Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Welcome => Welcome to the Forums => Topic started by: Mudhoney on January 05, 2019, 16:51

Title: My first allotment and hello!
Post by: Mudhoney on January 05, 2019, 16:51

Hello everyone. What excitement, I've just taken over my first allotment. It's fair to say I'm very keen and have a lot to learn too.  So I'm all ears for any good advice going!

My plot is about half the size of a full one, and the soil seems pretty good. Nothing was grown on it last year, the previous owner told me, and then he went on to mention it had been rotavated, well about half of the plot anyway, which is the existing beds.  The other half of the plot is mostly couch grass. I've already had some happy hours of fun digging up couch roots from the beds and I'm guessing from other comments that this is going to be a bit of challenge, given the unfortunate rotavating!

Not sure how to go about tackling the overgrown half of the plot, it looks nigh on impossible to dig up the whole lot. Hopefully there is a way. Anyway, wish me luck!

Title: Re: My first allotment and hello!
Post by: sunshineband on January 05, 2019, 17:01

Hello mudhoney and welcome to the forum  :D

You can always cut back the growth on the undug section of your plota dn cover it with lightproof landscape fabric, (well weighted down so it doesn't blow away) and gradually all plant growth underneath will die through lack of light.

We did this on a section where we were going to put a polytunnel eventually, and the ground was almost bare when we took off the covers a year later. Easy and painless!

Title: Re: My first allotment and hello!
Post by: Fairy Plotmother on January 05, 2019, 17:13

👋🏻👋🏻 Hello and welcome. Whatever you decide to do take it slow and easy. We wouldn’t like you to lose your excitement because you’ve overdone it and hurt your back or something. Good luck.

Title: Re: My first allotment and hello!
Post by: Yorkie on January 05, 2019, 18:02

Welcome to the site and congrats on your new lotty  :D

If you update your forum profile to show which general part of England you're in, it will help when chatting about growing stuff - climate varies a lot across the country  :)

Title: Re: My first allotment and hello!
Post by: Chris-Andover on February 17, 2019, 00:54

Hello from another newbie.  I've grabbed 8 packets of coffee grounds for free from Coffee #1 to add as free fertilizer when I start digging over. Tried this stuff before, it's like crack to the worms Get them to break up clay soil nicely for you but will take a few months.  Anyway,good luck.  Here is my newbie thread: https://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=129596.0

Title: Re: My first allotment and hello!
Post by: Amylowson on April 11, 2019, 10:11

Hello and welcome from another newbie!  :)