[uffe38]

Hi all, I'm really new to this and finally managed to lay my hands on an allotment plot. I wish I was better at english so I knew the right words to describe its state.

The plot is about 8 x 8 meters, and covered with thick grass. The grass is cut, so it's not tall, but "thick" if you get my meaning. Thick and heavy.
The last 3 days I've been turning it by hand, managed about a fifth of the plot so far (about 40 mins a day then my back says "stop"). My plan is to turn the whole plot before the weather turns to freezing.

Questions:
1) I live in northern Sweden and today the first snow arrived. Does it matter?
2) Should I turn the grass by hand? Will it be enough?

Thanks all and happy gardening:)

[noshed]

Welcome to the forum.
I've never had such a problem fortunately - the snow or the grass - but you could chop the grass off horizontally with a spade and stack up the turf to rot down (pile up under a tarpaulin).
The snow and ice should break the gound up a bit for the spring - at least you know it's fertile if the grass is growing OK. Then dig it over again as soon as it's workable, put on some manure or compost if you have any.
Looks like you'll have some dark nights to do your planning in anyway!
Other people may have more useful tips, it's hard to think of anywhere less like northern Sweden than my plot in Walthamstow - haven't seen a reindeer in ages.

[John]

Hei Uffe

Sorry I don't have any Swedish!  (3 words of Norsk )

If you take the grass off and put it in a pile or hill with the grass down then cover it. This will turn into good soil called loam next year.

Dig the soil and leave it in lumps that we call clods. The freeze will break it down and make it easy to work next year.

Hope that helps - where in Sweden are you?

[uffe38]

Hei Uffe

Where in Sweden are you?

A place called Umeå, northern Sweden, about 600 km north of Stockholm.

So I should put all the grass in a pile? So far I just turned it upside down with the roots up where it was...the roots are about 8-10 cm thick...

Thanks for the advice:)

[noshed]

Yes - stack it up with the grass downwards and then cover it.
Amazing, I know someone else in Umeå.

[uffe38]

Yes - stack it up with the grass downwards and then cover it.
Amazing, I know someone else in Umeå.

It's a tiny world:)

[Eristic]

My advice is to dig the ground with a spade using the trench method. Leave the clods with the grass in big lumps and let the cold weather break it down.

Do not rush. If you have snow already, then you will not be able to plant anything so just let the weather break it all up for you. Once the winter has passed, go over the ground again with a fork breaking any remaining lumps and removing all weeds and roots that remain.

Good luck

[muntjac]

same advice here as all the rest .leave it til spring and then fork it through to get the rots that survive the freezing temps  (-30 with luck )of northern norway .i love that weather there hehe.. ex RM artic and mountain warfare cadre member