[jackie]

Hi, i am new to this site and new to gardening! I have decided to try and grow my own veggies this year. Unfortunately the ground is very heavy and wet in my garden. Will my veg grow in this sort of soil? If not, how can i treat it on a very low budget.

[compostqueen]

you need to lighten it by adding all the bulky organic matter you can lay your hands on, so I'd start with some compost bins asap.  Kitchen waste is great as there's no weed seeds in it and it composts quickly.  Manures, the contents of the rabbit hutch, hen house will all rot down and can be put on the soil, animal manures too, mushroom compost, sharp or grit sand, leaf mould (start a leaf bin).  I  use all the spent compost from potted plants too.  I also compost some ripped up cardboard, added to the compost bin.  The more you can make the better your soil will be but it doesn't happen over night    Sand would be good to start with

[bigben]

As has been said - you could do with buying or makine some compost bins and starting to create and use your own compost. However, this is going to take a while you could in the meantime create a couple of raised beds.
You said your soil is heavy and wet. A raised bed would allow you to improve drainage - you could buy in some soil improver, manure or even just growbags and dig them in with a bit of sand. This would raise the level a bit and improve drainage as well as breaking up the soil. You can then do a comparison and see if it has helped while you wait for your own compost to be created.

[Fisherman]

I suffer from the same sort of ground so I built raised beds and have even had to install underground drainage as the area flooded on occasion. Its not always practical to install drains as you need somewhere to run the water to and it’s a lot of hard work and can cost a bob or two. However raising your veg patch up 4 inches or more with the materials as recommended by Compostqueen will improve your soil and ground conditions quite dramatically.

Look out for free materials i.e. stable manure, builder coarse sand etc. Some local councils supply compost bins (at least 1) free of charge and you may even be able to get some more off  friends and family who don’t use them. The more compost you can make the better.

Good Luck

[Goosegirl]

I too have heavy silty soil so I have made raised beds for my veg. Sharp sand (not builder's) and / or grit dug in will give you instant help. Lime or seaweed meal will also help as this will clump the fine soil particles together to improve drainage.

[kermit]

Yup - I constructed high raised beds last year - an unqualified success.  Not cheap if you want them to look nice, but will last for ever if done properly.  Other benefits (apart from being able to grow on my horrific new-build-house "soil") are increased yield, no dig, no bending, look good, protects from wind and reduces bugs & slugs.  I posted pics last summer - you should find them on here somewhere. 

Loads of posts on here about constructing raised beds, but feel free to ask and I'll tell you what I did.

[solway cropper]

This is my fourth year in this particular garden and I started it from scratch from a lawn laid on heavy clay. Like the others I added sharp sand and as much organic matter as I could get my hands on. It's now beginning to look like proper soil and is giving very good crops. In a few years it should be perfect (says hopefully)

[compostqueen]

it should improve year on year as more compostibles get added and you'll find that crops with their root systems help break it up so you'll start to see a more friable soil.  Good soil breaker-uppers are spuds, leeks and celeriac 

[suesowsseed]

I too have heavy clay soil which I try to improve each spring with compost and stable manure; it gets better each year. Last year i decided to grow some veg, i grew some in the ground and some in raised beds which my husband made for me (after much nagging).
The raised beds had much better results (here is a pic)

[Zeb]

Sharp sand (not builder's) and / or grit dug in will give you instant help.

whats the difference

Sharp sand from a builders merchants is cheaper than the sharp sand from the garden centre.

[Goosegirl]

Sharp sand (not builder's) and / or grit dug in will give you instant help.

whats the difference

Sharp sand from a builders merchants is cheaper than the sharp sand from the garden centre.

Sharp sand from a builders is fine and, as you say, much cheaper; but stuff called "builders' sand" is much finer and won't provide the drainage you are after.