Topic: MULCHING

[carrot-cruncher]

I'm currently only using 1/3 of my allotment so the other 2/3 are merrily developing weeds.   I've had the excellant sounding idea of covering the unused 2/3 with manure.   This should then a: smother the weeds & b: when dug in improve the condition of my soil which is quite loamy.

Fortunately I have access to a virtually unlimited supply of horse manure for the mulch & with luck the weather will break it down, making it easier for me to dig in.

Has anybody out there tried this method of weed control before & how did you get on?   I know you can buy the weed control fabrics from good garden centres but I don't fancy spending a small fortune just to cover my plot.

[tim]

No, but lucky old you!!

But I would prefer to use stuff which is really rotted down first. = Tim

[kingkano]

Yes and no.  I did some last year, and doing another section this year (as my soil is clay and unused for a long time).  Even almost fresh manure by next year will be fairly rotted I found.  But to be honest it doesnt to much to stop the weeds, the thicker the better too.  This year I am trying a variation, mulching it thick (maybe a foot deep) in partly rotted manure and then planting squashes all through :)

[allotment_chick]

Yes - tried it with moderate success - you just have to be mindful that manure is full of seeds itself.  In my case, I found it smothered annual weeds no problem, but thistles, bindweed and couch did eventually make their way through - I just lopped their tops off as this was the quickest 'no effort' approach.  As they regrew, I continued to remove the growth.  I found this method didn't kill perennial weeds at all, in fact they like the manure as much as the veg do!  But it did give breathing space, so that I could concentrate on one area at a time without the rest looking awful.  

On my No 2 plot I'm trying a similar approach as kingkano but with watermelon!

AC
 

[Garden Manager]

Chances are the manure will contain its own crop of weed seeds, which will add to the problem. Nice idea though, and will when dug in improve the soil.

[Derekthefox]

I think the above postings have been fairly precise.
Annual weeds will be smothered, perennials will persist, and new seeds will be introduced with the muck.
The structure will also be improved significantly.
With luck, you will find you have a host of mushrooms, as I have. (I need to consult a reference book before using them though).
I would deduce that the end result is worth doing, as it gives an improvement in the soil, irrespective of weed status.
Just as an aside, does that mean the weeds will be bigger!
Good luck!

[gavin]

Good advice on the weed control (lack of!) - but on the bit I did this, it was very much easier to clear and dig the following season;  the soil was so much improved, and a good "harvest" for a new compost heap.

I'd certainly do it again - and keep cuttting the weeds to stop this year's crop of seeds.

Good luck - Gavin

[Garden Manager]

With reference to weeds, think of them as a green manure. Most (annual) weeds are good for composting. ;D

[carrot-cruncher]

Thanks for the advice folks.

If the weather up here in Leicestershire holds I plan on starting this week.   A couple of hours each day after my nightshift should see a fair chunk of the lottie covered.   Then we'll wait & see what happens.

Anaxi

[derbex]

Looks like  we might have had the same weekend, upto the knees in horse poo :)

FWIW I put two layers of cardboard under the horse poo to try and stop thistles &c. coming through. From experience one layer isn't enough, they find their way through the gaps.

[philcooper]

Anaxi,

Is to cover the  muck with cardboard, or several layers of paper with a mulch such as grass cuttings, or carpet

The effect is to:

1. exclude light, preventing any annula weeds in the muck germinating and not doing any perennial weeds in the plot any good

2. provide moisture retension so that the worms can incorporate the muck in the top inch or 2 of the soil

After a couple of treatments (which can be over winter in which case the covering stops leaching of goodness from soil and muck) the soil becomes so light that you can go to no dig - you do need to divide the plot into beds so that you don't step on the lightened soil

Phil

[carrot-cruncher]

I've already roughly planned out the future on my plot.   The area I'm currently cultivating I've split into six beds.  Next year's area will also be split into six beds with the same happening on the final area in year three.   I'll then start the rotation again.  

The plan for year four when I'm back on the original year is to grow everything in a different place to where it's currently growing this year.  This should keep the nutrients balanced in the soil.

Also by splitting everything into beds it makes it much easier for me to work my plot because a: it's so big (30 foot wide & 150 foot long) & b: there's only me.  I'm working on my Dad's premise of "little & often".   This way I'll get the whole plot mulched but without wearing myself out.

[philcooper]

The beds I'm talking about are 4-5' wide x the width of the plot. The paths are 12-18" wide depending on preference

This means that you can reach the entire bed from either side without standing on the cultivated soil. The advantages are:

you only spend effort on the cultivated bits

you only put fertiliser and compost on the cultivated bits

you can work the ground when it is too wet to stand on (giving earlier starts or if you have limited time on the plot you arfe less likely to be rtained off)

the yield is the same or higher as you can place the planrts closer together and the paths take up much less space that the traditional wasted space between rows.

as I said above, the soil gradually becomes lighter and easier to work

Phil

The only downside I can think of is that potatoes will onlny efficiently fit the beds if you make them 5' wide to accommodate 2 rows 2' 6" apart

[gilgamesh]

In my opinion 5' is too wide - you will find you start walking on the bed to deal with the middle, 4' is, IMO, the optimum. On a 4' bed, plant your spuds 9" in from the edges, leaving a 2' 6" gap between rows.

[philcooper]

That was why I said it was a downside.

Having long arms, my beds are 4' 6" wide.

The problem with potatoes is providing sufficent space for earthing up. I plant my rows 1' from the edge of the bed and find that this is a little narrow

[derbex]

When I made my beds I did it by suck and see, that is I chose where one edge was reached in to place a stone, then went around to the other side to see where I could pick it up, then moved that edge in a little to be on the safe side. Of course if you're smart you do this only once and use a tape measure thereafter. I think the beds have worked out to be between 4ft & 4ft 6 -except the first which I did by eye and is well over 5ft, that's a stretch for me and I'm 6ft 2.


Jeremy

[derbex]

On the weed control I have one bed (now with seetcorn in it) covered with fabric and have used it elsewhere. When I cut this one to plant the sweetcorn through there's quite a lot growing underneath and it's been on for two or three months now.

OPn the bit that had the fabric on for over a year I found that stuff started to grow through it and the fabric deteriorated in about 18 months, it would probably have been better with a mulch on top.

[carrot-cruncher]

I would put my beds approx 6 foot wide by 8 or 9 foot long.  I find this is big enough for me to me into the middle, especially when hoeing.   I was fortunate enough to find a long handled hoe so I can reach further into the beds without standing on teh soil & also I don't have to bend to far.   Also Dad, who's taller than I, can also use the same hoe without any bother.

On my plot I have a general access path up one side & have created my own path straight up the middle of the plot.   This gives me good access to everything I've planted.  Also, if I do have to stand on the soil I rake it over lightly afterwards to loosen the soil & removed my footprints..

[carrot-cruncher]

UPDATE

Well, I've started with the mulching & so far,so good.   I've got a nice wide strip of brown, gooey stuff across the width of the lottie which increases  daily.   I've had a lot of interest from other lottie holders at my association, generally along the lines of wanting to see how things turn out for me in the long run.

My lottie association secretary is also quite chuffed 'cos his pile of horse poo is shrinking quite rapidly.   He's even taken some of the newer stuff off the top so I can get to the older stuff.

Another, unforeseen, benefit is that the wobbly bits of me are no longer quite as wobbly & all those clothes in my wardrobe which had magically shrunk two sizes are starting to grow again!!!!