[mumofstig]

I've bought enough fabric to cover all the beds for the winter. Yesterday I dug, added compost and cardboard on top then covered the empty, after potatoes bed.

The Winter brassica bed is still covered and planted, so that's ok, 'til Spring. The rest I'll cover as crops finish.

Do you leave the covers off at all, or only while you're prepping the beds and changing to the covers with holes in, in Spring?

How close do you plant your potatoes through fabric, in an 8 x 4ft bed?
Excuse me if these are silly questions, but the concept seems a bit strange, but, after years of weeding/hoeing I could do with a little less work 

[m1ckz]

not sure about plating tatties on fabric as you need to dig them up when ready    but cabbage etc   i plant 18in apart

[ptarmigan]

I've not used weed control fabric for beds.  But I think that potatoes might not need them, as the PP said you need to dig the tatties up so weed control might get in the way, and the foliage is pretty lush so it's not like lots of weeds grow anyway.

My neighbour uses it for onions and strawberries and that seems to work well. 

[ARPoet]

When i built me wonderwall it was on the site of an old filled in garden pond. I could never get own decent to grow there before due to weeds, so covered it with weed membrane and have have great success this summer.
Well Pleased.
I have just built a new cage for winter veg and lined that with membrane and planted the cabbages though it..
Not sure about using it for tatties.

[cadalot]

Mum - Here is how I sow potatoes using weed membrane.

Whatever you do don't cut the holes or the sheets as they will fray, I now use a soldering iron and melt/cut the sheets and the holes and they last longer see my old diary at http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=100234.msg1354963#msg1354963

Left = 2013 without the weed membrane using a hand Auger I use for sampling soils and short bore holes

Middle = 2014 with Weed membrane and I made the holes 100mm dia. as the Auger is 75mm dia

Right = the two different types of Auger head.

Bed/ sheets are 2.4m x 1.2m holes at 400mm in from each side on the 1.2m width then at 240mm centres

I also use a bulb planter to extract a core and transplant plants in place when using weed membrane. Take a look at my diary on here and you will see how I use them and how they frayed the first year.

The membrane reduces the weeds and keeps the moisture in. I've now added a X cuts so that I can add Pop bottle with holes made with mapping pins on the top that go in top first (upside down) into the ground and I cut the bottom off. Then I add more pop bottles with the bottoms off to extend the height as the plant grows, and water at depth. 

The membrane means no building up as it keeps the light off the potatoes.

I'm currently growing green manure on the potato beds where I have harvested and once that's cut and dug in, the beds will be heavily watered and covered with a full membrane sheet for the winter only to be exposed to the world again a couple of weeks before we start again. 

I also have sheets with planting patterns for Cauliflowers, Sprouts, Sweetcorn, and now French Beans and for Butter Nut Squash and Marrows, it's only carrots, parsnips, onions, spring onions and beetroots that I don't use Membrane to reduce the weeding.

[RJR_38]

Wow, you are so scientific and precise cadalot!

[Baldy]

No comment. ;-)

Pip pip,
Balders

[cadalot]

Wow, you are so scientific and precise cadalot!

It's part of what makes me an Engineer 

Baldy - I'm shocked No comment 

[mumofstig]

He meant nothing that wouldn't get deleted   

[pigguns]

I use membrane all over especially strawbs & corn, brassicas and pumpkins.  Beans and courgettes.

I manure and cover empty space for the winter.  I'd suggest a de-slugging session on the back of the membrane before planting through especially if there's cardboard under there.

Potatoes I use my old mums method if you don't want to dig or weed-  lay spuds on top of a few layers of wet newspaper on the soil, cover with more wet newspaper or cardboard, cover with manure or soil.  Lift paper up to harvest what you need. 

[Robster]

I've used fabric before and planted through it on occasions with brassica's.  My strawberry bed is a plant through job.

My current method for other beds which have no crops in over winter is to pile on lots of manure on top or cut down the green manure and spread it or fork it in a bit, not much.  Then cover it and make sure it's either pegged or weighed down.  Then just leave it until March or April for the spuds or later for the sweetcorn and squash.  When the fabric comes off the manure is all incorporated.  The only weed to survive is bindweed which needs digging out everything else has germinated and died off.  Other than that a quick fork over and I'm away.  Sure I have to weed a bit during the season but not half as much as for the uncovered beds.  I like the idea that the soil is a resource for lots of the insects friends and foe sure.