[Lardman]

Standing in my veg plot this evening it was clear I must have angered mother nature. Not only has she killed off most of what I have planted. She has replaced it with dandelions, chick weed and bind weed. The final straw tonight was the plague she sent to strip all my currant bushes overnight 

I can take a hint so I'm giving up growing in the open this year and I'll use the space for compostable material instead. I want something that will give me as much organic matter as possible, Im not too worried about its nutritional benefits I can always supplement those but I need to balance out this sand, I just can't buy in enough compost to make a difference.

My research points towards Phacelia but would it give me enough material?

[Trillium]

Not sure about the phacelia but could you possibly get bagged lawn clippings from neighbours? You could also harvest weed tops before they start to seed? A green manure crop of rye done 2 or 3 times per year would give a lot of tilth when turned in, along with the above unless you prefer to compost them. In fall, dried leaves could be had by the trailer load and they're fab for tilth and free. My neighbour now dumps his leaf pile for me on my property and I use that as summer mulch. I'd also be looking into even raw manure by the load if you choose not to do green manure.

[compostqueen]

Buying in compost? Do you make your own?  If you have sandy soil you need to make as much as you possibly can

Green manures are a good plan too.  I would read up on the various ones 

[Lardman]

The gardens here are such that there aren't grass clippings to collect  Anything that the council collect goes to the local allotments so theres little chance of hiving some off. Added to that everything that comes in has to be carried 100ft up steps and a steep slope.

I make as much compost as I can and buy in what the budget will allow but looking at the soil you'd hardly know.   

I've found lots of info on green manures but they all seem overly concerned about nutrient value rather than organic matter, Im more than happy to add fertilizer but theres little point when its all washed away during the first rains.

I think I've posted this before - but this is a sample of what Im working with.

[Trillium]

Looks like great carrot and parsnip soil.
As for green manures, don't worry about the nutrient value as they will all give good bulk material. About 10 pounds of rye grass seed should be easy to carry to your lotty and sprinkle about. Be sure to top with a bit of your sand soil so the birds don't eat it up first. When it's about 2-3 ft tall, turn it all in and reseed. BTW, it's best if you can seed before a good rainstorm.

[mumofstig]

I grew mustard overwinter on 1 bed that wasn't very good, and I was really impressed with how much green and rooty fibre there was to dig in this spring. It made a lot of difference...........this year I have phacelia to try for a rotation change.