[jockster]

Dear All

Got a new allotment that is at the bottom of a gentle slope and hence have a patch of about 4m by 8m that is quite damp - puddles of standing water up until mid-March, no standing water currently but still very damp even given heat. Soil is heavy clay and condition is weed infested with couch grass. dandelions etc. Also south facing with sun all day. I want to use it productively. ANY AND ALL IDEAS APPRECIATED !!!

Cheers, Simon

[L.A.]

Hi Jockster and welcome, the only solutions i can recommend is land drain (perforated) or gravel, either way there is a fair bit of digging involved.

[pwgun]

can you not dig a ditch to divert the puddling,  i did this with mine as it was nearly a comple washout before.  saying that i with the ground was damp now, fed up using cans every day.

[tinshed]

I have identical conditions.  Dug ditch (really hard work!) which has helped.  I am turning the boggiest part of the plot into a bog garden with a pond and wildflowers plus a very productive comfrey patch - comfrey seems to love these conditions and makes a good fertiliser and compost activator.  

The rest of the allotment seems to improve with the addition of manure and compost and is good for beans and potatoes because it never dries out fully below the surface.

The other answer used by some of my neighbours is raised beds - but they take a lot of work to set up and you need a lot of timber and compost to set them up.

I'll be very interested to see what other people have to say.

Best of luck!

[richyrich7]

Double dig that bit, hard work but may help esp if you include grit as you dig.

[shaun]

its a hard one to answer realy without seeing the ground,
sometimes if the plot hasnt been used for a while then the ground becomes so compacted then drainage can be very poor,if this is the case double digging will work it will open the soil up and the water will drain off

[richyrich7]

Yeah Shaun, sounds as though a pan has formed.

[shaun]

I wish mine was damp, its dry as a bone

[richyrich7]

Mine too but it's gonna rain on Sunday and Monday  

[shaun]

noticed today a lot of big trees are starting to droop there gagging for a drink

[andygh]

Put a raised bed on it, fill it with manure & plant watermelons :idea:

[WG.]

Got a new allotment that is at the bottom of a gentle slope and hence have a patch of about 4m by 8m that is quite damp - puddles of standing water up until mid-March, no standing water currently but still very damp even given heat. Soil is heavy clay and condition is weed infested with couch grass. dandelions etc. Also south facing with sun all day. I want to use it productively.  

I'm with tinshed on the comfrey idea.  Dig out pockets 12" cubed and fill with manure.  24 to 30" centres.  This will let the comfrey get ahead of the perennials.  If there is a pan, comfrey will break it for you.

[leeky]

make a couple of ponds? if you cant beat em...

[Jim T]

Put a raised bed on it, fill it with manure & plant watermelons :idea:

And spuds and courgettes and cucumbers