[mrs mud]

I have started taking up the lawn.  I am burying the turf upside down and then piling all the freshly dug soil on top.  The soil is amazing to handle, I've never had it so good after having heavy clay at my last house.  This soil is so easy to dig, it's quite fine and crumbly yet just sticky enough...I would say it's perfect.

Do you think it will have enough nutrients as it is ?  this year I am just planting peas, beans, spuds, onion sets (already in), rhubarb, gooseberry, and lots of salad and herbs

[mumofstig]

I'd still use some Blood Fish & Bone, even good soil usually needs feeding for vegetables to grow well 

[Janeymiddlewife]

If you're growing spuds, beware of the dreaded wire worm! This article gives more info on potato pests, there are varieties which are more resistant to them. They are a particular problem on soil previously used for grass

http://www.sac.ac.uk/mainrep/pdfs/tn631potatotuberpests.pdf

[Trillium]

Sounds like you have nice loam, but it doesn't mean its rich in nutrients. The grass has taken much of what it needs, along with any weeds that might have been there.

If you can get hold of any ready compost, as well as the suggested blood, fish, and bonemeal, it would help a lot.

And do be aware that grass harbors not only the wire worm, but also many grubs, so it will be a bit of a battle the first year or so, then likely good sailing afterward.

[Babstreefern]

I agree with the others, fertiliser will do it good and a good digging as well.  Soil sounds perfect

[solway cropper]

I started my current veg plot from a lawn six years ago and would agree about the wireworm. The first couple of years they were a bit of a problem with the spuds but the soil is now really good after heavy applications of compost, etc. and I don't have many pest problems.

Get composting so that next year you have plenty to add to the soil and you'll soon have a very productive plot.

[savbo]

I'd rather have a friable soil I have to enrich than a claggy one...

[snowdrops]

Could you get some manure to add,would really make a difference,just not where carrots & parsnips are going if you were thinking of adding them to your list.

[mrs mud]

Thank to all replies, great info & much appreciated

I might not do spuds this year because of the wireworm, and I haven't bought them yet.  This patch of lawn is small-ish and more suited to tall beans and bits and bobs, but there is a larger lawned area that I was going to tackle next year, my OH wants to weedkill the lot but I have deterred him by saying I will hand dig it myself a bit at a time, so he is getting on with buiding the second hand greenhouse for now.

Cheers