what to grow

[tinkertontom]

at the bottom of my garden there is fairly large patch which at the moment is covered in weeds,I am planning to cover it with black plastic to get rid and then dig it over, does anyone know of any veg that can be grown over the winter ready for next year

[dancecaller]

Broad beans and spring cabbage

[Jules001]

As most veg can be bought quite cheaply in the supermarkets (ok it doesn't all taste great) we found it was better to grow soft fruit as that is so expensive in the shops and obviously doesn't keep very well. We now have blueberries, strawberries, gooseberries, blackcurrants, redcurrants, raspberries and blackberries in our garden and have bumper crops almost every year.

[Billy_Bones]

I totally agree with both previous answers but just wish to add to the second. I planted some Glen Ample raspberry canes on a bit of disused garden a few years ago and have had fantastic crops of really big tasty fruits since. The reason that I have stated the variety is that they don't have spines - so no torn clothes or ripped flesh when pruning or harvesting - Fantastic! Good luck with what ever you choose.

[Billy_Bones]

Have you considered a wildlife friendly area? One alternative use for your garden would be to sow a mixture of native flowers to attract insects like the rather endangered bumblebees and butterflies, these in turn bring in the also endangered birds and bats which are great to see.

[Billy_Bones]

Part 2. To top it all these patches of garden are very low maintenance - some mixtures include grasses so that you can hace your own meadow.
I know that this was not the question you askes, but it may be an alternative you hadn't considered, so I thought it worth a punt. I did this recently and was realy pleased with the results - a beautiful display of flowers and I feel smug that I'm 'doing my bit' for conservation too!

[tinkertontom]

thanks everyone I am seriously thinking of having a gooseberry bush I love gooseberries and you dont see them much in the shops . also it might be worth having an area like a meadow as its almost there already and it will only be for two to three years as we are extending the property

thanks for ideas