[Debbie]

Hi, I took on my plot in April ( hasn't been dug for a number of years ) and am realising that half my plot won't get seen to until the autumn.
My weeds are frighteningly healthy and am tempted to cover ( with a breathable fabric ) but am getting so much conflicting advice aaarrrhhh

Don't know where to start now!!

Also slugs....the older members recommend anything highly toxic and the younger ones have wind chimes and ylang ylang (not really young guys !)Sprouts giving up the fight.

[stompy]

Hi there Debbie, i got my plot in january and the council rotavated it.
Now iv got weeds everywhere. :cry:
I talked to these guys about using chemicals, and they advised me that if i was going to use them to use glysophate, as it turns into nitrogen when it comes into contact with the earth, i think its nitrogen, its something good anyway.

If its a one off weed removal at the beggining of your allotment career then use it, this is what im doing not that that means its ok thats just my choice. :oops:

Then im going to try organic from then on.

And you can plant on the ground as soon as the weeds are dead.

[Debbie]

I'm working on the inch by inch weed removal system, it'd really hard work but I can see the results already.

When I first took on my plot I was advised to rotivate and this I did...twice....as you can imagine I now have loadsaweeds. Bit of a learning curve this!!

What about if I spray with glyphosphate and then cover until I can get to it later, would that work??

[John]

Stompy, glyphosate cease to be effective when it hits the ground but it doesn't turn into anything good.  Amicide turns into nitrogen after 6 weeks.

Debbie, if you do spray - don't cover until the weeds have died. You need them to take the poison into their roots to be effective.

[noshed]

Everything is growing so fast these days I'd be tempted down the glyphosate route. Maybe only on part of it and cover the rest with anything to exclude the light (carpet is the favourite on our site but it looks terrible.)

Although if it's been rotovated once, presumably most of the weeds are newish re-growth. So you could carry on with the hand weeding on at least part of it and just use glyphosate on any perennial brutes you may have.

I've found that if you file an edge on your hoe with an old file you can deal with annual weeds really easily and then you can just let them wither and collect them up for the compost heap.

If you divide the plot up a bit - even just mark out with string where the permanent paths are going to be - each bit you get ready looks more encouraging.
Good luck

[stompy]

Sory Debbie.

Ah well, i was nearly right.  :?  

At least it doesn't turn into something bad. :oops:

[John]

Apologies Stompy - bit abrubt in my previous post - been a hectic day of catchup after 2 days away and I'm still tired. Was a time I could party all night and work the next day. Now I find 1 sleepless night leaves me tired for 2 days!

I think a bit of fresh air is now called for

Noshed is bang on about the hoe - a sharp hoe is 10 times more effective than a blunt one.

[Parma]

hi debbie

try not to use herbicides. do you know what sort of weeds you have? Some can be very useful - they can provide a good indicator on the health of your soil and some are good dynamic accumulators for various nutrients your soil might need.
Also how about mulching straight over the weeds then leave the soil and you could plants straight onto it after its all composted down a bit.

[Debbie]

Well, this plot couldn't look much worse so anything is going to be an improvement.

I tend to work with my back towards the ( lets call it scruffy ) undug bit which is encouraging.

Thanks for all the advice, going to watch the footie now.

[Debbie]

Parma, sorry what is a dynamic accumulator ? I have lots of nettles, dock and bindweed ( and a host of others ) what does this mean??

[noshed]

I think it's something they have in Ladbrooks

[Parma]

ladbrookes it could be.
dynamic accumulators are plants which take up more of certain nutrients - meaning you could use them to enrich areas of your allotment.
ie: cleavers accumulate sodium and calcium you could harvest that weed and use it in a compost to enrich a part of your land deficient in that nutrient.
stinging nettle accumulates sodium, sulfur, nitrogen calcium, potassium, iron and copper. Stinging netteles is a good sign of fertile land.
bindweed is always a bit of a bummer :cry: its a pain in the bum.

I have an ace list of this info from : designing & maintaining your edible landscape naturally, Robert Kourik, Metamorphic press

Edit: amazon if you're interested.

[supersprout]

Hi debbie, I'd get a big roll of 4 ft wide permeable black plastic. If you cut down the growth, then cover the whole plot with black plastic sheets, the weeds will die down over a couple of years. Tough weeds like dock may resprout, but you'll be able to spot them and dig them up when the time comes. If you also mark the paths with string, you won't tread on the bits you intend to plant one day :roll:

When you feel like it, roll back a bed's worth of black plastic, and dig just that one bit, and start sowing and planting.

Black plastic is very good for Morale - you can clear the plot at your own pace, knowing that things aren't getting any worse!

You can plant through the black plastic - cucurbits, potatoes, leeks and other 'big' plants. But you'll have to re-cover at the end of the season because the weeds will head for the holes!