Planning the plot
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A good plan saves you years of moving things around. Decide where the permanent things go (shed, compost, fruit, water), then lay out beds you can reach into from the paths, and group your crops so you can rotate them.
Start with the plot planner: enter your plot size and the crops you want, and it draws a to-scale layout with a 4-year rotation.
Tools
Planning guides
- Allotment plot sizesHow big is an allotment? Full, half and quarter plots explained in poles, rods, perches and square metres, and how to pick the right size.
- Allotment layout ideasLay out your allotment: bed widths you can reach, path widths, where the shed, compost and fruit go, and how to plan for rotation.
- Crop rotation on an allotmentA simple 4-year allotment crop rotation: which crops go in each group, how the beds move each year, and what rotation can and can't prevent.
- Raised beds on an allotmentWhether raised beds are worth it on an allotment, sensible sizes, and how much soil or compost they take.Coming soon
- Plan allotment rotation by crop family, not by the shape of the vegetableGroup crops by plant family before drawing rotation arrows, keep a bed-by-bed record including second crops, and know which crops sit outside rotation.
- Filling an allotment raised bed: choose the growing mix before the bag countDecide what a raised bed will grow and how it drains before ordering bags: topsoil, organic matter, horticultural sharp sand and a practical order sheet.
Sources
- National Allotment Society (NSALG): A traditional full allotment plot is 10 poles (rods or perches), about 250 square metres awaiting check
- RHS: RHS crop rotation: group crops (legumes and onions, brassicas, potatoes, roots) and move each group to a new bed every year to limit soil pests and diseases checked 24 Oct 2026