Which vegetables tolerate clay soil best?

 Hello,

I have an allotment with clay soil. What vegetables can I reasonably
grow in it what which vege should I not even try?

So far I have onions, parsnips, beetroot, raspberries and strawberries!
The beetroot did well last year (the parsnips not so well) but I didn't
give my gardening serious effort. I shall work harder this year, but
don't want to waste my time trying hopeless cases.

For instance:

Can I grow sweetcorn, tomatoes, spinach (beet), leek, lettuce in the
clay soil?

I also have pumkin, melon, courgette, squash, beans, turnips - but will
probably grow them in my back garder which has rich loam in it.

 
"Jasbird"  wrote

You can grow all of those in clay soil, our old allotment had clay soil such
that sometimes I had to cut chunks of soil up to bank our spuds rather like
making a dry stone wall, even after 10 years of cultivation..
Clay soil is a rich soil as it does not allow nutrients to be leached out
like a sandy loam does. Most veg plants love it, it's the gardeners that
don't because it's hard work.
Our cucurbits always grew very well and I used to just dig a bucket sized
hole, fill it with well rotted compost and plant the plant in the middle of
that, never any problems.
Check the pH though, some clay can be acid and Lime helps break it up
anyway.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
17mls W. of London.UK

 
Bob Hobden wrote:
[...]

Bob, I see you're in a lowish-rainfall area. Would that planting-pocket
method work as well in the west? I'd be afraid that in clay the holes
would hold too much water.

--
Mike.

 
"Mike Lyle" wrote after...

Yes, it's actually a very low rainfall area in a low rainfall area. We often
remain totally dry when all around have a heavy downpour. It's become quite
a joke with friends, us praying for rain. (washing the car usually works!)
I have often seen it written that you plant your cucurbits on a hump of
compost to aid drainage and stop rot due to water laying around the plant,
never a problem here, I was taught to plant as I said and using the soil
taken out to form a dam around the plant to hold water.
In the West where it is considerably wetter you may well need to plant on a
hump but I see no reason why you couldn't use the "pocket" method as long as
the top of the plant stayed dry. Only answer is to try it with some and see
what happens compared to your usual method.
I knew an old gardener that used to plant his cucurbits on his oldest
compost heap.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
17mls W. of London.UK

 Agreed, The majority of veggies love clay soils, most tolerate it, and
of all the ones I grow only watermelons really sulk in clay soils. You
may want to try some of the short carrots, use to grow the oxheart type
, but the round ball types should also work. The long slim types will
grow, but are prone to oddshapes on heavy clay.