New Allotment first time grower

Tawny Owl · Posted: Sun Oct 27, 2013 1:47 pm Post subject: New Allotment first time grower

I hope I am in the right section, I have put my name on an Allotment, and I am wondering can you all help me, what do I do now at this time of the year, I have it clear to the stump of weed's that were growing, sprayed them with round up, I know I will have to add in manure, I cant attach a photo over 1mb and await your comments. Go easy on me.

Cheers.
Tawny Owl.

tippben · Posted: Sun Oct 27, 2013 3:14 pm Post subject:

Congratulations! Definitely clear as many weeds as you can. Glyphosate (roundup) works by being absorbed by leaves, and being taken down to kill the roots. It works best in the spring, when plants are starting to grow. It will still works in winter, but takes much longer. If you cut the weeds, then applied the chemical, you've wasted it. I'd still try to physically remove as many weeds as possible, because especially if it is a derelict plot, you are going to have to dig.

Dig a test hole. You'll see a dark layer of soil, then a fairly clear line to much lighter coloured soil. That light soil is subsoil. It contains few nutrients, and should not be mixed with the darker topsoil. The best way is to trench it. Dig a barrow full of topsoil, and dump it at the other end of the trench. Then use a fork to break up the subsoil, to ease any compaction, and help with drainage. Then your next lot of topsoil can cover that bit. Add well rotted manure and compost: as much organic matter as you can, while removing any roots, rubbish, or rocks. When you get to the end of the trench, your initial barrow load fills the last hole. Rinse and repeat until the area is done.

In the meantime, PLAN. Measured the plot, use a compass to detrmine aspects, and get your self some graph paper. What do you want to grow? How are you going to manage crop rotation? Where are you going to put your compost heap? Are you going to make raised beds? There is no point digging where you are going to have paths between beds, but you will need some kind of covering, to keep weeds away, and your boots clean. Paths really need to be 2-3' wide, to allow for foliage growing over the edges of the beds, but still allowing you decent access.

tagwex · Posted: Sun Oct 27, 2013 9:43 pm Post subject:

Not being funny here but........... be prepared for a lot of work. Get the soil tested for nutrient levels - best bit of advice you will get before you get stuck in.

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 1:28 pm Post subject: Allotment

Thanks for the advice I have an area to dump weeds right beside the plot, Manure any amount supplied by the land owner, and thanks to him he is going to run a tractor over the ground turning it for me, so that I can start taking out the stones and weeds, I have on my computer laid the plans out numbering the areas.
1 Onions
2 Garlic
3 Potatoes larger area.
4 cabbage
5 Beet Root
and so on so that next year I can rotate the veg around I am really looking forward to this as I have only every planted small amounts as a very young lad years ago, thanks for the tips I would like to up load some photos but any photos I take are over 2mb can I make them smaller to upload.

My Potatoes · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 6:08 pm Post subject:

What's your free time like? To put it another way, are you working Mon-Fri? If so you will have very little opportunity to do anything over the winter.

I would recommend going to a builders providers to by a roll of heavy guage plastic sheeting. Not that fine stuff used to wrap silage, but a stiff plastic.
Roll this over your plot on top of the weeds. When you get back in the spring the plastic will have killed off the weeds and their roots will have died, making digging easier. It will also have protected the soil from rain compaction. It will also have prevented the leaching of any nutrients over the winter.
It's such a simple time-saving and effort-saving device. Also, because it is a heavy guage plastic it can be used year-in, year-out. The light stuff can be pulverised by the winter rain, shredding it into the soil.

Good guy · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 7:33 pm Post subject:

I got a very easy to use App called SimpleResize from the App Store. It has made it much easier to post photos, as my iPad is inflexible this way.

tagwex · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 9:21 pm Post subject:

Alternatively just run your photos through any of the photo editing suites and compress the photos down by as much as 80%, once you have done it once it is really easy. If you want you can send them to me via e-mail and I will do it for you. I will PM you the e-mail address. No charge!!!

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 9:32 pm Post subject:

I have not posted 5 times so I cant PM anyone so thanks for the nice reply's.

tagwex · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 9:42 pm Post subject:

I might be wrong but I think you can PM straight away on this forum, I have just checked the FAQ and there was no mention of it there. Either way you can e-mail me the photos unless you cannot open the PM I sent you.

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 9:45 pm Post subject:

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 9:50 pm Post subject:

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:22 pm Post subject:

Thank you very much to Tagwex for resizing my photo, Thanks but I think you may get an idea of the site from this.

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:27 pm Post subject:

Now that's some serious digging and me at my age, I am not at all looking forward to this but I do have a great 26 year old Son to help, I will of course up load photos as I go, and compare this photo to next years and again Thanks for all the help especially Tagwex, and I hope I can in due course help some others out.

Cheers.
Tawny Owl.

tagwex · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:43 pm Post subject:

If you have two shovels give one to the 26 year old and lose the other one, come back when he is finished!!

Tawny Owl · Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:57 pm Post subject: