I have had allotments before but because of work I have not had one for years. I have just taken one on which needs completely winter digging, it is covered in all sorts of rubbish so any suggestions on what to spray it with?, also I have been trying to locate someone with a plough to turn it over or would I get away with a heavy duty rotovator/cultivator from my local hire shop, cheers
Good morning Mr Smith and welcome. You will have lots of views expressed here about the pros and cons of rotovating/ploughing or using chemicals (personally I'd dig if at all possible) but if you go down the hiring a rotovator route be very careful that the depth adjuster has not been capped so it only goes 6" deep maximum. This has happened to people on my site and they were not very happy about it and of course makes the hiring of the item useless. Sorry I'm not very good at technical-speak but I'm sure you will understand what I mean.
Twinketoes
Any spray containing glyphosphate, popular one seems to be roundup which is a systemic weedkiller. But it needs spraying on when plants are in leaf which may be a bit late this year..
Alternative is to hire a heavy duty strimmer /brushwood cutter and chop everything to as near ground level as you can ...
A rotovator from hire shop should then be OK to dig it. I would suggest you hire one if possible with the tines at the front. |A bit more work to use than the rear tined wheel jobs but they do dig quite a bit deeper..
It's a good time of year to tackle it ..Hope it goes OK for you :)
Twinkletoes our replies crossed in post :) The reason I suggested a front tined rotovator was they will dig to 10inch or more ...
The capped rear ones are ok for layiing lawns not really suitable for veg etc..
Thanks for the replies personally I'm not a rotovator fan but if I could get a depth of ten inch that would be good, I have a petrol strimmer which will knock all the big stuff down, cheers
Thanks Growmore - I will smugly pass this information on. ;D ;)
Twinkletoes
Sounds like me and thee are in same boat cocker spadge, or for those of you more southern than Barnsley..It would appear you and I share the same problems.
I will be keen to hear which method you choose. I am strimming then burning, then digging the beds I need. I will then wait until spring and round up any new growth. I too wondered what to do but opted against rotivator because I'm not sure what further weed damage I will do.
Pics of you plots would be nice. Mine are on a previous post: New allotment part 3 feel free to have a butchers x
Good look!!
hi Ive only just got my lottie and have been working hard :) i have strimmed all the big stuff and was gunna use round up??? and then get it ploughed but i would rather do it my self and rotavate how deep do i need to go? oh and by the way Ive never used one before are they heavy and would i a slip of a lass be able to handle one? ;) :)
Welcome to the madhouse both of you. ;D ;D ;D
hiya, you mad people, pull up a wheelbarrow and join the nutters :P ;D
Welcome to both of you... Amcide is a really good spray... but needs to be applied to green growth and you can't replant for six months... would be used for half the plot while you beat the other half into submission!
:)
welcome to this site both, any information you need you have come to the right place ;D ;D ;D
hello to any one who knows about crouch grass :( :( half my plot is covered in the stuff ??? ??? er i was thinking what if i just ploughed it up ??? would that get rid of it??? i was gunna use some sort of weed killer but the chap i spoke to in b&q said i wouldn't be able to plant any thing for up to six months if i did use a weed killer please help as I'm confused as to what to do :(
I think the guy from B&Q doesn't know what he's talking about. There are weedkillers that are powerful around, but the likes of you & I have been banned from buying them for years. I think anything you can buy off the shelf is rendered inert as soon as it touches the soil.
But couch grass - now they've banned anything that actually kills it - is a long job. Dig it out ruthlessly every year & burn it. Sorry.
You could use a weedkiller such as Roundup to kill off the couch grass, it's best applied when the grass is growing actively. This contains glyphosate as its active ingredient, and you will be able to plant in the soil within a week of using it.
The type of weedkiller that the chap from B&Q is talking about would be the type used to keep paths clear, those products like B&Q path & patio weedkiller, which contains Glufosinate Ammonium, or any weedkiller containing Sodium Chlorate. These DO persist in the soil, and shouldn't be used anywhere near your growing area.
You could also cover the land with a good quality thick black woven plastic membrane, or terram fabric or cardboard, anything to keep out the light.
We had a bloke on the plots for years who worked as a rep for a agricultural company. I used to call him Mr Green as he did not do any organic growing at all. I have to say that his was by far the best allotment. His produce was great and there was never any problems with weeds etc.
Weed free, perhaps, but who knows what was getting into his crops?
weed free yes..and the only thing introduced to the dinner plate slug/worm when fully cooked will do you a lot less harm!
Yippee,
Today I picked my keys up for the gate that leads to our new allotment after four weeks of waiting(local government for you). I can't wait tomorow I'm going to mark it all out knock off all the rubbish which must have been growing for yonks with my mates pro-strimmer then Mrs Smith and I will start to get stuck in with our tools which we last used 25 years ago in Rutland on our last allotment, Saturday I go and collect a Rotovator which I bought off E-Bay for £60, it's Christmas already :) :) :) ;)
Congratulations Mr Smith on getting the keys to your new way of life.
Happy digging and I wish you good luck with your 2008 harvest.
Lauren :)
P.S...Will you post some pics for us please?
Cheers Lauren,
Can't wait on the cards is a polly tunnel. I hope when I put my first spade into this allotment that I don't have the same luck I had years ago when I ended up with thirtysix wasp stings in mi back :)
Go for it Smudger, hope the weather's OK for you today the suns out here in N. London, hope you've got some of the same, happy digging. ;D ;D ;D
It's been a litttle bit wet up here in the east Mids over nigh tand it looks like another load is coming, I've just given my mates -pro-strimmer a rev up ready for the rubbish which needs removing :)
hope it's better weather there than it is here, we're supposed to be going to the plot tomorrow and they're giving torrential rain and wind ::) ;D
I was at the lottie this morning, it was a pleasant morning with the sun out untill about 1 o clock, the winds had dropped, last night I thought the windows were going to blow in. The ground was muddy but I did a bit of turning the ground and weeding and pulled a few parsnips. ;D ;D ;D
I'm off to pick mi rotovator up tomorrow which I bought of E-bay ,it best work because I'm timed served on 'Gardners :-X'
HI MR SMITH GOOD LUCK MATE WITH YOUR ROTAVATOR , HOPE IT WORKS O K, IM DIGGINGING MY TWO PLOTS BY FORK AND BOTH FULL OF WEEDS AND RUBISH. ALL THE BEST FROM DIGGER46.
hiya, digger, welcome to the site..how're you getting on, digging them..this weather doesn't help, hope it's drier where you are..monday and tuesday are the next, supposedly, dry days here ;D
At long last I have finally received the tenancy agreement from the council, I have also had my rotovator serviced and it runs like a trooper £62 off e-bay. :)
Quote from: Mr Smith on December 22, 2007, 11:35:31
I have also had my rotovator serviced and it runs like a trooper £62 off e-bay. :)
Beast that rotovator to the max. What a bargain! ;) Enjoy :)
FROM ONE SMITH TO ANOTHER...........WE ARE A COMMON LOT!!
WITH REGARDS TO YOUR NEW ALLOTMENT I AGREE TOTALLY WITH HECTARE.
THIS BUSINESS OF DOUBLE DIGGING BY HAND REALLY BAFFLES ME.
THERE ARE TWO WAYS TO TACKLE A NEW ALLOTMENT THAT HAS NOT HAD MUCH TLC IN THE PAST.
THERE IS THE HARD WAY AND AN EASY WAY.
I LEARNT VERY QUICKLY AND IF YOU BEAR IN MIND FARMERS DO NOT HAND DIG THEIR FIELDS AT THE END OF THE GROWING SEASON, THEY USE MECHANISATION TO SORT THE PROBLEM OUT TO BURY STUBBLE AND PREPARE THE GROUND TO OVER WINTER SO THE FROST BREAKS DOWN THE SOIL.
IF YOU WANT TO PHYSICALLY PUNISH YOURSELF AND ENJOY THE EFFORT OF DIGGING BY HAND THEN FEEL FREE TO DO IT BUT PERSONALLY IT IS 100 TIMES EASIER TO HIRE/BUY A SUITABLE ROTAVATER WHICH WILL DO THE JOB ADMIRABLY AND WILL ALLOW YOU TIME TO GET THE TEAPOT OUT AND HAVE A CHAT WITH YOUR FELLOW ALLOTMENT HOLDERS AT THE END OF THE DAY WITHOUT FEELING COMPLETELY CREAM CRACKERED.
BEST OF LUCK.
Hi Richard and welcome to A4A :)
Hi Richard. Did you know that capitals are the forum equivalent of SHOUTING!
Does anyone else like digging? I love it, and find it a great way of shifting the podge acquired over the Winter. Come Summertime I'm as fit as a fiddle.
Once your soil's in good nick, even heavy clays can be forked over in no time, and there's no beating that glow of satisfaction when you're done.
The only times I rotavate are when new land is to be broken, or when time is short. Not that I'm knocking rotavators mind, each to their own.
I'm a digger too!
;D
Quote from: Rob the rake on December 22, 2007, 17:08:39
Hi Richard. Did you know that capitals are the forum equivalent of SHOUTING!
Does anyone else like digging? I love it, and find it a great way of shifting the podge acquired over the Winter. Come Summertime I'm as fit as a fiddle.
Once your soil's in good nick, even heavy clays can be forked over in no time, and there's no beating that glow of satisfaction when you're done.
The only times I rotavate are when new land is to be broken, or when time is short. Not that I'm knocking rotavators mind, each to their own.
I don't mind digging at all, but to get a new site going quickly, I suspect a rotavator is the only way to go.
I try to minimise digging, as if I routinely dig the clean areas, I never get round to the unclean ones which really need the weeds got out.
Hi to Rob the Rate
My apologies if I offended you with the capitals but my eye sight is not that good these days and I am still getting use the system as a newbie so hopefully with a little more practice I will not offend you in the future..............I suppose we all have to learn sometime and practice does make perfect.
Far be it for me to shout, I was merely trying to convey what I thought was perhaps sound advice based on my 20 years as an allotment holder.
Regards and happy digging.
hiya, richard, welcome to the site, I know how you feel, my eyesight's getting fuzzy..happy digging ;D
I had planned since November that I would start to dig my new allotment this very week because I'm off work all week, and what happens I go down with a virus and I feel like the poo that you put on the allotment :'(
HI MANICSCOUSERS been round lottie most days and nearly finished both plots now, sorry took so long to reply hope you had a nice christmas WEATHER not to bad down here in GILLINGHAM KENT bit of snow yesterday . P S, HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM DIGGER 46.
At long last we have managed to get to grips with our allotment spent a couple of hours this morning knocking all the crap off with a strimmer bagged it all up and down to the tip, one more session of raking up the rest of the rubbish and with a bit of luck Mr&Mrs Smith will be turning over the allotment this weekend, backs bloody aching already ;D :)
OH's back ached after Saturday's exertion!
Can't wait until 1st March when we officially take over a 2nd plot.
Well finally today after the inclement weather we have had in the past ten days we finally got down on to the allotment and actually DUG, my wife used a fork to do her stuff but I went in with the spade and it just turned over like cutting butter, but one sad point was at one part of the allotment some previous occupant had buried some glass from a previous greenhouse or cloche WHY, this inturn us to removing the bulk of it and taking it down the tip, so much for organic gardeners :(
My new allotment has glass, bricks and old corrugated sheets buried all over it. It's so disheartening when you put the spade in and CRUNCH, another load of glass. It's a shame because I wanted the kids to be involved from day one but they can't come anywhere near it at the moment. Glass is now officially banned on my site!
Hi,
if you have a cwg (central wool growers) store near you they do a chemical called clinic does the same as round up a 5ltr will be around the 17.00 + vat.
as for the allotment if it was dug over last year a rotovator will be ok i had the same problem last year picked up a wolsley merry tiller from ebay put a new 5hp briggs engine raked all the plot first to get rid of any dead scrub and away we went first pass was the hardest as the ground had not been dug and it was very hard went agian a second time & what a difference i then left over winter a rotovated again in the spring went down about a spade and a half in depth.
Once the plot as been moved it will be very easy to dig or rotovate in the future.
steve
Steve,
Do you have a contact for Briggs&Stratton to but a new engine, cheers
mr smith.
here you are fella try this link
http://www.briggsbits.co.uk/
regards steve
Steve,
Thanks for the info, I have seen this site before do you happen to know what part of the country they are located in, cheers
Found this in the 'Terms and Conditions' link:
Contact Details
Briggsbits.co.uk
40 Totterdown Road Weston super Mare North somerset BS23 4LN United Kingdom
Phone: 01934614505
Fax: 01934614503
Email: contact@briggsbits.co.uk
VAT No. VAT 520183192
any briggs parts or rotovator parts let me know as i can get my hands on almost any thing ;D
Just back from the lotty and finished the last of the digging for this week, between the wife and myself and the rain we have done 625 sqm in three hours :)
Yippee I now have my rotovator back from my repair chap with a new recon engine 'Briggs&Stratton 5hp quamton engine runs like a trooper, so plenty of frost's to break down my rough digging and then I can have a play with my new toy, :)