[lincspoacher]

As you know i got a new allotment two weeks ago........well i say allotment, its a bit of uncultivated ground thats been use dto graze horses on, so it full of horse poo and nutrients.

Having made up my mind to carefully dig it into beds , i set about it with fork and spade. It took me 1 hour to dig two square yards  

The problem is the top 4 inches is totally compressed and knitted together with grass. Its extremely hard to tear it apart. At that rate ill be ready to put plants in this time next year - ive also worked out the area, its not 8 poles as I thought, its 15 poles - twice as much !!!

So ive had to resort to Plan B - getting the Irishman on the plot at the back to plough and rotovate it.  Hes done it, and its a very good job, all the grass has been chopped up and ploughed in (along with all the weed tap roots),  before  i plant anything, ill level it and then wait for the weeds to pop there heads up again. then i can hoe them down.

So the plan now is to level it and mark it into raised beds on friday, and trample the paths down. then I can start planting stuff. I dont think i can plant it all out this year (because if  i do ill have like 2o tonnes of winter brassicas to eat ) but ill keep hoeing and roundup-ing the unused beds, and smother as much as  i can.

Ive got Cos lettuce, Beetroot, Red Cabbage, Spinach going in seed trays.

Anything else  i need to do ? Anything else  i can get going ?

[deedee71]

see if you can pick up cheap containers for storing water, or making compost, you can sow runner beans in pots or in the ground, sow some french beans, sweetcorn,some types of swede can be sown now - helenor, by johnsons can be sown as late as july. sow carrots and lettuce and beetroot. see if you can buy some bargain courgette plants from the local bootfair, or leeks, some types of brassicas? boot fairs are good.

does your allotment have a shop run by club members that sells plants? some do, and talking to neighbouring allotment holders are full of info and advice. unless you got nuisance neighbours...

[Caretaker]

For a good ground cover you could grow some pumpkins, the big leaves suppress weeds and use up some of your land, or how about that there green manure stuff.
I don't eat the pumpkins just carve them on halo-ween night.
Reg

[lincspoacher]

Do i need to make a munty frame for the french beans and runner beans ?

[DD.]

Are the French beans climbing or dwarf?

[lincspoacher]

I dont know, you tell me What do i need to plant this time of year?

I said when i got here  i know lots about compost and trees and not too much about vegetables  

[DD.]

It's a little late but I reckon you'd get away with all three.

Climbing French
Runner Beans
Dwarf French

The first two will need something to climb up, the dwarf won't.

[gobs]

If you can get hold of some plants, anything, really, it's only June.

Still can sow peas, broad beans, corquettes, too.

[DD.]

If you try peas now, watch out for mildew.

[nothinghasdiedyet]

If you have raised beds you aren't going to use you could always dig them over cover in a mulch of well rotted manure and then cover with a Black plastic sheet. This is meant to help kill/surpress weeds until you need to use the bed.

[lincspoacher]

Ok update, I got the man to plough it, ive dug two beds and started smothering other potential beds that i wont dig tll next year. Ive built a standard 3 pallet compost bin

Ive got stuff in plugs waiting to go in, i want the weeds to stick there heads up first tho

Day one, with  SWMBO




After a good ploughing and rotovating:








Is it worth digging in dried farm manure into the beds before planting them ?

Im toying with  the idea of buying a lump of silage sheet, you can buy 8m x 50m for £80. What i really want is 4m x 50m. Awaiting email reply from man who sells.