in setting out the way we collect, protect and... … Read more
How To Build and Install Raised Garden Beds

How To Build Raised Beds This article deals with how to build raised garden beds, what is the best size to make them and what is the best material to use. We will also look at preparing the soil … Read more
Homemade Beetroot Burgers Recipe

I do love the colour of beetroot, its glorious deep fuschia just makes me feel good looking at it. Add chickpeas, oil, garlic, lemon and some ground cumin in the blender and I still see that wonderful … Read more
Early June in the Vegetable Garden - a Photographic Tour

It really is incredible how things burst into life when we get a bit of warmth and sunshine: my little plot is suddenly a very different place. It was such a nice day yesterday that we took the camer … Read more
Genuinely Delicious Beetroot Burgers

I do love the colour of beetroot, its glorious deep fuschia just makes me feel good looking at it. Add chickpeas, oil, garlic, lemon and some ground cumin in the blender and I still see that … Read more
How to grow blueberries and cranberries

Blueberries are high in antioxidants so widely regarded as a 'Superfruit' (whatever that is) but taking their health benefits apart they are also exceptionally tasty so well worth growing yourself. Al … Read more
How To Grow French Beans (Dwarf)

Dwarf French Beans are a compact habit plant that don't need staking like runner beans or peas. They are easy to grow and withstand dry conditions perhaps better than any other crop, and they leave th … Read more
Water Wise Gardening

‘Water wise’ gardening is a common term in areas of the world that experience long periods of drought, or minimal rainfall. Gardeners who live in these areas often have to adapt to the challenges of … Read more
New Perennial Style Planting Plans

Right then. For the last while I have been both adding to our list of flowering perennial plants and working on planting plants and corresponding plant packs. As the year so far has been nuts, progres … Read more
Choosing the Right Polytunnel for Your Garden

A polytunnel is a game-changer for the home grower, and if you can afford the initial investment it will pay off in spades. However, trying to choose between the range of options (and ensuring you ge … Read more
March 2020 Vegetable Garden Update

Well, hello there folks. That's been a strange couple of weeks hasn't it? I apologise for the late mail but I have had the luminous vest on since last week as I've been packing orders in the warehouse … Read more
Commercial Composting Solutions

Plastic may have taken much of the attention in recent times, but food waste continues to be a pressing issue affecting the environment. Recent statistics show that the UK throws away roughly 9.5 mi … Read more
Getting the season under way

It is still early days for sowing but there are a few plants that you can start off now, especially if you are lucky enough to have a greenhouse or polytunnel. Sowing times will differ depending on yo … Read more
Ergonomic Gardening Tools

Gardening has been going on in some shape or form since time immemorial, so it’s natural that garden tools tend to follow a traditional design depending on what task they’re designed for. After all, … Read more
Planting fruit in October

Growing your own fruit has to be the easiest, most satisfying and most joyous gardening pursuit. Yes, I am delighted when I fork out some nice straight carrots or creamy skinned potatoes but do the … Read more
Do I need a Greenhouse or Polytunnel?

Greenhouses and polytunnels are both structures that allow for regulation of climate and enable you to grow a wider range of vegetables, fruits and plants than you would be able to outdoors. Temperat … Read more
How to grow bare root soft fruit part 1: How to grow raspberries

How to grow bare root soft fruit In general and for the purposes of this article, soft fruit refers to soft skinned, juicy fruit borne on bushes or canes. Other types of soft fruit include strawb … Read more
July in the Quickcrop Garden.

July in the garden is a bit of a double edged sword, Mother nature shows her muscles both in the vigourous growth from your vegetable crops but also in the vigourous growth from your weeds. While you … Read more
July 7th - Quickcrop Vegetable Garden Update

I don't know what the season has been like for you but thanks to a warm and dry early summer followed by some welcome rain, my garden is looking vibrant and green. Despite the fact that the weeds grow … Read more
Growing Fruit in Containers

So, the other week, I had an email from a customer asking for advice on what soil mix to use for planting fruit trees in containers. It was a simple question which should have resulted in a quick r … Read more
Soil health, plant feed & pruning fruit.

I know I have looked at soil and plant feeds a number of times over the years but, for the benefit of new growers, I think it may be helpful to cover it again today as we prepare our gardens for a new … Read more