Topic: Growing potatoes by no-dig method

[Tora]

OK, I'm already fed up with digging (so is my husband). :-[
We got a full plot in February and still digging our fist bed!
I'm tempted to try no-dig method for potatoes because I have many chitting seed potatoes and nowhere prepared for them.
My question is: Can I try a no-dig method on a plot full of bind weeds? The plot is covered with long grass as well. I know I have to dig bind weeds up at some point but am thinking maybe after a season of no-dig the soil will be easier to dig ???

[cowellen]

snap - i was thinking that - i was looking into Lasagne Gardening ?

PLease Help???

[supersprout]

Yes, use potatoes to clear your no dig beds ;D

Do all, or as many as you can, of the following:

Cover the bed with a layer of newspaper
Cover the newspaper with compost, manure, or what you have as soil conditioner
Cover that with topsoil
Cover that with black plastic or more newspaper or cardboard (fasten down FIRMLY)
Plant through the holes!

When you dig up your spuds later in the year (the only digging you will need to do), you will also dig up exhausted cooch roots. Hey presto, one cleared bed ready for what you will!

Leeks also work as a clearing crop:


There are good threads here on the 'lazy sod' method (lasagne) of making beds - do a 'search' on lazy sod and you'll find the references. Also look on the wiki for more ideas on making beds.

Love your avatar cowellen  ::)

[cowellen]

thanks for that Supersprout - u are truly super - u've helped me again ..

wish I had my avator to eat all the mess on my plot

[supersprout]

LOL cowellen!

Your pic looks very similar to my plot in May last year (when I took it on).
Half covered in black plastic, waiting til you're ready for it ;D

Looking back, the best thing I did for Morale was to mark out all the beds and paths with pegs and string, and tackle them one at a time. The new lottie presented small, manageable chunks instead of an endless undug field. Paths gradually just started to form as they were trodden on, and the untrodden beds were easier to dig later on. Just a thought, in case it might work for you too. PS you need a LOT of string ;D ;D ;D

[Tora]

wish I had my avator to eat all the mess on my plot

lol! I want your avatar as well! My neighbour at the allotment suggested me to place newspapers and set fire to burn the grass. I'm wondering if it's a good idea?

Supersprout, thanks for that. ;) I do remember the lazy sod's method you told me when I asked about tackling my new plot. It really sounds like a sensible thing to do. I'm intrigued by the method ;D Wasn't sure about the bind weed situation. ???

I have a lot of leek seedling so am delighted to hear the method works for leeks! Can I do it the same way as potatoes?

Thanks :)

[derbex]

I had problems with mice when I used the lasagne method -they loved it under there and the spuds were a free feed.

I'm going to try lazy beds on ome lot this year -basically mark out a strip 2'6" wide, put a layer of compost on it and your spuds into that, then turn the 18" either side of the strip onto it. I may use a bit more width at the sides, or not, to end up with a 4'6" bed with paths either side.

Jeremy

[supersprout]

Hi jeremy, I had meeces too in one bed with this method, under the black plastic. Don't know which of us was more discombobulated at harvest time! Good luck with your lasagnes ;)

Hi tora, the leeks had exactly the same environment as the spuds. I cut a small cross at intervals in the black plastic, poked holes in the middle with a dibber, and popped the transplants in as normal in late June. After watering them in they got no further attention for the whole summer - no earthing up! - and cropped well in the autumn. Any weed that poked up next to them (including bindweed) got hoiked out. Spuds might be marginally better first time round if you have perennial weeds, because you have to dig them at the end of the year ;D

[mat]

discombobulated

Hey, GREAT word... ;D lucky I have the CD version of the Oxford English Dictionary (2 volume) on my PC, as I had to look this up  ::)... Love the word now I have heard it, I will try and use this at work...

mat

[SMP1704]

Supersprout, I agree with your approach, using string to mark out beds.  It is what I am doing at the moment.  It is much less daunting than facing a 5 a side football pitch.  I started digging in mid January.  I marked out 14 8x4 beds and so far have rough dug all of them and have fully finished 10 of them and I'm planting as I go (strawberries, raspberries, blackcurrants and hopefully broadies and peas next weekend.

If it hadn't been for the string, I think I may have given up by now

[jennym]

Persuaded by supersprout's posts and faced with less available space for potatoes, I too am trying a version of the no-dig method combined with cramming as much in as I can  ;D
Have an area about 12 ft square which was lightly dug in the autumn, and I piled about 9" thick layer of composted kitchen waste on it and covered it for the winter with woven black plastic weed suppressant.
Have today scooped out holes with a trowel about 6" deep, popped the potatoes in, put about another bucketful of composted kitchen waste on each one, and covered it back over with the plastic - will keep this on for a couple of weeks while the weather is cold and will review then.

[CityChick]

I kinda tried this last year with a new lottie and limited amount of compost:

Cut weeds down to ground level.  Watered ground (was very dry).  Put a layer of manure over ground (our site has a regular delivery of horse manure we can all help our selves to, but its with shavings, not straw, so takes a while to rot down and was very fresh).  Made a hole where I wanted to plant a spud.  Put a handful of good compost in hole.  Nestled in seed potato.  Covered with straw.

Topped up with grass clippings throughout the seaon and gave an occasional water.

Earlies and 2nd earlies were yummy, main crop didn't do as well (but I think some dried out too much).  Earth worms loved it :D which I took as a good sign...

Was a very easy, minimum work kinda way to get something out of a new overgrown plot.  Yeilds weren't maximum, and the weeds did stage a come back, but at least I got something out of the space with very little work at the time.

[cowellen]

LOL cowellen!

Your pic looks very similar to my plot in May last year (when I took it on).
Half covered in black plastic, waiting til you're ready for it ;D

Looking back, the best thing I did for Morale was to mark out all the beds and paths with pegs and string, and tackle them one at a time. The new lottie presented small, manageable chunks instead of an endless undug field. Paths gradually just started to form as they were trodden on, and the untrodden beds were easier to dig later on. Just a thought, in case it might work for you too. PS you need a LOT of string ;D ;D ;D

sorry its took me ages to reply - (i was gettin outbidded on e-bay for a shed :'( )

thanks for the tip with the string  ;)  - i bought lots yesterday and marked out my boundries... -

how big should beds be ? and how much space for paths ?
 ??? ::)  ;D 

many thanks from Moo - aka COWELLEN

[Robert_Brenchley]

Don't make them so long it becomes a pain to walk round the ends, or so wide it's hard to reach the middle. Only you can determine exactly what you can handle comfortably. It's all too easy to make beds too wide; I tend to do this.

[supersprout]

Couldn't agree more with the previous post! See also views on bed length, width, edge/no edge, orientation etc at http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/joomla/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,57/topic,17729.0

IMHO unedged beds are best for your first season, to make sure you aren't toppling over every time you reach to the middle of the bed. If you allow about 1.85m for a bed and a path together, you can adjust the bed/path width with your hoe to make a perfect fit. Most A4a-ers' beds seem to be 3 to 5m long. You might want long,wide paths between the ends of the beds for carting stuff around in your wheelbarrow - see below, covered with 1m woven black fabric strip. Wood chips or similar would be ideal over the top.



Don't worry if your neighbours tut-tut at your 'narrow' beds and 'wasted' paths. If your beds fit you, your plot will give you so much more pleasure.

If it hadn't been for the string, I think I may have given up by now

;D ;D ;D

[katynewbie]

;D

Lol "..wasted paths.." my lottie neighbour sees any kind of path as wasted growing space!! I feel better with somewhere to walk where i know i am doing no damage!!!! It's my plot so there!!!!

 ;)

[supersprout]

Hello cowellen, if you're still looking for the woven plastic membrane, see timely post here from Common_Clay http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/joomla/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,57/topic,17948.0/topicseen,topicseen
Great minds eh ;)