Topic: Overgrown new allotment

[prawny369]

I have just acquired a new allotment overrun with tall grass and little in it (some potatoes, a couple of small apple trees and a sorry looking rhubarb plant).  It is a large half size, slopes gently, has little protection from the prevailing south westerlies, is Devon red soil and drains well except for a claggy bit in the corner.

My question is, other than getting rid of the overgrown is there anything that I can do to help for next year and also for instant gratification!

[BarriedaleNick]

It's an interesting time of year to take over a plot as you can see exactly what needs to be done and you can identify what weeds you have etc..
I would start with a plan of what you want to end up with - raised beds or not you can start to plan designated areas for crops next year and then work to that.
So clear an area for over wintering stuff - Garlic, Onions, broad beans etc.  Some over wintered lettuce maybe.  If you can pick them up cheap then cabbage or cauli plants could go in now for next year.  You can still grow radish (esp mooli types), lettuce, pak choi and other oriental brassicas for some grub this year - others Im sure will have suggestions.
Organise a composting area is a good idea to do first up and of course you can manure or plant green manure on cleared areas (or even just cover them)
Of course the main thing is to enjoy it - treat it as a long slow jog rather than a sprint (I think I have watched too much sport!) and take the time to appreciate allotment life..
All the best!

[elvis2003]

great advice there from Nick
we took ours on at this time of year,perfect as we could just concentrate on clearing it without panicking about growing. my best bit of advice was to start at one end and don't stop till you reach the other end. good luck

[Kleftiwallah]

DON'T go at it like a bull at a gate.  DO   clear it a little at a time.

It is supposed to be a relaxing pastime, strenuous but relaxing?

Find out what type of 'tall grass' it is.

Cheers,    Tony.

[Digeroo]

Welcome to A4A.  

For instant gratification I would suggest a pot of tesco parsley.  Divide into four and plant.
You can still sow lettuce and other greens and spring greens.

Many supermarkets do living lettuce, I eat some and grow some on.

I am very exposed to the North Westerlies, so I grow tall peas and mangetout along the windward side.  I put them under bottle cloches in February so by the time I have more delicates to protect there is a good hedge of peas.  Broad beans are also a good screen.  

As others have said be sure to enjoy it.

[Ru1]

I've just taken over another allotment which is very overgrown.  Somewhere on there are about 80 strawberry plants, but you can't see them for very tall grass.

So I'd advise you to do what I'm doing, and start at one end and slowly clear the weeds.  The good thing about taking on an allotment at this time of year is that you can see where the major problems are.

If you can clear 25-50% of it before February, then you'll have a great start for planting next year.  Then you can tackle the other half while your plants are growing.

Just take it easy, don't try and do too much at once, and as others have said...ENJOY

[newspud9]

As far as something you can do now which can help for next year......It may not be the very first thing you do, but my advice would be that as you clear away the weeds, for those areas where you are not going to plant (e.g. paths), make sure you put down appropriate cover as you go (weed suppressant materials if you're not going to use weed-killer) so that you dont end up (like I did) spending time re-weeding over and over again parts that you're not going to use for your crops.  As the "old wise ones" say, "get yer borders sorted"...indirectly, it will help with your instant gratification.

[Sparkly]

Lots of good advice, but don't forget to take photos!

[debbilove]

I too recently acquired a new very overgrown plot and tackled it by starting at one end, clearing to the other.  I then determined where I wanted a path to go and covered that with a weed proof membrane and covered that with wood chip.  75% of my plot is covered with black plastic to keep the couch grass and weeds at bay while the other 25% now has cabbages, caulis and calabrese growing under net.

As I want to plant more crops for winter, I simply pull back some of the plastic, till the soil and incorporate fertilisers then plant leaving the remaining ground covered until needed.

I intend to apply a thick layer of manure during the late autumn months to the remaining bare earth and recover for spring.

The key to success is to plan and do little yet often.
Enjoy!

[squeezyjohn]

Sounds like you're exactly where I was last October ... which means you can probably do a bit more than I did before the winter set in good and proper!!!  You are actually in a fairly good position for next year as the soil underneath all the weeds is probably fairly dry and diggable.

If I were you I'd strim the b***er to within an inch of it's life with a strimmer/brush cutter if you have access to one.  It always looks a million times better once it's at ground level even if all the roots are already pushing up new growth the minute you look away  ;D

Then I'd cover some areas of beds with some form of material you can get your hands on for no money preferably so that the weeds in those areas can be suppressed.  In a month or so you can dig them much more easily than you could just getting in there and clearing manually, but in the meantime have a go at clearing a small area by digging up squares and shaking the soil off the weeds and then try and get all the perennial roots out with a fork ... this will be slow and unrewarding work - and there will always be a few roots you miss / can't dig deep enough to get that show their heads later in the year - but it will be good progress until the covered areas are easily workable.

You've still got a chance to start off things like chinese cabbage/pak choi/swedes in pots to go in to these spaces soon for the winter, I'm doing that now.  Radishes will give you some quick confidence sown direct.  If you clear enough by the beginning of winter then you could get some fruit trees or bushes out there to get going early next year - you've even got time to take some cuttings from friendly nearby plot holders of redcurrants, black-currants, blueberries and gooseberries and get them established in pots for when you have clear ground early next year.  You can nick slips (small sections of plant with roots) of globe artichoke this time too for propagation in pots from any friendly neighbours too.

And then the weeds will come back because all the seeds of how ever many years your plot has been overgrown will still be there in the soil ... and you'll need to hoe VERY regularly to keep it back in the small islands of order you have created to stop it deteriorating again.

But then you can put garlic in in Nov/Dec + you can look after that rhubarb with a massive dollop of manure and some careful weeding.  You can build a shed to your exact specifications!

And then next year you can start all over again while the weeds try and get control back.

It's going to be SOOOOOOO exciting!

[Russell]

I would support the comment about strimming. I took over some land some time ago about this time of year which was all matted couch grass.
Part of it I dug out, it was extremely hard work because the clay soil was baked hard. I realised clearance was going to take some time, so I strimmed the uncleared remainder of the plot as often as I could. When I came to clear the strimmed area next spring the couch grass had all the stuffing knocked out of it and it did not really fight back much at all.
Incidentally it was on this project that I learned how couch grass prefers to spread by shallow roots, so nowadays I clear twice over first by shallow digging then more serious digging. That way I don't bury any shallow roots deeply where they are so much more of a nuisance.
Try not to dig too close to your apple trees.

[laurieuk]

I took on a new plot in February if you look at my little website you can follow my progress. I am now havesting, potatoes, runer beans, french beans, lettuce,tomatoes,beetroot, courgettes,cucumbers,spring onions having cleared broad beans. The great thing is to clear it as you go and get out as much as you can. Wishing you all the best.

[jimtheworzel]

buy a ltr of Bayers Glyphosate Concentrate Weed Killer from Amazon
starting at the top end of the allotment with 2 rows of string mark off the plot
into 2 rows around  6 feet apart  and spray this area, then move string 1...... 6 foot in front of string 2 and spray, keep doing this till you have sprayed all the plot....this method will make shure all the plot is sprayed all over  and no ground is missed-in 4 or 5 weeks you can burn off the old grass and dig

Jimtheworzel

[laurieuk]

We all have our own thoughts about using weedkillers on soil where we are going to grow crops, I prefer not to, but we are not allowed to burn on our plots so weedkilling would not be very helpful.

buy a ltr of Bayers Glyphosate Concentrate Weed Killer from Amazon
starting at the top end of the allotment with 2 rows of string mark off the plot
into 2 rows around  6 feet apart  and spray this area, then move string 1...... 6 foot in front of string 2 and spray, keep doing this till you have sprayed all the plot....this method will make shure all the plot is sprayed all over  and no ground is missed-in 4 or 5 weeks you can burn off the old grass and dig

Jimtheworzel

[gavinjconway]

I have just acquired a new allotment overrun with tall grass and little in it (some potatoes, a couple of small apple trees and a sorry looking rhubarb plant).  It is a large half size, slopes gently, has little protection from the prevailing south westerlies, is Devon red soil and drains well except for a claggy bit in the corner.

My question is, other than getting rid of the overgrown is there anything that I can do to help for next year and also for instant gratification!

Hi prawny... For a bit of inspiration take a look at my blog website about my plot (forest) I took over in November... been a lot of work but really enjoying it..   www.gavinconway.net

[banksy]

For a bit of inspiration take a look at my blog website about my plot (forest) I took over in November... been a lot of work but really enjoying it..   www.gavinconway.net

What a transformation.... and a lot of hard work I bet, but really impressive, well done!

[jimtheworzel]

[quote author=laurieuk
We all have our own thoughts about using weedkillers on soil where we are going to grow crops, I prefer not to, but we are not allowed to burn on our plots so weedkilling would not be very helpful.

o/k then rotovate all the dead stuff in. then dig it over in winter time

[gavinjconway]

Cheers banks..

[daveylamp993]

Gav,that is a magnificent effort by you and you re friends,Ive enjoyed looking through your photos and saved your blog in my favourites,please let us know when you've added more photos,many thanks for sharing you re progress with us