I want an allotment
Choose this when you want a defined plot to manage yourself. Council schemes can have waiting lists, so check the current local route.
Check allotment options →Timely and practical
See the full 12-month calendar →What to do this month
Irish weather varies by site and year. Use this as a prompt, then check your seed packet and local conditions.
Plan before buying
- Choose a small growing area.
- Order only the seeds in your plan.
- Chit early potatoes late in the month.
Start gently indoors
- Sow broad beans or early lettuce under cover.
- Prune suitable fruit bushes.
- Check containers and drainage.
First outdoor sowings
- Sow carrots, parsnips and spring onions when soil allows.
- Plant early potatoes.
- Start tomatoes indoors.
Main sowing begins
- Sow beetroot, radish and spinach.
- Plant onion sets.
- Start courgettes indoors late in the month.
Watch the last frost
- Harden off tender plants.
- Sow beans after cold nights ease.
- Mulch and prepare watering.
Keep growth steady
- Water deeply rather than little and often.
- Sow another short row of salad.
- Support beans and tomatoes.
Harvest and sow again
- Lift early potatoes as needed.
- Pick courgettes while small.
- Sow autumn carrots and salad.
Harvest now, plan for autumn
- Keep picking beans and courgettes.
- Sow spinach, chard and hardy salad.
- Mark empty ground for autumn cover or compost.
Set up winter crops
- Harvest maincrop potatoes.
- Plant autumn onion sets.
- Protect young winter brassicas.
Clear and cover
- Lift tender crops before frost.
- Plant garlic where suitable.
- Mulch or sow green manure.
Protect and improve
- Harvest winter roots and leeks.
- Secure covers against wind.
- Add compost to cleared beds.
Rest and review
- Harvest winter crops as needed.
- Write down what worked.
- Make next year's short crop list.
Find the useful bit
What are you trying to work out?
Showing six starting points.
My first growing season
Choose a small area, three manageable crops and only the tools you actually need.
Open the beginner guide →Allotments and alternatives
Check the council route, community gardens and private growing-space requests together.
Check allotment options →What can I sow now?
Use the Irish month-by-month calendar as a planning prompt.
Open the grow calendar →Grow without a garden
Start with containers matched to the crop, your light and your watering routine.
See the container starter →Soil, pests and common setbacks
Diagnose the actual constraint before buying a product or building a raised bed.
See common problems →Seeds, tools and materials
A category checklist for comparing Irish suppliers without pretending stock or prices are fixed.
Compare what to buy →No land yet?
Start with three containers
A sunny balcony, doorstep or yard can teach most of the habits you will need on a plot: watering, observation, sowing and harvesting.
Salad leaves
Use a broad container with drainage and sow a short row at a time.
Parsley or chives
Choose a herb you actually use and keep it close to the kitchen.
One larger crop
Try potatoes in a suitable pot or a courgette in a large container if light and watering allow.
Container compost dries faster than open soil. Check moisture with a finger rather than watering on a fixed timetable.
Ready for more room?
See where growing space is most needed
Our public county map shows broad demand without publishing anyone's personal details.