Allotment Stuff > The Basics

CLAY SOIL

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aquilegia:
Why how big's your patch?

Fingle....:
At least 7 beds of 24" by 6-7 feet !!

DarkSkies:

--- Quote ---Digging over our patch in Surbiton. Soil is clay based and prone to a bit of drainage trouble before it was dug over (still tends to pool water in the corners, but i figure mounding the beds should protect plants from rotting )

Have access to manure 2 miles away but no van so would ideally like to keep the movement of it to a minimum (will be using a car !! ewww)
I see lime is also used.....any tips on quantity needed for about 7 beds in a 125m sq plot ?? Do i need to add to all the beds or just brassicas ?

Concerned of Surbiton


--- End quote ---


Its not the allotments by the smelly sewage works adjacent to Berrylands station is it?  I used to reside opposite The Rising Sun pub.  

I have concrete clay in the luxurious surroundings of Vale Road Allotments in Claygate now.

Fingle....:
It is indeed !!!

Hugh_Jones:
Hi Fingle. Regarding the question of liming - the best advice anybody can give you is to buy a pH meter (about £10 from any decent garden shop) and test your soil in several places.  Most vegetables prefer a pH of between 6.5 and 7.0, and if you get a reading within this range you don`t need to lime except for the brassicas, which love it .

If your pH is below 6.5 then you can lime in moderation, but NOT where you intend to grow potatoes, which hate lime and get scabby.

Lime (where it can be used) will also help improve the clay because it causes an electrolitic reaction in the minute particles, causing them to precipitate and improve the `crumb` structure of the soil.  However, the one point you must bear in mind is that lime should never be added in the same growing season as manure, so if you have the (well rotted) manure available, dig that in now and lime in the autumn if required.

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