hmmmm, where to start....

[chrissie the chippy]

It's been a while since I've been on asking, I've been lurking and reading though

Well, I'm now nearly 29 weeks gone and getting bigger by the day! I gave up my 2 plots that needed tons of work after some so and sos went and burnt my shed down Had almost everything I could have ever wanted!! Oh well.....

.... anyway, because I was keen and put the effort in I was offered a plot right at the top where it is safe and not so secluded. The beds are already 'there' but need a lot of work!!

Found another wee problem with them too, they turn into swimming pools with the rain!!!! That's my first problem, I'll put a few piccies on, anyone have any ideas how to sort it out?

The beds seem to be a few inches deeper than the paths! It hasn't been looked after for a couple of years, nothing added or taken away. I'm guessing I need to build it up, but have no idea what the best and quickest route to that is? On half of my potato patch, I've dug it over, took out as much greenery as I could, and covered it in a layer (couple of inches!) of horse muck that is delivered to site...... it is mainly paper, possibly 70%. I've now covered this with a tarpaulin, the paper bits were flying everywhere!! Will this be OK? I was thinking of leaving it until I was able to dig it in (if and when it drys up any!). It is fresh ish manure, but not very strong I've been told.... I'll try and pop a piccie on too

hmmmmm, am I doing it right? Can I build it up with the manure and paper ok? Should I get some straw? Anything free would be good!

right, now lets see if I can do the piccies.....



my mini pools....

the poo.....




would be grateful for any advice... especially on how to put piccies on as attachments!

[sewer rat]

Hi Chrissie
Read your thread this morning but didn't have time to respond so here goes.
First off, take it easy - no point in doing yourself a mischief (though that's what you were doing 6 months ago obviously )
I would ask surrounding plotholders if this lying water occurs regularly or is it because the ground is slow draining. Are the pathways so hard that water cannot drain away?
On the drainage front, I would definitely recommend that you go for the raised bed option. However, before you start them, I would try and do something about the surface water. If the water is lying on the existing beds, I would dig a soakaway hole (2ft x 2ft x 2ft) in the centre of where the water is lying and fill it with stones, then place a piece of weed suppressing membrane over the stones - this will provide a quicker escape for any water that gathers, and the membrane will prevent soil choking the stone soakaway. On pathways etc, I would try spiking the ground all over to a reasonable depth - the full depth of a garden fork tine should be okay. Again this is to let the water drain down to the subsoil quicker. Then go to it with the compost - paper - straw - cardboard - whatever you can get your hands on to bulk up your beds.
Good luck. Let me know what your neighbouring plotholders say about the water and I'll see if I can help further.

[Glasshousevirgin]

Rat has good advice and frankly if this is something that occurs regularly you have a lot of work on your hands in my opinion. The whole area has flooded from what I see of you picture.
May I suggest also a trench around the edge of your site to a depth of 6 (possibly 12 inches even) that you can fill with stones also as a further drainage measure to prevent water moving from surrounding sites. If this is a one off flood it may not be necessary but having drained your site it would be a shame to have it repeating.
Does the ground slope at all? It looks flat but if there is even a bit of gradient if may assist you to have drainage ditches across the site too. It may be possible to incorporate them into a design feature to disguise them a bit.
Good luck and I can imagine how you felt after the shed went up. Senseless vandalism was my complaint last year when my glasshouse was attacked.
All the best when the baby comes.

[chrissie the chippy]

Brilliant advice, thank you both

I think it is only a problem with 'big' rain (there's a pregnancy brain thing to say ), it happened a lot last summer with the rain.... will have to ask them if it happens every year. Surrounding plot holders have either sorted their problems by the looks of it, or it isn't half as bad as mine! Next door on the left has no raised beds, but his plot is nice and level and he bulks it up every year by the looks of it.... not long given it a good dig over too which I suppose would help!

Mine is almost flat, there is a bit of a dip at the entrance, which comes off a concrete path/ carpark......

I'll go and pester my local sainsburys for some cardboard boxes! Can't really afford the compost at the moment, but fingers crossed my dad can get hold of some top soil for me from work..... but then he also promised to help me dig it over..... still waiting I was going to see if I could get hold of some bales of straw too, I keep hearing that you can normally pick it up quite cheap....... would I put the card/ paper and straw down to level the beds off before starting to build a raised bed? Do you think I'll have enough time to get it sorted by March for when everything gets going?

On a bright note, my mum has a mountain of stones that she had no idea what to do with (god knows where they keep coming from!!), so I can use them for soak away holes and for a trench down the side or at the entrance bit maybe?

Thank you both for your advice.... was starting to think I was doomed!

Might nip out to the lottie in a mo and try piercing the paths with a fork, should be easy work, even for me!!

[Winged one]

Be careful of yourself though too - you know the advice that you got about no hoovering and mopping (cos the tummy muscles will seperate), I think that would apply to digging too.

Maybe start to be a bit more vocal about how tired you are and how much you were looking forward to weaning the babs on homegrown veggies (and giving you the boost too afterwards). So that others may at least dig, which would allow you to put in a few spuds (slowly, with a trowel - no big trenches this year), and a few rows of beans, peas, lettuces, carrots. I'd say consider a few seedlings in pots, but they would probably need planting out at just the wrong time - unless you have at least 2 trustworthy people who you can rely on to plant at the right time in the right place (I say 2 cos they'd probably be people like your OH and other family members, who will all be otherwise occupied as well at the critical time, and you don't want your efforts being wasted on a windowsill when you are still in a weepy state and the slightest little thing can set you off - been there, done that!!).

(I can't see the piccies so don't know if this is possible) but you can also organise a nice little area for sitting in as well, so that you can head off down with babs on fine days, plonk him/her in the shade in the pram (or other suitable accomodation) while you get to gently potter around, and later feed together in the sunshine (be that bottle or other). Do you have a shed on the new bit?

Enjoy, and make sure that you keep to gentle pottering around for the next few months (about the next 4 or so at least).

[HeyWayne]

I still can't believe you'd been gone 29 weeks!? Seems like only yesterday you were posting here. Welcome back though!

It's heavy clay (quite deep too apparently) round our way, and I've had problems with drainage at home - soakaways etc. There are loads of drainage channels around our allotment and a little stream near the entrance, which seems to keep things moving nicely. There is a large puddle near my apple tree which appears whenever it rains heavily, but that's about as bad as it gets thankfully.

Good luck with yours Chippy, and make sure you take it very very easy!

[Glasshousevirgin]

my thought when u said the allotment near to car park is that is will be quite compacted from traffic so reason watershed is onto your allotment perhaps.
Certainly a good place to start your drainage trench to bypass it - but then is it going to become a problem for your neighbours ?
Free organic matter is often available as result of council recycling so check if they can't supply you as its often high in nitrogen and already composted.

[chrissie the chippy]

thank you winged one, will be taking it easy, my partner and mum are going to help me with the digging over.... mum came to 'help' with putting some manure down and wouldn't let me do anything!! Well I was allowed to undo the twine on the bags bless her..... have also discovered that my partner is very good at digging! Made a rod for his own back there, think he secretly enjoys it though! Will let him grow as many peppers and wierd things as he likes.... I've got a nice grassed area I'm hoping to get a bench for, looking forward to sitting back and admiring everything in the summer! It is right next to the shed, which is good, think I might have to feed bubs in there lol, not sure my neighbours will thank me for sitting on the bench doing it ooooh, can't wait for a few bbqs in the summer now!


I think the soil has clay in it too Wayne, a good 3ft down.... it isn't too clay like though, our old garden was.... could have made things with it! Thought I'd stop pestering for a while, seemed to be asking tons of questions but never being able to offer any advice Too good to stay away for too long though!


I do think the carpark bit does have an impact on my site, it goes straight onto it and there is a dip straight away.... I think it definitely needs bringing back up to the same level as the 'road'. I'll pester the allotment site lady next week and ask if the council might be able to sort it out if it is a drainage problem caused by the road.... will cost a small fortune to level it off with top soil if I have to pay (assuming my dad can't do it.... not that I'm too impatient to wait.... )

They do apparently deliver free compost every so often, just missed out on some and apparently, it went rather fast, had to be there when it was delivered.... wonder if it will be worth ringing around a few....

[TPeers]

I'd go to your site manager with the outfit that makes the most of 'bump' on! Ask if there is any way they could help you get things dug for this season - or you could try a local agricultural collage if there is one near you - practical experience in laying land drains would be the approach. You might even be able to get them to pay for it!

Good luck with baby, don't work too hard!

Terry