[Tommy54321]

Sooooo. I'm looking to do a no-dig method for planting out some sweetcorn (which are currently in pots), so i have a little area about 2m x 4m to use for this test.  What the best way to do it?? the area is pretty clear but you get the odd weed come through, but as nothing is growing there at the moment I don't really bother removing them all, should i......
A) lay cardboard, then bagged manure then compost then plant
B) dump a load of compost down and get on with the planting
C) or none, and do something completely different.
I have a compost bin that has some stuff in there, but not that much as only taken on the allotment in March. any tips or ideas to do for this would be appreciated......(I'm a beginner)
thanks

[AnneB]

Your sweetcorn in pots should really go out into the ground now, or it will become pot bound and also it won't develop in the ground soon enough to make cobs before the end of the season.

Ideally in a no dig situation you have a weed free area you have just uncovered from something like cardboard or removed an earlier crop from a well mulched bed.

As you have realised, no digging doesn't mean no weeding at all.

It depends how many of these weeds you have.  You can either remove them, plant and then mulch, and take care to remove weed seedlings as they appear, if any.

Or cover with a deep mulch and plant in that, again hoeing or removing any weeds appearing at the first opportunity so they don't become a problem.

Cardboard and compost fulfil the same role in no dig.  They are both used as mulches.  If you are going to put cardboard down first I think you will need a fair bit of compost on top.  The cardboard will rot in time but you don't want to restrict the sweetcorn roots before it does.

[Tommy54321]

my sweetcorn has not started growing yet (sorry should have said)

[AnneB]

It's a bit late for sweetcorn that has not emerged yet, but you might be lucky, especially if it is a quick growing variety.