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hi I have just got hold of a allotment and any advice would be great can I plant any thing now please .angela

I'm guessing that you mean that you have a new lot with a house?

I always advise to start by working on your soil, start with sheet composting I always start this off by planting a mix of rye and some sort of legume like clover, vetch or peas. Anyway, you can mow that throughout september (leave the mowings right on the ground) and then turn it in mid October after doing the final mowing.

Then add a layer of either mulched (with the mower) or un mulched leaves followed by a layer of manure. Atop this you can plant your lawn or any bedding plants that you like. Over the winter months the sheet compost will compost away and all the good worms, springtails, ground beetles, fungi, bacteria and so on will move into the soil providing your yard with a healthy ecosystem to ward off pests and disease. (Your lawn will also be the healthiest in the neighbourhood)

Fall in the best time to plant trees (especially conifers) so, get that done if money permits. Cedar premadellas (spelling? make a really nice hedge, so do smurags if you don't want the hedge to be to high. I'm a huge fan of Daylilies and Dhalia's for bedding flowers. Perennial grasses are nice as well. Anyway,the gardening world is your oyster so, have fun with it!

If you have any questions, be sure to ask!

You know, I just realized that this post is in the vegetable gardening section..... I guess that you have a gardening allotment. Okay, double take......

The same processes hold true for vegetable gardening. I also like to recommend that people do some trench composting to build the soil up over the winter as well.

There are lots of great winter vegetables out there like chards, kale, winter lettuces,leaks and so on. Probably best to get the seeds in ASAP. Also, annuals are good but, it is a good idea to have as many perennials in a garden as you can. I like ground cherries, blue berries and flowers to attract pollinators. I have Goldenrod in my garden but, in some regions it is invasive so check you local registry about that. Marigolds are good, baby blue eyes are good (annuals of course), bee balm in a nice perenial flower.

Take a look in the beneficial insect thread in the organic forum.