Hi there Andrew,

There is a hosepipe ban in my area, South London. I do not want to be
carrying lots of water in watering cans. Can I please get some advice
on which vegetables need the least amount of watering.

I'm only a beginner gardener (about 6-7 years), so don't know what rules
are on allotments. But the ones I've seen around Liverpool quite often
have flowers as well as veggies. If you have sufficient veggies for
your needs, why not grow some flowers?

Succulents don't need a great deal of water - some are used on rooftops
as insulation on "green" houses (as opposed to greenhouses!) so can put
up with dry and hot conditions.

Nasturtiums are great too - you can eat the leaves and flowers and seed.
Peppery flavour, along with the nasturium smell/taste. Makes an
interseting addition to a salad, especially the flowers! ;-) Very
pretty! :-) And you can pickle the seeds to make something similar to
capers.

The big ones (rather than the bush ones) will trail a long way, covering
a lot of ground - we grew a couple at the edge of the patio at the
caravan one year, they yomped across it in no time! ;-) I just used to
cut back when they began to use too much space. Would need a bit of
water to get them going, but once established seemed OK just on rainfall.

And there are the Mediterranean herbs - all need very little water.
Thyme, basil, sorry forget others but I'm sure you will get lots of
useful suggestions for others.

Lavender likes it dry too - attracts the bees and beneficial insects
too, so I'm sure your fellow allotment holders would like that. I would
hope so anyway!

I'm sure you'll get more useful suggestions from others, as I said, I'm
only a beginner.

Maggie
in sunny Liverpool (but haven't ventured out yet as it's still a bit
windy, will stick my nose out the back door in a bit!