Allotments 4 All
Allotment Stuff => The Basics => Topic started by: pandora,s box on February 01, 2009, 15:35:36
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:) hi i ave just purchased a small allotment roughly 32 ft x 32ft...its just very rough grass with the remains of a bonfire on it!!! i would appraciate some guidance of were to start first!!! i would love to have potatoes,onions and carrots as a starter....whats the best way to sort the ground out etc to get a good base to start planting....any other ideas would be gratefully appreciated...thanks
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Welcome to A4A!
Have a look at topics under The Basics and you'll find posts like this that should help you
http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php/topic,47465.0.html
Happy gardening, when it gets a bit warmer!
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Hello and welcome....
I always advise newcomers to start in one corner and work along one edge, creating a bed as you go. So many folk start making a bed somewhere in the middle and are amazed when it gets overgrown by the surrounding grass. So take a good long look at the plot, sort out the "best" bit - ie. the easiest! - and start there.
Mark out a bed 4 feet wide, take of the top layer of grass and compost it. Then dig the bed and take out as many nasty roots as you can. (Burn them!) It's slow and it's hard work, but you won't regret it in the long run. And meanwhile, mark out the next bed and cover it to help kill the weeds.
Potatoes & onion sets don't need to go in until mid-March or early April, so you've got time to prepare the ground for them. Personally, I'd forget carrots for this year - they need fine soil. (Or why not grow some in a bucket or trough and use grow-bag soil?)
And don't try to get the whole plot cleared in one season. Aim for half, or even a third. And if you manage more than that, throw a party!
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;) thanks for all the tips..will try to get started when the weather improves....i have a good idea were i am going to start...thanks again
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no advise to add but welcome to A4A and take lots of pictures forus
lbb
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Welcome to A4a! Ask all the questions you want, that's what we're here for! I'd agree that carrots are one of the hardest things to grow so I wouldn't bother in your first year.
Asothers have said, do it little by little and try to get out as many weeds as possible so you don't have to do it all over again next year! (I speak from experience!)
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Welcome to A4A from me too :D
Can I add...Mark out your paths before you start.
No point digging that area, keep it nice and firm. Lay down cardboard on the pathways, this can be replaced with weed surpressant and bark chipping (or materials of choice) at a later date.
Oh, don't forget to take lots of before, during and after pics
Good luck and please keep us posted of your progress. We love seeing progress pics ;D
Lauren :)
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hiya, pandora's box, nice to meet you ;D
you've plenty of time to sort out a fruit bed, too..the bushes and trees are only just getting into the cheap shops, see bargains for details ;D
I agree about the paths, means you know where to walk :)
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Welcome to the site
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Wotcha! welcome to the site! ask away as much as you like!
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Welcome PB as said already strim the grass nearly bear, skim the grass off and stack upside down out of the way this will rot down in a years time and you will have some lovely soil to throw back on the lottie. Do a little at a time, but give yourself a target, but you will have to wait till the soil drys out a bit first. ;D ;D ;D
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Welcome to the site PB... last time I saw that name it was in an Adrian Mole book... ;D
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everyone has given very good advice but i would like to add that although carrots can be difficult on virgin soil i had 80 - 90% success my first year by digging out a 1f x 2ft area about a spade's depth and sifting the soil back into the area. i then sowed my seeds into this light friable soil and hey presto long straight carrots. now if you want enough carrots to store you'll have to wait, but for a few fresh carrots this summer this is another option.
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WOW ...THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR ALL YOUR ADVICE....I CANT WAIT TO GET STUCK IN....JUST NEED SOME NICE WEATHER NOW!!!!!! :)
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Don't hold your breath with this SNOW. :o :-\ ;D ;D ;D
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;) hi everybody just to keep you all informed that i have started to dig out my plot and i think there used to be a scrap yard there!!!!!!! i am really enjoying it and everyone around me is giving tips and helping me along...lets hope i get some things planted this season as the ground is a lot worse than i thought!!!! hope to get some photo.s on b4,during and later!!!!! ;D ;D ;D
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Have you found the glass mine yet? Every plot seems to have one, where somebody stacked all the glass for a greenhouse and then left it to get broken and overgrown... :-X
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Stack up the scrap in a corner, you never know the scrap prices might go through the roof again, some of it might come in handy. ;D ;D ;D
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When we started we unearthed parts of a bed and armchair. Not so long back Tony dug up a pair of slippers and socks and a pair of trousers. I told him to stop digging in case there was something more sinister down there
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Have you found the glass mine yet? Every plot seems to have one, where somebody stacked all the glass for a greenhouse and then left it to get broken and overgrown... :-X
that's in a corner of my plot!! I recently planted 3 fruit trees there.
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;D ;D yes i ave found the glass bed with about 1000 nails or more cant count anymore!!!!!! different shades of glass...very nice!!! NOT!! all this in the midst of a burnt out tree aswell....never mind will get there in the end!!!!!! looking forward to the next bit i ave to dig up!!! never know i mite become a millionaire!!!!!!!
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Just a quick hi to you. This site is a real goldmine of info and advice. I wouldn't be without it. :) :) Good luck and good growing to you
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We got our 1/2 plot at the beginning of Dec last year & there was a lot of rubbish to clear. We were told the previous person had been kicked off because he hadn't looked after it, & the same thing would happen to us if we didn't. We went on Saturday P.M. & our eldest daughter & 3 grandchildren were in the area so popped to see what we had got done since they saw it last year. She was amazed to see her beloved father digging trenches & slinging manure in said trenches instead of sat in front of the box. Sky+ is wonderful. Might be a different thing when the cricket season starts.
Janet
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I am very new to this growing lark only started last year. I had never grown anything. Totally addicted now.
There is one thing I have learned. "it really doesnt matter" If you want to try carrotts or anything that grabs you. Just go for it. The worst that can happen is they wont grow and you have wasted a couple of pounds but gained valuable experience. Its not rocket science and it should be fun. Just do a little bit and keep on top of the weeds.
All the best.
F
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hi everyone,,,just ad another few hours up at my allotment/scrapyard/glass bank/forest!!!!! yes i.ve ad a bad day!!! dont seem to be gettin anywere,,i know i am but feel fed up at the moment!! hope this is normal??? waiting for things to arrive that people ave promised me???? wood etc etc!!!! dont want to be a nag!!! ha ha.. my soil is like clay!!!! and to top it all my hubby as an operation tommorrow so i.ll be left with it all for a while!!!!!! sorry for the moan is there anyone out there with words of support!!!! lol.... :-\ :-\ :-\ :-\ :-\
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Have you taken some "before" and "during" pictures? When you finally get it sorted you'll feel great looking back at them! For now, don't worry about moaning to us, we all have a good moan from time to time. I know I have often felt as if I 'm going backwards with my plot. Hope your hubby's operation goes well.
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before and after pics a must - biggest regret for everything I do that I didn't do them! pff.
All you need for a sucessful plot is a spade and a fork and plenty of hard graft.
Don't try to do it all at once. I have a half plot and I only managed to dig two beds the first year I was there - the rest should be mown regularly.
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When we started we unearthed parts of a bed and armchair. Not so long back [Tony dug up a pair of slippers and socks and a pair of trousers. ]I told him to stop digging in case there was something more sinister down there
what size waist ?
i could do with a pair of gardening trousers ;D ;D ;D