the plot has gone to pot

[vron]

Have faith

Oh dear roadkill, its not a pretty site, you could open it up to the public as a nature site, or if there is any wildlife maybe a safari park

Don't despair, when the rain eases of a little you will soon be able to tame it once again, just need a chair and whip though.

When we were first offered our plot last March 06, you could not see the mature Victoria plum tree (about 12' tall) the mature damson tree (same height) or the young green gage tree, for all the brambles,weeds and raspberry canes.

With the great help of our lotte holder next door 'H', our son Tony and Derek my husband who was recovering from a hip replacement in Jan 06, they had soon cut it down, burnt the rubbish and 'H' rotated the plot for us.

When I first saw it in the April I could not believe that it had been in such a state for so many years.

So have faith, loads of patience and all will come together, though it may take a little time to get it back to how it was.

[roadkill]

well im off work for a week after this week has gone so i hope to get it done in that week as long as the rain holds off

[muckdiva]

I would pull up the yellow flowers in your photo, and burn them before they seed everywhere. They look like Ragwort which is a pain, and also toxic to humans and grazing livestock, so wear gloves when handling it.

My allotment is knee deep in weeds too, but don't despair, bring on the black plastic!

[rustylady]

well i got some pics of it today

http://newplot.blogspot.com/

not looking good

I would have to agree with OH DEAR! Strim it as soon as you can, but if you have to put that off at least cut off the flowering weeds and bin or burn them. If they set seed you will have problems for years. I don't like weedkillers, but do use glyphosate on nasties like brambles where I can't get to the roots to dig them out. I've used old carpet with success to keep on top of things till I've had the time to dig thoroughly. Good luck and do let us know how you get on.

[Mozzi]

I took on a site in March which hadn't been worked for at least 20 years, it was about 3m deep in brambles. We cut them down using petrol hedge trimmers. We only managed to dig the roots out of one bed before all the rains came in May/June, and by the end of June the brambles were 2m long again in places, and covered with bindweed!

Over a 2 week period, I have cleared and dug the roots out of a second bed, and am now starting on a third bed. I realise I won't have got all the bramble roots out, but as long as I can remove the HUGE roots I should be able to manage the brambles that pop up from the smaller roots, and pick them off by hand or hoe them down. I admit I will probably use glyphosphate to control the bindweed in the cleared beds, along with hand-weeding and hoeing as time allows.

In a perverse way, I do find the work quite therapeutic, once I get out there, it's the motivation to get out and get started that's hard.

It's really good to read on here, though, that others have done the same thing and come out the other side, so I will perservere.

[Michelle]

We've struggled with our plot over the last few months as well, finding the time has been difficult, and when we've found the time it has rained! Like yours, it had got out of control and we had a stern letter from the committee.

As we're looking to buy a house in a new area we wil be giving up the plot in a few months (and hopefully having a garden to grow veg in!).

We contacted the allotment association and this weekend we met a man from the waiting list who is taking on half of our plot. This way we only have half the amount to work on, without losing all the stuff we'd planted (squashes, runners, toms etc.), which we would have done if we'd given up the whole plot. He can take the rest over when we leave.

Also for him it means he gets a head start on the plot - everyone's a winner and I feel it's a huge weight off my mind. No I can get my enthusiasm back and concentrate on making our half fabulous!

[Jenny22Cumbria]

Hi everyone,

I took on an allotment in March which had a large clear bed and scrubby but manageable grass all around. I dug over the bed, divided it and planted my veg...then was ill for a week! When I went back I couldn't believe the difference - all because the growing season had suddenly kicked in. The weeds and grass made me feel like crying and I felt so bad for my poor neighbours having to put up with the weeds and slugs from my awful plot that I didn't enjoy it anymore. I did get it all under control (shortly before I moved out of the area!) but the key for me was getting some help from my very generous boyfriend. That way, when we finished for the evening I felt like we'd acheived something. I also put black plastic over some quite large areas, which takes the pressure off and makes the area easier to dig over afterwards.

[yoanbob]

hi do you have a birthday or somthing coming up? we asked for help on our plot for a wedding present (certainly beats towels we already have and yet another kneeler or trowel) and the local grapes turned up with great enthusiasm and gusto even tho it was the middle of the rainy bit in june (and boy did it rain) we still managed to clear the whole plot and have a barbie (we still dont have a kitchen) tho the barbie was covered with a piece of tin, we had a great day broke the back of the plot which was getting way out of hand due to deaths and illness in the family and work and wedding plans so maybe this is the answer.
just throw a mini party, get all who are willing over and hey presto, perfect plot, its much easier with other like minded folk and no more stress.

[ulla]

i had good experience with potatoes and green manure. covering up is also good, but might protect pests, too. This winter I will cover up and aim to have more perennial fruits such as strawberries & veggies such as asparagus and build some permanent structures such as raised bed, benches and seating area and coldframe. Also sime little trees and have given a little bit of plot to friend to try out gardening.
I still have weed and overgrowth problems, but it is slowly getting better each year. I do not use weedkiller as have many lovely ladybirds and foxes on my plot.

[ulla]

If you would want to plant something straight away after rotavating I would recommend the field beans as green manure - it keeps the weeds away for the winter and loosens up soil and I think its good for soil structure, too. It's also good that if you digg it in and leave to rot in spring, nothing will germinate for several weeks, including weeds. Potatoes and Onions and seedlings are doing okay to plant as follow up, too. And the field beans will also fix nitrogen from the air, so it's additional fertilisation.

You can get these seeds from the Organic Gardening Catalogue, and if you put them on a wet kitchen towel in the kitchen to start off, they will all germinate, too. They are planted in autumn, too.

That helped me a lot last year, too. The other green manure, such as Phacelia, Clover and the Rye Gras was not as successful as weed suppresser and not that easy to dug in.

So I would work with a combination of
- planting strawberries, fruit shrubs and trees
- rotavating and field beans as green manure
- covering with that black plastic thing

and potatoes are great, but haven't tried out winter potatoes.

Also it is really good if you have friends and family to help (maybe with a barbecue) because at the start it is very horrific.