Peas are well-suited to cooler temperate climates. In fact, when temperatures exceed 20C (70F), most varieties of peas will stop producing pods. Peas are part of the legume (Latin Leguminosae) ... … Read more

Parsley is a biennial edible herb grown for its leaves which are commonly used in cooking and for garnishing salads and other cold dishes. Parsley is also known known to be highly nutritious and is ... … Read more

Dill leaves are very aromatic and can be used to flavour a wide range of foods, particularly fish and pickles. Once it is dried out it quickly begins to lose flavour, so it is best used fresh. &nb ... … Read more

Winter Savory is part of the Lamiaceae family, it is not used as much as summer savory anymore because of its more bitter taste. As well as many medicinal properties, winter savory goes great with ... … Read more

Summer Savory is probably the most used of the savory species, part of the Lamiaceae family it is closely related to rosemary and thyme. It is not as bitter tasting as winter savory and as such is ... … Read more

Basil is one of the most well-known and well-used herbs in the UK and Ireland. It is used as a key ingredient in Italian dishes including pizza and pasta. It is the main ingredient in pesto and it ... … Read more

Growing Dwarf French Beans 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 ... … Read more

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 straw ... … Read more

Beetroot is one of my best friends in the garden as we get so much out of it: using it for juicing, grating it for salads, roasting, baking and - my favourite of all - pickling. This crop has ... … Read more

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 ... … Read more

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 quic ... … Read more

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 shel ... … Read more

How to Grow your own Runner Beans from seed or seedlings with this step by step guide including plant maintenance, pest and disease control and harvesting. All this growing beans information is al ... … Read more

Wheatgrass is a tricky one to pin down. Many people I've spoken with swear by it while others will dismiss it as utter nonsense. It is claimed to be an energy booster, and a detoxifier, to be benefic ... … Read more

Fruit trees and bushes are planted in the garden with the intention of being around for the long haul, providing harvests for many years. In return for this supply of fresh fruit they require regula ... … Read more

Grow Your Own Oriental Salads Spicy Chinese Mustard. Mustard greens are very popular in China for stir-fry, and mostly used cooked. The oriental mustards are a very large group of rather coarse-l ... … Read more

'Brigitte F1' has to be the best and most reliable brussels sprout variety with fantastic results every time. We recommend using an F1 hybrid sprout like Brigitte because the sprouts stay closed l ... … Read more

Sowing French Bean - Climbing Recommended varieties: Cobra. You can sow climbing french beans indoors from the middle of May to plant out later or sow outdoors at the end of May. Be aware that Fre ... … Read more

Mustard greens are very popular in China for stir-fry, and mostly used cooked. The oriental mustards are a very large group of rather coarse-leaved brassicas, usually having a spicy flavour. The m ... … Read more

Timetable for growing tomatoes: a summary of a decade of learningI started growing tomatoes in the wet summer of 2009 and was quite frankly, not very successful. It probably took me until 2013 to kno ... … Read more

Corn Salad has a delicate flavor, which resembles a nutty, concentrated butterhead lettuce. The leaves provide a nutritious boost of vitamins and minerals, especially iron. Producing attractive an ... … Read more

'How to grow gooseberries' is intended as a solid introduction to growing this relatively easy to grow fruit bush. For more detailed information on gooseberries please feel free to contact us, we ... … Read more

What exactly do you need to grow vegetables? If you are asking this question then it is safe to assume you are thinking about growing your own vegetables for the first time. The good news is that gro ... … Read more

A brief explanation of soil pH  'pH' refers to how acid or alkaline a soil is. The scale runs from 0-14 and basically measures the amount of calcium in the soil. Neutral is in the middle (7 ... … Read more

For me potatoes are the backbone of the vegetable garden. If you get the seed potatoes in relatively early, there is very little to do apart from earthing up and keeping an eye out for blig ... … Read more

How to grow red kale, the variety we use most often in our nurseries is Red Russian, this is a frost hardy variety with a sweeter taste than other kale. A wonderful addition to the winter garde ... … Read more

Pumpkins have a special appeal for both adults and children, especially at Halloween. The carved pumpkin outside the front door - or being carried house to house as a lantern - is an establishe ... … Read more

Swede is one of the easiest vegetables to grow and is well-suited to the novice gardener. They also crop over a very long time because they can be left in the soil throughout the winter.  ... … Read more

Onions are one of the most popular vegetables for growing in home gardens and are one of the first crops of spring. They can be stored over winter thus making a versatile crop. They are used in a ... … Read more

Be Realistic! I'd give the same advice to any new gardener - to start small with easy to grow crops. A school vegetable garden also has the holidays to take into account so unless you have inter ... … Read more

A plant seed is created to grow, and will perform that task admirably once given the opportunity. For successful germination seeds will need:  a suitable growing medium moderate moistu ... … Read more

Perpetual spinach is actually a chard (beet family) but is very similar to true spinach in flavour. We prefer it as it is much easier to grow and far more vigorous than true spinach. It also has th ... … Read more

The variety we use in our nursery is usually Red Rovite, it is a very reliable red cabbage to grow in Autumn and Winter. Where to grow: Although cabbage can tolerate shade they will do much ... … Read more

Whatever style of greenhouse you opt for - whether it’s a ‘lean-to’, a compact house or a larger one - it will open up new possibilities for you and extend your growing season. It’s also a very ... … Read more

Gardening Gifts / Christmas Presents For Gardeners Gifts for gardeners and gardening gift ideas, it can be quite tough trying to figure out what the gardener in your life really wants for Christmas ... … Read more

There are no bounds when it comes to creativity when it comes to gardening, and the keyhole garden is a pretty neat example. This raised bed method of growing vegetables in a compact space is b ... … Read more

Urban gardening often involves having to make the most of small spaces. Just how much space you have to work with will depend on circumstance, but it’s possible for even an apartment-dweller to ... … Read more

As was briefly mentioned in my mail of a couple of weeks ago, changing weather patterns can challenge our habits and our 'collective wisdom' about the traditional growing season. In recent years ... … Read more

Healthy vegetables need a healthy soil, it's as simple as that. Soil Improvement for Vegetable Gardeners is very important as the quality of the vegetables produced is directly related to the qual ... … Read more

Milan Purple Top has distinctive flat-topped roots, white with purple crown. Quick maturing, useful in frames and under cloches. They are a fast crop, being ready in just five to eight weeks f ... … Read more

Currants are an excellent fruit for the home gardener as they a relatively trouble free and produce large crops of highly nutritious fruit. Currants are divided into black, red and white types wit ... … Read more

The end of March and early April is approaching prime seed sowing time if we are starting indoors in seed trays or pots (for planting outside in May). I think we covered timing already but, a ... … Read more

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 w ... … Read more

What is Square Foot Gardening? Square foot gardening is a method of growing vegetables which centers around planting crops in blocks rather than rows. The system divides the growing space up int ... … Read more

While I am not a fan of of winter I do enjoy preparing for it. There is great satisfaction in harvesting and storing crops in October, protecting beds from heavy rain and generally put ... … Read more

The trouble with pots and planters made from ceramic or stone is that they are heavy (extremely heavy if we're talking about stone), and can split in a heavy frost. From our point of view, they are ... … Read more

A new year brings with it the temptation to try something new in the garden, overhaul your growing space or simply fine-tune the way that you do things. Garden planning is something you ca ... … Read more

If you're staring off your vegetable plants in early Spring you'll need to give them some heat as temperatures will be too cold for the seeds to germinate. If you're growing in a greenhouse or pol ... … Read more

Vegan gardening has a lot of overlap with organic or no-dig gardening. However, the ways in which it differs are related to the principles of veganism itself. Veganism is a belief or philosophy ... … Read more

Propagating vegetable seeds using a heated propagator Indoor vegetable seed propagation has two main advantages; plants are protected from pests and disease in their most vulnerable stages and s ... … Read more

There's something quite pleasant about raking up Autumn leaves, it feels like such an ancient, seasonal practice that it connects you not only with the current yearly cycle but to the same ... … Read more

We are nearly at that time again when we sow some tiny seeds in compost and see them magically transform into large tomato plants bearing 15-20 kg of fruit each. The whole thing is incredible r ... … Read more

I know marketeers (am I a marketeer? I suppose I am) always say they are very excited about the launch of a new product range but I am genuinely giddy about our new range of succulent plants. Th ... … Read more

We are now moving into the time of year when we start to sow seeds (for those of you not reading this article 'hot from the oven' it is the beginning of February) so I figured it may be helpful to wr ... … Read more

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 o ... … Read more

A polytunnel can really open up a world of growing possibilities, extending the growing season, providing extra shelter and increasing your chances of success with warm climate crops.  However, ... … Read more

Beginners Gardening Kits Vegetable gardening can be a little intimidating to the beginner and it is hard to know where to start with all the various information flying around. Our new beginners g ... … Read more

Regular watering and sensible irrigation is essential to the development and healthy growth of any plant. Water is drawn from the root of the plant and transported through its capilla ... … Read more

I am not sure what it's like with you but we have had some real January weather over the weekend with some hard overnight frosts. A hard frost ads a touch of magic to the garden, with ice cryst ... … Read more

With rising energy bills being the reality these days, many people will want to avoid the expense of trying to heat a greenhouse by using storage or paraffin heaters etc. There are some alterna ... … Read more

As the garden is currently in the process of springing into life and we have 'work' to do, it might be a good idea to have a look at some of the essential garden tools for vegetable growing. We ... … Read more

November is the month when growth in the vegetable garden finally grinds to a halt. Temperatures fall and daylight levels decrease, the season is over and other than harvesting any remaining crops ... … Read more

UK Vegetable Gardening In Raised Bed Kits Raised bed vegetable gardening in the UK is becoming more popular than ever before with increasing numbers of people growing their own food, especia ... … Read more

Flowering bulbs are ideal for container gardening or as part of a vibrant garden border. They are one of the easiest plants to grow and with a little careful planning can provide a beautiful show of ... … Read more

A raised bed can provide the perfect environment for creating a herb garden. It can be positioned anywhere that suits you and can be maintained easily. A selection of plants can be mixed for a div ... … Read more

Despite the fact that I am usually busy enough in the polytunnel in late Winter (sowing sweet peas, peppers, broad beans etc....), it is not until I sow my tomatoes that I really feel the seaso ... … Read more

I am afraid we have had to close the Quickcrop site for 3 days and not taking any new orders until Friday. As I think I explained last week we are down to a small team of core staff who are doing all ... … Read more

Many of you will have noticed it is no longer Autumn, so clearly planting tulips and daffodils aren't an option at the moment. The great news is there are a whole range of Spring-planted bulbs ... … Read more

When you’re just starting on your food-growing journey, it’s probably best to be a little selective about what you’re planning to grow. There are some food crops that can prove to be surprising ... … Read more

It's one thing to have your greenhouse all set up, installed and ready to go for the new season. However an empty greenhouse is a bit like an empty house; you're best off getting some furnishin ... … Read more

The Evolution of the Wild Cabbage Plant My recent bedtime reading has been 'The Blind Watchmaker' by evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins and I am now suffering from lack of sleep. The book is fas ... … Read more

What is Meant By Organic Gardening? You will no doubt often hear the term organic gardening or ‘gardening naturally’. What it actually means - or how strict the definition is - can be ... … Read more

This weekend showed some real promise with blue skies and the first fleeting traces of heat from the sun. As you see from the photo (taken on Sunday morning) the wind had also dropped leaving the ... … Read more

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 th ... … Read more

I don't think I ever showed you my garden did I? It was originally put together as the shared Quickcrop garden but since the business moved from my house this Spring (it used to be housed in my barn ... … Read more

1 Planning. Decide what you want to do with your vegetable garden and spend time working out the best way to achieve it. There are so many choices –fruit or vegetables, greenhouse or polytunnel, wor ... … Read more

Plant propagation is creating new plants from existing plants. This can be done using seeds or bulbs, by taking cuttings from existing plants, or by dividing roots. Taking cuttings is by far the eas ... … Read more

Fruit trees and bushes are planted in the garden with the intention of remaining for the long term, providing produce for many years. In return for this supply of fresh fruit they require regular fee ... … Read more

Raised bed vegetable garden plan. I include my 2016 vegetable garden plan below if anyone is interested in what I'll be growing next year. My garden is now split up into long raised beds with gr ... … Read more

Perfectly healthy plants can be affected by air, water or soil borne diseases at any time. Understanding the causes, identifying them early and taking effective action will help you establish and mai ... … Read more

Last week the blog included some tips on starting a new vegetable garden and, judging by the emails I received (thank you), a number of you found it very helpful (fantastic!). With that in mind, I ... … Read more

Camomile (also spelled Chamomile), it is a herb most commonly used for its relaxing properties, it has long narrow leaves with attractive daisy-like flowers. It is quite an easy plant to grow for ... … Read more

Rocket is very quick growing, Rocket Cultivated Rucola Coltivata is a vigorous, robust plant with pungent leaves. Use as a main ingredient of a mixed green salad to add zest and texture. Where ... … Read more

As you know my top priority is keeping you happy so when I noticed a sunny spell outside the office window I sped over to the Quickcrop garden to take some photos. I was concerned, you see, that you ... … Read more

I think I mentioned last week that haven't been spending as much time as I should have in the vegetable garden due to the uninspiring weather we have been having lately. I had noticed on one of my br ... … Read more

I had a call from Dermot Carey (my personal vegetable guru) over the weekend as he wanted to pick up a couple of rolls of fleece. "I hope you don't mind me calling on a Sunday morning" says Dermot ... … Read more

The number of people having a go at producing some of there own fresh produce is on the increase every year. The latest revolution is the small space urban gardener, who takes advantage of every ... … Read more

Tarragon is a very easy to grow herb. It has a peppery slightly anise flavour to it. This is a much used herb as it goes well with most types of dish. Site and Soil Plant in a sunny or par ... … Read more

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 packet ... … Read more

Claytonia is also known as winter purslane or miners lettuce, it tastes quite like spinach and is full of vitamin C. It is a tough, cold resistant salad for growing in the open to crop from October u ... … Read more

Mizuna is one of those strange oriental vegetables which arrived in the West in the last 20 years or so. The name for this leafy green comes from the Japanese mizu, for “water,” and nu, for “mustar ... … Read more

Salad Burnet, also called Garden Burnet, Small Burnet or simply just burnet, is a perennial herb of the Rosaceae or Rose family. It's edible leaves have a slight cucumber like flavour and can be u ... … Read more

Borage, also known as a starflower, is a mediterranean annual herb that also grows well in the UK and Ireland. It has hairy leaves and stems with a 5 pointed blue flower, white and pink var ... … Read more

Land cress is also known as American cress and is a tasty and fast growing watercress substitute. It is ready to eat seven or 8 weeks after sowing so is an excellent plant to grow late in the seas ... … Read more

Growing your own food provides many benefits to both our physical and mental health. There are many resources available online that go in to great detail about the various nutritional information and ... … Read more

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

Growing Vegetables places more strain on a piece of land than flowering plants or shrubs because we remove nutrients every time we harvest a crop. Vegetables are also relatively hungry plants requ ... … Read more

I feel a bit guilty about my post last week where I said there was nothing to do in the November garden so I thought I would offer a few tips today. It is true that there are very few vegetables to s ... … Read more

Soil and Compost Delivered We stock bulk bags of soil and compost (approx 1 tonne), all delivered for free to your garden or allotment. Also available are smaller bags of compost and vegetable soil ... … Read more

Growing info - A Read more Growing info - B Read more Growing info - C Read more Growing info - D Read more Growing info - E Read more Growing info - F Read more ... … Read more