[puravida]

I have a new allotment plot - a 3/4 size - but it needs some work before I can plant anything.
I'm not overly blessed with time and need some advice on how best to get this knocked into shape.
A rotivator perhaps? Or how long to dig over with a spade?

Actually - I'm not quite sure how to dig over with a spade!!

[gobs]

Good grief, one could say, however it seems mostly grass only from afar. Hire a high performance rotavator for a dry day. Go through, rake out grass, go through again.

Check for type of soil, if not rich, you could rotavate in a load of manure too, in one go.

[diospyros]

Or look up "no-dig" gardening.  Which basically comprises layers of cardboard, compost, grass cuttings, woodchip, inverted turf etc in various combinations which you then plant through/into.  Works best with big things like potatoes, squash plants, beans.  Kills and recycles weeds in situ instead of spending all that time rotovating, removing weeds, composting them and then barrowing them back on again.

[boddy]

Well all least all that grass has kept the weeds down! How about doing just one area (bed) to start with, something manageable that you can start growing in straight away, and then dig new beds out as you need them. If think I would tackling the while thing at once a bit overwhelming.  You could still use the lasagne method mentioned above one area at a time.

[NewSteve]

Lifting turf with a spade is hard work! If your budget allows, I can heartily recommend hiring a turf cutter for the weekend and getting it all up. I did this with our back garden plot and I'm so glad I did. Mind you, you still have to carry it away and pile it up, and turf is heavy.

Then you have a lovely bit of bare earth to do with what you will. I broke up the surface with a fork, piled on some manure and came back later to double dig it, but I had time. If you're in a hurry, get the rotovator on there.

Of course, you could go straight for the heavy duty tiller as gobs suggests if you're not worried about turning the grass in. Make sure you've got the right tool though, as a bog standard rotovator will just bounce off.

[Christine]

You don't cart turf away - you stack it face down in a corner to rot and then you have compost for digging back in at a later date. 

[Tenhens]

When I took over my plot one of the committee rotovated  it before I had the chance to dig it. The couch grass that was present was simply chopped up and spread and caused more work, they also tried to me charge for it.  Digging is hard work but it will give you opportunity to get to 'know' your soil. I would also suspect that as grass has been growing , it would benefit from some organic matter. Also divide it into sections - useful for later when crop rotating , and tackle.   

[3759allen]

thats a great bit of ground to start with as once the turfs up you will have a relatively weed free piece of ground.

i would advice against the Rotavator, as imo it tends to cut the roots up and move them around. all through the year you will be battling to keep on top of the grass keep coming up.

i would go for a turf cutter, get the lot up. job done. just need some fertiliser put in before growing.

as for getting rid of the turf. from the photo's it doesn't look that bad so i would be tempted to put it on gumtree freebies or freecycle a week before lifting and try and arrange someone to collect same day. that way someone else does all the hard work and uses their fuel, you get a nice brown patch and they get a nice green patch. everyones a winner

[m1ckz]

hmmmmm turf...looks to me like stones an batchy grass   would could anyone do with that i woner

[diospyros]

And besides, organic matter is the secret to health, longevity, the universe and everything, never let it go off your holding if you can possibly avoid it!

[finleyfreyaseth]

id cover the lot with dark plastic sheeting,then work on one section at a time,the plastic will kill most stuff underneath the longer u leave it and to try do all in one go will be daunting task

[NewSteve]

You don't cart turf away - you stack it face down in a corner to rot and then you have compost for digging back in at a later date. 

You still have to carry it to the corner

A plot that size is going to produce a couple tons of turf I'd expect. It depends how much of the soil you take with it but if you go too shallow it disintregrates.

[azubah]

Don't do too much in one go and wreck your back.
Remove the turf from a small area by sliding a shovel under it and see what it is like underneath.
You could make small beds and leave paths of turf to be dug up another year.
Cover as much as you can with cardboard or black plastic.

[Yorkie]

If it's couch grass (piano-wire like white roots) then the worst thing you could possibly do is to rotavate.  As FF said, it will chop it up into lots of mini plants just raring to start growing ... 

I agree with the suggestion to cover up and work a section at a time.

Or, if you are not averse to using weedkiller, a glyphosate-based one will kill the grass within a couple of weeks or so.  Just don't apply on a windy day or when rain is due within 6 hours.

There's also this article on the main website:
http://www.allotment-garden.org/allotment/clearing-new-allotment-plot.php

[gobs]

He asked 'fast'. There is no faster, I think. Of course, so many weeds shall remain, however it will kill a lot of them too.

We need a weeds up-date, Pura!

A farmer once told me: there is nothing wrong with couch grass, just its roots need moving. He was correct.