What I Did Today (Undercover)

[Aberdeenplotter]

need a mortgage rto cover all the groundin a tunnel with baking foil

[marchogaeth]

I do quite the opposite but when the tunnel is empty .......so it is really important to give the soil a thorough wash through either by leaving a hose on, removing the glass/cover and letting the weather do the work overwinter or by physically removing the soil, taking it out into the weather and replacing after winter.

Here endeth the lesson

I can't argue with this. However, my tunnel is working all year round. I did say to VC at the weekend that I knew I would eventaully get problems but I am quite cool with the idea that I will have to start cycling soil, probably by the end of this year. I really struggle with the water coming in when it rains due to our position on the side of the mountain in Wales, where sunshine comes in a liquid form, so try to keep all added water to the minimum. Also if I can keep it dry it helps reduce slug numbers early in the season. In Summer I use upside down plastic bottles to get water to the roots while keeping the top soil dry to try and help with blight.

Weeds are my main problem, as with the rest of my plot; it was unworked for at least 8 years before I got it so there's trillions of weed seeds just loving the protected atmosphere of the tunnel...

to keep weeds down in the tunnel and at the same time keep in moisture and deflect heat from the beds, put down black and white polythene, black side down. Plant through slots cut to suit in the plastic.

It's also ideal for the cardboard approach but plant through the cardboard.

I think it was Bunty's blog on youtube where I heard that a really quick quick hoe every 8 days is the most effective way to hoe. Something to do with the cycle of germination. After a few rounds of this there is little left to germinate in the few cms of soil you are disturbing.

That fits in with my experience. I was shocked how quickly I got on top of the weeds that appeared last year but because I used soil from the field I expect a new lot will emerge on a regular basis for a few years if not forever!

to keep weeds down in the tunnel and at the same time keep in moisture and deflect heat from the beds, put down black and white polythene, black side down. Plant through slots cut to suit in the plastic.

I've been told baking foil works quite well, too but have yet to try it.

Great thread Sarz - cheers. It's so nice to be having a gardening discussion.

[Aberdeenplotter]

to keep weeds down in the tunnel and at the same time keep in moisture and deflect heat from the beds, put down black and white polythene, black side down. Plant through slots cut to suit in the plastic.

[redser]

I think it was Bunty's blog on youtube where I heard that a really quick quick hoe every 8 days is the most effective way to hoe. Something to do with the cycle of germination. After a few rounds of this there is little left to germinate in the few cms of soil you are disturbing.

[SarzWix]

I soaked all the beds with the hose attached to the IBC tank before spreading muck on it. My thinking was that it's better to keep the soil moist now when there's water/rain around to refill the tank rather than waiting til the soil's bone dry and I'm filling the beds up with thirsty crops. No need for cleaning the plastic yet as it's only been on for 6 months

Weeds are my main problem, as with the rest of my plot; it was unworked for at least 8 years before I got it so there's trillions of weed seeds just loving the protected atmosphere of the tunnel...

[redser]

I have two plastic covered removable panels for each gable end (top and bottom of the door frames). Behind these I have debris netting. I left the top halfs open all winter to keep airflow going through. It did the plants I have in there no harm but more importantly I dont have some of the troubles I see around the allotments where people shut their tunnels/greenhouse up completely (algae, mould etc). I'd say airflow is more important than trying to keep temps up at this time of year.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Chooks great idea. Cleanliness is next to godliness undercover. Ventilation vital.

[VirginVegGrower]

I do quite the opposite but when the tunnel is empty. Salts and electrolytes tend to build up in the soil in tunnels and greenhouses which reults in a reduction of the electrical conductivity. Help I hear you all say. What does that mean and what is the effect? Bottom line is it prevents plants being able to take up fertilisers from the soil so it is really important to give the soil a thorough wash through either by leaving a hose on, removing the glass/cover and letting the weather do the work overwinter or by physically removing the soil, taking it out into the weather and replacing after winter.

Here endeth the lesson

AP I am trying to keep mine growing through the year, hence o/w alliums, roots, etc. I soak the soil once a week in cold weather as I had read that was better than watering more regularly. I Citroxed the outside early in the winter but only scrubbed the Environmesh inside. I have been putting up the door vent on mine as I don't have anything particularly weather precious in there. Am I doing enough? I did have chooks in there one afternoon doing a bit of weeding/fertilizing.

[Aberdeenplotter]

I washed the tunnel inside as high as I can reach the other day. It's in it's second year. It has made a huge diffrence to the way it feels. I used just one bucket of warm water to keep moisture to a minimum.

I do quite the opposite but when the tunnel is empty. Salts and electrolytes tend to build up in the soil in tunnels and greenhouses which reults in a reduction of the electrical conductivity. Help I hear you all say. What does that mean and what is the effect? Bottom line is it prevents plants being able to take up fertilisers from the soil so it is really important to give the soil a thorough wash through either by leaving a hose on, removing the glass/cover and letting the weather do the work overwinter or by physically removing the soil, taking it out into the weather and replacing after winter.

Here endeth the lesson

[VirginVegGrower]

Oh! I'm so glad this isn't just in my tunnel! I was quite worried about it, thought it was just my poor soil


I'd love that Paul Peacock, or Mark Gatter, or Andy McKee please

So far to my soil - which was bought in top soil (old army house ground, so lots of clinker, ash and rubbish put down), I have added seaweed out of my water butt - acts as a cleanser, also my chicken poop mixed own compost, Rockdust and mulches of nettles - a la TwoSheds. Oh and some leaf mold. It's a completely different soil now to the one I started with, which was bitty and gritty - no humus. All of this sits in the eighteen inch - two foot deep trenches atop rock hard clay. I just keep mulching on top now with as much as I can get hold of or make.

[marchogaeth]

I hoed the green cap off the soil that had developed around my alliums (sounds so rude), watered a lot (I tend to soak once a week in this cold weather. I deleafed some celeriac, pulled some up for soup. Also strawberries in pots in there.
i have also sown early carrots in the coldframe in there but nothing showing as yet.

In my exp deleafing is one of the most important jobs, even if you just move them to somewhere where they can be specific mulches. Less places for pests/fungi to grow but also keeps things aerated. Not letting weeds take hold
also a priority as anything that likes it outside seems to like it twicw a smuch in!

My raised beds are needing next to no water at the mo. The paths are often flooded though. Very small stuff gets a sprinkle or a spray. I was really bad at overwatering last year and lost too many seedlings so I'm trying to be Two Sheds this year.

My carrots are struggling to germinate and they are in a cold window (take your pick) in the house.

Strawberries are loving being inside.

Oh! I'm so glad this isn't just in my tunnel! I was quite worried about it, thought it was just my poor soil

It's maybe a sign that your soil is better than you think. . The problem you have is only caused by lack of movement of air which you will get with the tunnel closed up after the winter, by poor light levels and by lackof movement of the soil surface. All will be remedied as the season gets under way

I do turn my green soil over through the winter but only when the soil it's on is very dry. It's just another sort of green manure.

Mark Gatter, or Andy McKee please

Not selling anything! But if you follow their book you can't go (easily) wrong.


I washed the tunnel inside as high as I can reach the other day. It's in it's second year. It has made a huge diffrence to the way it feels. I used just one bucket of warm water to keep moisture to a minimum. I am actually looking forward to washing the outside and doing the higher up bits inside at Easter. (need to be able to a) open the doors and b) wear minimum clothing to do the high inside.)

Growing in there now are mangetoute, carrots, lots of cabbage, calbrese, cauliflower, parsley, chard, chicory, strawberries, garlic, peppers, rocket, lettuce, lambs lettuce, stir fry greens,tomato seedlings, lots of herb seedlings. (All under fleece on cold days).

Yeterday I filled bags with compost ready to warm up a bit before putting new potatoes in in about a fortnight.

I think I've said it before but when it becomes an olympic sport I intend to bore for Wales on polytunnel gardening. (OH just read this over my shoulder and said, "Why wait?"!!

[VirginVegGrower]

Oh! I'm so glad this isn't just in my tunnel! I was quite worried about it, thought it was just my poor soil





I'd love that Paul Peacock, or Mark Gatter, or Andy McKee please

Nope it's quite normal apparently - keep hoeing it away

[redser]

Great idea for a thread!
I moved various modules and pots of things from the house up to the tunnel now that they've generminated. Beetroot, spring onions, salad leaves, mustard, rocket, large pots of early-type carrots. Prepared 15 large pots with horse manure for early chitted spuds, they'll be going in later in the week. Hoed around the onions and garlic. Watered the strawberry plants and purple sprouting. Moved up mangetout and main crop peas, all of them in root trainers with shoots showing about the compost now.
Emptied a dalek and brought the compost into the tunnel. Dug out a couple of trenches for the peas to go into and lined them with newspaper and then flooded the trecnhes a couple of times. Dumped in the compost and returned the soil. I'll hopefully plant the peas next week some time.
Busy busy again, it's great

[Aberdeenplotter]

Oh! I'm so glad this isn't just in my tunnel! I was quite worried about it, thought it was just my poor soil

It's maybe a sign that your soil is better than you think. . The problem you have is only caused by lack of movement of air which you will get with the tunnel closed up after the winter, by poor light levels and by lackof movement of the soil surface. All will be remedied as the season gets under way

[VirginVegGrower]

P'haps we need an undercover expert .......

Naughty!

Great thread Sarz