Grow Your Own Magazine

Hi guys

Similar problems to others on here...

We're lucky enough to own the paddock behind our garden, and have decided to use part of it to plant on next year (and put chickens on too!)

Currently its covered in grass, with the odd weed/thistle/dock leaf scattered through. We've mown it right down (using my DH's new toy - a 2nd hand ride on mower bought this week), but are going to have to clear some of it to make beds.

Questions:

Is this better done in autumn, when the weeds/grass aren't growing as fast?

We're going to dig it over (using the technique from Monty Don) and place all the turves face down in the trenches and rot them that way). Will this work? Will we be able to plant in this in the spring, or will the grass/weeds come back?

I wasn't sure whether to plant green manure in the paddock (which means digging the whole thing over!). Is it worth it, considering its already grass covered anyway?

Cheers!

Why not try lazy beds. here's a link to get you started & you can google the rest

http://www.keirg.freeserve.co.uk/diary/tech/lazybed.htm

__________________
ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

http://grief-encounters.blogspot.com/

OWG - I tried turning the turves one year in Autumn and sadly by next spring they were just great big clods, never broke down and the weeks just grew back again. It took alot of back breaking digging to break it all down.

Depends on your soil I suppose. Ours is not clay, but it can be quite lumpy.

Cheers Nick,
I have just bookmarked that

Matt.

Hello OWG, I think if you just turn the clods the grass and eveything else will just be back again.However, if you skim the surface off, and stack the clods green down, you will get lovely soil from the heap which you can put back. The paddock looks quite big. I would do it a bit at a time. How much do you think you can manage to clear and maintain in one year. Work it out and go from there. Keep us up to date with the pics. Would love to see how you are getting on.

If it were me, I'd get a tractor and plough in !

__________________
Rat

British by birth
Scottish by the Grace of God

Blog updated Wednesday 17th September