Grow Your Own Magazine

How do you get the enthusiasm and want to clear, dig and work an allotment in this weather!
This mornings TV said this monsoon type weather is to be here for at least a month!

The area I had chopped all the weeds down and mowed is now 6" tall, the area I had rotavated is starting to clog again.
I am getting a little frustrated to say the least.

Should I just brave the weather put some waterproofs on and stick to it or wait till some better weather arives?

If the soil is too wet you wont be able to do much digging anyway. Use the time to plan what and where you want to grow things. Wait for a dry day or a few hours and see what you can do in that window. In the mean time I'm afraid patience is a virtue !!!

Put an old carpet down or some membrane to suppress the weeds.

__________________
Mark

Vegetable Kingdom blog

I know how you feel....... while normally allotment lovers adore the rain - its getting on my pip! my weeds are going mad!! and to top it off, i cant do any weeding at the moment as ive just had a hernia op!!! I wonder if our alloment does a prize for biggest thistle?

I read somewhere that its best not to rotovate whilst damp as it can cause drainage problems as it creates a hard surface under the top soil....

Regards

Sarah

hessian backed carpet is fab for weed suppression - we have lots of it all from freecycle - post a wanted add and people will respond.

__________________
We plant the seed, nature grows the seed, we eat the seed - Neil, The Young Ones

http://countersthorpeallotment.blogspot.com/
Updated 8 June 2008

a little quote.......
'patience is a virtue, seek it if you can, found seldom in a woman and never in a man'

I think it should be rewritten to include the gardener what do you guys think?

Deffinatly mrswadders !!!

Good point with the carpet, I have a friend who is in the process of re-carpeting his house so Ill have a chat to see if I can get hold of his old carpets and hopefully cover the lot. hopefuly it should be able to keep some of the rain off too.
Should it go down hessian side up or down?

Two thirds of my plot is still covered in brambles, grass etc. but I took the advice given to me by someone who has a established allotment and years of experience- plant up the bit that you've cleared and work your way through the rest at a pace you can cope with. Covering with old carpet as you clear is a good idea but make sure it is hessian and not foam backed. In places my plot had weeds and brambles growing through a carpet that had been thrown down and it was very difficult to lift it so do n't leave it that long. You could try planting a green manure crop on the cleared area if you are not ready to grow anything else yet. Not sure what works best I have yet to buy the seed (possible choice is Alfalfa) and sow it in the area where my early potatoes were. As I need something with deep roots that will help build up my sandy soil.

If you do start to get weeds either growing on top of the carpet, or pushing through it, simply turn it over for a week or two to kill them off then flip it back over when they've died.

We are not allowed to put carpet on our site

You just have to go with the flow (no pun intended). Do what you can when the opportunity arises and work one bit at a time. Remember it is not a race, the lottie will be there next season and the next. I am digging over my allotment, and yes, it is frustrating when the weather forces you to put plans on hold but hey isn't it great when the sun does come out and you can get to the plot. The most important thing for me is to be able to enjoy it.

Stick at it and have fun.

__________________
It is the doom of man, that they forget.

Wait for a dry day, Then use roundup and watch all yr weeds dye before yr eyes.Then use a rotorvator and your ready toplant. I did that two yrs ago when i inherited a plot with 4ft high weed. This year i just had a few annuals to remove by hand. No more chemicals, no backbreaking work. And unlike these make believe green gardeners, No weeds

In the early years of an allotment it feels as if you are doing battle with nature and unfortunately nature has a lot more experience and resources to throw at you.

Later it becomes more of working with nature but she is a grumpy thing and likes to throw in a few surprises at times.

Stick with it and all of a sudden you start seeing the results of your sheer obstinacy.

We cleared a huge section of the bigger plot twice this year and its gone mad. We've now decided to dig out what veg and fruit bushes we can salvage, move the compost bins to the top plot and hand it back.

It's too depressing and we really don't have time to constantly battle weeds and placate the council especially when other plot holders seem to have got away with doing virtually nothing for years.

Hopefully someone else will have the heart for the constant battle with bindweed and mare's tail and be able to make a real go of the plot.

__________________
Bright Blessings
Earthbabe
If at first you don't succeed, open a bottle of wine.

when i first cleared my garden, i weed killered it, then dug up the lawn and re-laid it, then weedkillered it again when the weeds came through before seeding ......after 3 years, i still only get the occasional weed come through, and now i don't use any chemicals if i can avoid it ....... saved days of work, .... i'd do the same in an allotment...... but definitely dig, then leave a few weeks, and weedkiller again, as you do get loads of weeds as you have disturbed roots and seeds ....... then i'd cover it with plastic to ensure nothing grows whilst waiting to be planted

most weedkillers have a short half life, so you can plant in a few weeks ....... or if you're worried about the chemicals, do half the plot, then work on the other half by hand ..... get some mates down, to show off their digging prowess, and do a BBQ for after and give them beer (or does that only work with teenagers?)

__________________
http://teachy.myminicity.com please visit my town and make it better

http://quiz.ravenblack.net/blood.pl?biter=teach_me please sign up to be a vampire, i get 10 pints of blood if you do, and it's fun as well ....... i have an interactive map if anyone wants it.

When I took on our plots, I did try putting up notices at work.

"Plot 122 Health Club, free membership. Step Classes (stepping to and from the tap). Combat Aerobics (digging trenches etc). Fully Air Conditioned"

Didn't get any takers though!