Feeling Disheartened

[Plot70]

When I took my plot on it came with couch grass that had been watered with grass greening fluid over more than half of it. I started in late November.
I just took it up in blocks and created about 10 wheelbarrow loads of roots for each of the first two years.
Using blocks of the brick-making clay soil that would not separate from the roots I made a large raised bed. We have a good supply of manure so I was able to encase the weed roots in manure in the raised bed and to boost the fertilizer burning I added the liquid from the potting shed latrine.
Growing through a layer of topsoil I got a perfect crop of winter squashes.
I have retained the clay block raised beds and have begun to use them to make my own compost with the squashes over the top.
Not everyone is prepared to throw heavy clay blocks around the plot but most of the heavy work can be done in winter when it is less hot and sweaty. The short days were the main problem.

[Ruthie_Q]

bikermike - yes its the black plasticy stuff. It has lines on it to aid a very poor cutter of straight lines 🤣 when we got the allotment we just covered it all in black plastic. It was chest high with weeds but over the last year or so it detoriated & so in our wisdom decided to rip it up & put membrane down and replace the bark mulch on top but that damn marestail & anything else a bit pointy just pops through. So i seem to be battling with weeds in the beds & weeds outside the beds. We have kept a few beds covered this year just to try & manage the time we have on the plot efficiently.

[Ruthie_Q]

Snoop Puss - that trowel looks proper dangerous. I think i might get one. How dangerous can it be 🤣

[Ruthie_Q]

quanglewangle - thank you. i never thought about looking at it through new eyes. When you put it like that it looks awesome. I really do need to give myself some credit instead of berating myself

[Ruthie_Q]

ameno - no external pressure just the internal pressure on myself. When it gets too much i have to remind myself that its not a garden outside the back door and a qtr of the size but an allotment that i have to drive to. I dont want to walk away though, in a way that allotment means too much to me so i need to reframe. Everyone has been so lovely who has responded & they have all helped with their tips it has really helped me come to terms that its not just me that has ups & downs on plots/gardens

[mrsbusy]

Hi Ruthie_Q.
Just been reading this thread and wondering how you got on this summer?
We did the same as you - beautiful tidy allotment then stuff happened and we didn't keep it under control and last year it was waist high with weeds - unbelievable how quickly they took over.
This year it's not perfect but I covered half of the plot with cardboard under black weed control (Mypex) and concentrated on the other half doing no dig method. It's been really productive plus dry weather helped keep weeds down - no weed allowed to go to seed.
Hope you managed to keep your plot. There's always next year to get things right.

[nick the grief]

Ruthie_Q ... right then,

if you've got something to cover it all then brilliant, Put it down and then nip to your local posd shop and buy a load of cheap tubs ... big ones, then use these full of compost to weigh the plastic sheet/membrane etc down. you can plant them up with lettuce like little gem or the likes, dwarf French Beans, Dwarf runners, Carrots, Potatoes or flowers ... that will make your plot look nice. then you can roll a bit back and move the pots accordingly and work on that getting it clear by either no Dig or digging whichever you fancy then once thats up and running fold the next bit back and carry on till you get to the end. eventually you get to the end and you'll have a fence of pots/tubs to brighten your plot.

Worrying about yours not being like your neighbours isn'tfair on you. My old site we had to old boys who were retired and spent most of the day on their plots, mostly sitting waiting for a weed to grow so they could pull it out

I'm assuming you're still one of these poor sods who has to go to work then you'll be hard pressed to keep up with most people so don't beat your self up

[RaptorUK]

It's not an insurmountable problem, you just need to find the right way for you to fix it, I had a similar problem.

Due to the Pandemic and then hectic work demands afterwards this was my plot in July 2021 . . . it's a right mess.

Then after getting up a bit early on Sunday mornings (I'm not a morning person . . .) and spending 2 to 3 hours each and every Sunday my plot looked a bit better by mid October . . . the Autumn and Winter are great times to get your plot in shape, you can stay ahead of the weed growth easily and don't get depressed if you miss a week or two due to rampant weeds.