[Nicki85]

Ta da........ (drum roll please  )









So lots of couch grass  but its got good accsess to water and its pretty level...  I'm feeling pretty scared right now having to deal with all that but i'm sure it will be fine 

Thoughts?  I am thinking of rotavating and then putting membrane over  but haven't really got a clue how to get it ready to plant! 

Think I need a glass of wine 

[Aunt Sally]

Brilliant

Blank canvas no serious weeds.  You've got some fun time and a bit of hard work ahead

[cityboy]

i think im going to have a heart attack it reminds me of mine which was 20 times worse

[Aunt Sally]

NO - do not rotavate !!!!!

The couch grass with go mad and be everywhere.

[bigben]

Looks good - dont rotavate couch grass as you will only multiply the problem. Dig out roots, glyphosphate if that fits with your "growing ethics" but you will need to wait a while until it warms up for it to be effective. Mow and cover will suppress but will not get rid of it. I would be tempted to get stuck into a couple of sections digging out the roots and in a few weeks if things have warmed up then glyphosphate the rest. If you want to avoid the glyphosphate then start digging some and cover the other half of the plot to suppress until you get round to digging that section.

Good luck!

[fatbelly]

I try to be Organic, but if I had I new plot like you have I would definitely Glyphosphate to kill the Couch and other weeds to give me a head start.

Glyphosphate the whole plot on a dry day in late March (weeds must be growing for Glyphosphate to do its job) and then rotavate three weeks after when the Glyphosphate has done its job and gotten down to the roots.

This means no sowing until the middle of April but stuff will definitely catch up.

You could hand clear an area now and sow some stuff in the cleared area whilst you await the weeds to get growing in the bit you intend to Glyphosphate.

If you choose to Glyphosphate then post again later and we will be able to tell you the best way to go about it.

Whichever trusted way you choose will work providing you stick at it and don't give up, its just a choice of what method you use and then getting on with it.

[Nicki85]

Thanks for the advice everyone  

No rotavating then just good old fashioned digging and maybe a bit of weed killer  

It is all very exciting and daunting!  I have some broad beans ready to go in in about a week so i'll start getting their bed ready first.  Yay it's going to be so much fun!

Def. a good idea to dig some over now and then kill the rest, I can start quite a lot (cabbages, courgettes etc.) in modules as I have the cold frame/ green house etc. so it doesn't matter if I can't sow straight in before april.  

[Nige2Plots]

Good luck with your plot. It's hard work at first but very rewarding!

[Yorkie]

Like the wigwams 

There's not a great deal that will go into the ground much before late May / early June - spuds, leeks, onions and brassicas, really.  Other stuff is not hardy and so you won't be starting that stuff off until April or so anyway under cover / in the warmth.

[Fisherman]

I would start at one end of the plot and fork over small sections taking all the weeds out including their roots and then: -

Add compost and get some broad beans in preferably plants sown ASAP in pots at home.
Manure a section or two and get some early spuds in  - late March to early April.
Add compost to a section and plant some onion sets - March / April.
If you manage to prepare more sections sow, summer cabbage, carrots, salad crops, french beans, runner beans, courgettes etc.
Add a bit of fish, blood and bone fertiliser to each section as it works wonders.
Take your time as there's always next year after your plot is well prepared.
Grow what you like to eat.
You will get some good crops and lets say some indifferent ones!

Most of all enjoy.

[andy135]

Just don't try to do too much in one go. If you pull a muscle or something you'll be away for weeks. Little and often is my best advise. And enjoy it. 

[vixen]

This glyphosphate stuff, is it a chemical concentrate, a powder to mix, or ready to use, and does it have a brand name. Ta.

[Yorkie]

Glyphosate is the active ingredient in the weedkiller.  It's usually in liquid form.

You can buy it as a branded name (Roundup) or as an own-brand systemic weedkiller (systemic means it gets absorbed by the plant and moved around its system - as opposed to simply killing the surface bits it contacts).

Another brand is Resolva, which combines glyphosate with another chemical - which is a contact weedkiller so you can see within 24 hours where you have sprayed.

You can also buy it either pre-diluted or as a concentrate.  Just make sure you dilute it at the recommended rate if using the concentrate; I got it wrong the first time and it wasn't effective.

I look for a good deal on the concentrated versions in the supermarkets or garden sheds.  Sometimes the branded versions can be cheaper than the own-brand.

[Brassica Blaz]

hi nicki85,congrats on getting your plot.i was in the same situation 3 years ago and the size of your plot looks about the same and this is what i did to get a jump start.i hired a petrol strimmer for 20 quid and strimmed all the grass and weeds to ground level (it takes about 4 hours).then i hired two polish lads to just dig it over roughly it took them 5 hours and it cost 40 quid.you can then set out your lotty out as you want it .i layed mine out in 3ft by 20ft beds.and you can then pick through all the "twitch roots" and other weeds at your leisure and what ever grows back on the rest of your lotty just glyphosate it ready for winter digging&manuring later on.just get a couple of beds ready for this season.you really have to be planning for next season more.it certainly took alot of the hard work out of it in my experience

[Nicki85]

Thanks for the advice 

My dad apparently has a petrol strimmer so I will be borrowing that (and my dad to  ) in a few weekends to strim the bad end down. 

I had my mum look over it as well this weekend and she doesn't think it is to bad... I'm hoping to get one bed sorted this weekend for my broad beans, possibly get the compost heap built and get a couple of tub-trucks of manure on the broad bean bed.  That's the plan anyway!