Allotments

Amaranth 'Green Giant' is a vigorous selection that produces slightly savoyed, large mid green leaves. With a mild spinach flavour, the leaves can be used at babyleaf stage for salad or garnish, or at maturity for steamed vegetable or soups. The gluten free, protein rich seeds can be eaten as a grain, perfect for vegetarians and vegans.

Amaranth 'Passion' has attractive oval, mid-green leaves that are streaked through with shades of red and purple. Easy to grow and tolerant of wide-ranging conditions. Its soft leaves are a great addition to salads and, like spinach they melt delectably when cooked. The plants are very ornamental and also look good in the border

Most gardeners are familiar with ornamental amaranth, but few realise that this plant is a delicious nutritional powerhouse. In the hot summer months, when growing spinach is near impossible, amaranth thrives. A favorite with chefs, Amaranth tricolor ‘Red Army’ is an intense cherry red selection with a delicate pea-like flavour. Use at babyleaf stage for salad or garnish, or leave to mature for steamed vegetable or soups.

Black Beauty has long been popular with home gardeners. An excellent quality variety, early to mature it gives and abundant crop of tasty fruits that are clear of the ground. Early and prolific, it will be ready to harvest in 78 days, the sturdy plants produce high yields of glossy, purple-black, pear-shaped fruit.

Aubergine ‘F1 Patio Baby’ is a unique, high-yielding, compact variety that reliably produces flavoursome, oval fruits with beautiful glossy purple skins. Ideal for growing in the greenhouse and are absolutely perfect grown in containers on the patio. Each plant can produce up to 25 to 50 deep purple-black, egg shaped fruit.

Considered one of the best by gourmets and gardeners alike, Aubergine 'Rosa Bianca' is a gorgeous variety with a delicate, mild flavour, creamy consistency. The fruits are produced in abundance, have a meaty flesh and a delicate flavour. They are both lovely to look at and lovely to eat.

The Bright and Spicy Leaf Salad mixture contains a well balanced salad mix that is rich in colour and taste. The mix includes Greek Cress, Tatsoi, Pak Choi and the Mustards Red Zest and Red Frills. The attractive flavoursome leaves need only the lightest dressing.

This salad mix is comprised of a dynamic array of niche varieties. The vivacious colours along with its well loved taste, makes this mix wonderfully enticing. The mix contains American or Land Cress, Kale Red Russian , Red Chard, Salad Rocket and Spinach.

Mesclun Mix has been made for hundreds of years around Nice in Southern France. The idea was to make a salad that touches upon every taste and texture sensation: bitter, sweet, tangy, crunchy and silky. This mix is based on the traditional recipe and is a treat for the eye as well as the tongue.

The Oriental Salad Mix is one of a series of six blends which provide a wide variety of colourful and tasty salads. The mix includes Mizuna, Mibuna, Red and Green Mustards, Pak Choi and Tatsoi. The vivacious colours along with its well loved taste, makes this mix wonderfully enticing.

The Provence Salad mix has a light texture enriched with striking red stems portioned throughout. Containing Sorrel de Bellevile, Corn Salad Verte de Cambrai, Lettuce Rougette de Montpelier and Chervil. A tasteful mix with a warming sensation to assist any appetite.

This is an exiting mix of vibrant colour and incomparable textures of salad in its youth. Containing Chicory Italico Rosso, Rocket Dentellata, Kale Nero de Toscana, Lettuce Lollo Rossa and Catalogna Cerbiata - Classic Italian leaves that will enhance presentation and flavours of any dish.

Grano Violetto is a unique and colourful early maturing broad bean. This very hardy variety is suitable for sowing from October. The plants grow to 90cm tall and are highly productive even at the lower parts of the plant. Harvested while still green, the purple coloration appears once the beans are dried.

French Bean 'Gordonia' is a beautiful extra fine, dwarf or Bush Bean that produces slender, dark green pods that have good texture and taste and are tender enough to eat raw. They mature just 8 to 10 weeks from sowing, are very easy to grow and give superb yields for a small amount of space, outlay and effort.

Very reliable even in variable conditions, Dwarf French Bean seeds 'Tendergreen' is a medium long pencil podded type that produces good yields of medium sized, 15cm pods that have good texture and taste. Very easy to grow, they give superb yields for a small amount of space, outlay and effort.

Extra-Early Purple Sprouting 'Rudolph' is bred to perform well in the September to February period but is at its best from November to February. With medium to large, deep purple, succulent spears that have outstanding flavour, team with Cardinal for a longer harvest period.

This lovely, old fashioned Broccoli variety is a very disease resistant, very hardy and very prolific producer of large dark green heads. Italian Green Sprouting Broccoli is very easy to grow and will produce a number of good-size side shoots once the initial head is harvested.

Flourishing famously in Mediterranean and Chinese cultures, elsewhere Raab is still a bit of a curiosity. Easy and fast growing, it can be useful as it comes ready when ordinary broccoli isn't available, but this isn't just a replacement for broccoli, it is a great vegetable in its own right.