sorry about all these questions...but a kitty has to know.
whos got what as lottie paths-i plan on having grass-at the moment i have a lottie sized blank canvas.....yes,i know-enviable isn't it..trouble is-knowing where to start :-\i try not to look at the WHOLE plot all at once-its a bit daunting......
anyway-paths-is grass a bit difficult to keep where you want it?......
I don't have permanent paths, just walk down the soil wherever I need a path. Then I can dig them up when I need a bit more space. The only down side is I end up with a serious of footprint sized stepping stones where I have grown things in the paths. Suits me tho. ;D
wot about weeds?
or am i being finicky? ::)
hey ej-can we have a foto of your lottie?
Weeds don't seem to be a problem for me really, I mean don't get me wrong, I get them, and plenty of them, but because I walk on the paths they don't grow there.
There are photos on the site here and there, but next time I go I will stand on the top of my compost heap and take some so you can see what I mean. ;D
we were thinking of clovering our paths. haven't actually done it yet though :)
I do the same as EJ but other allotment holders have laid paving slabs and others laid turf to divide allotment up into smaller beds. It looks neat , only problem I can see is with rotating crops one bed maybe too small or too big for an individual crop.
I laid wood chippings courtesy of the council ;D helps keep mud off your boots. 8) take a peek at this link...http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/yabbse/index.php?action=profile;u=889;sa=showPosts;start=280
please don't post any more pictures of your allotment Roy! >:(
envy is a horrible thing innit! ::) ;)
We have two main paths of slabs but then lay temp paths each season where necessary by using strips of black weed suppressing membrane (you know- the sort of porous black cloth stuff??) which we peg down so they can be lifted and stored away at the end of each season. Last for years so far.........
blimey roy!
10/10 fer neatness!
hmm..well.....i think i'll go for mud and grass(cheapskate y'see!) ;D
I'm a woodchip girl (it's free to allotment holders) A big load is delivered every now and again at the site, but trying to get any before everyone else is nigh on impossible - there seems to be a bush telegraph that doesn't quite reach our top plots!!
I phoned the council yesterday about obtaining wood chips for the lottie, even offered to pay for them, but got a very definite "No Chance" :o. Any other suggestions as to where I can get a large quantity?
I have country-parkland close by and spotted the council shredding and pruning, thought nothing of it for a few weeks until I saw Ina's lottie pathways covered in the stuff. ;D
I rang the council explaining that the chips had been down ;D for weeks and could I help myself, they said yes. :o
Keep your eyes peeled :o when out in your local country-parkland, once you find a spot there will be loads of it lying around, that is if others haven't beat you to it. ;D
I am a carpet n straw girl meself! ;D
Mine are grass but with all the walking over it in the same place due to the raised beds i bet il have to put something down this year before the winter, fitted carpets would be nice, or maybe even laminate flooring.
ani
have you tried going 'sideways' with the council - rather than just ringing up and asking, try and find the name of firstly the council's allotment officer. Failing that, parks manager, recycling manager, anybody except the people actually responsible for doing the chipping! Ring them up, play as girly and manipulative as your personal ethics allow (I find mine very bendable when it comes to freebies for the plot!) and go for it.
Failing all that, try and find out what they do with the chips - physically go to the place they are kept/stored and try girly again. If you still don't win and find out they dump/burn etc. chips kick up a nice environmental stink - and start again.
Councils are made up of individuals who can be ground down emotionall and psychologically - being extra nice and extra persistent beats ranting any day on the psychological trauma front!!
Ani,
Try the local tree surgeons. Ours deliver. Free.
Kitty I have a grass path with rhubarb in it. The path is not very straight and it's kind of got lost as the plot was neglected for years. We mow it as best we can, same as the rest of the plot which I've not got round to doing anything with yet. As I want a bed I make one and then keep mowing the other bits.
Has your lotty society got a shredder? Ours has and they might do you some shredding if you come up with something to shred. We have just laid a shreddings path on our in bloom lotty and it's lovely and soft to walk on
(see pic below) Since then we've added more shreddings. My two mates here nailing fencing to supports. He has just hit her on the knee with the hammer. Incidentally she had bursitis at the time and could be heard screaming in the next county. ;D ;D
My paths are compacted mud - but I do have a very stoney lottie so I am thinking of collecting the larger stones and using this to define my paths.
Hi Kitty - I have permanent paths, just grassed over. At the moment it's all couch grass, so I'll have to edge the beds a couple of times in the year. But keeping the grass short weakens the couch, and it gives into "gentler" grasses.
I'm very happy with them - a little bit of work, but then so are most paths?
All best - Gavin
Quote from: redclanger on April 16, 2005, 19:43:07
My paths are compacted mud - but I do have a very stoney lottie so I am thinking of collecting the larger stones and using this to define my paths.
When I took on half plot 1, I had one permie grass path across the width, and all others were just trodden down for the season. I decided quite fast that I'd rather have more permanent paths so I didn't have to try and dig the compacted soil, so put strips of carpet down (with pegs every couple of feet to stop them wandering). Works well.
With half plot 2, as I've said before, I made raised beds; in between them is more carpet, wider than the gap so it goes up the sides and stops weeds. At the top section by the shed is a wider path (where the wheelbarrow lives) and I've been filling it up with flints similar to what Redclanger is considering. Lots of flints. Makes a pretty good surface of path, but I'm only doing that one with stone as all the others will have me kneeling on them to weed, and flints are too darn knobbly for that! About the only thing I haven't tried is paviours as they're too dear.
moonbells
Carpets! Got them from various places, including skips.
I think, the cheaper and nastier the carpet, the longer it lasts. Must be the cheap ones are polyester and don't rot, whilst finest wool disappears in a year.
Held down with stones dug from the stony soil. Put it down upside down. Underlay also works very well.
I am sure, most carpet warehouses must dump tonnes of the stuff.
I have heard cardboard is very good for temporary paths, as long as its held down.
This is funny - never thought that the word k n o b b l y would get edited by the auto-whatsit! I was rereading the post and was laughing at its use of thingybly!
;D ;D ;D ;D
m :) :) nbells
;D the filter is so funny what about a doorknob?
mine are just trodden earth at the moment but i am hoping to use chippings when i can get there in time to nab some of the deliveries!!
Thanks for all the suggestions, I shall make enquiries next week. Fingers crossed. ;)
thanks everyone-i think-as i have actually started to plant stuff and make raised beds(hurrah! ;D)that soil paths are emerging as a natural thing-i shall put grassy ones in bit by bit-i'm haveing 4 open studio weekends from the end of may and i'm hoping the lottie garden will be an interesting feature for people to see-they'll have to keep coming back to watch the garden grow! ;)
We're busy marking out the beds on my tiny plot right now. We've bought some of that lawn edging stuff which seems to be working. And we plan to fil in the paths with bark chips. (with some anti-weed fleece under it).
There are some pictures on my site if you want to see work in progress...
i nipped on to your tiny plot-dont worry-i didnt tread on anything vital! ;)
its lovely!(or it will be -i'm keeping a paper diary and pictures of my virgin plot-it used to be a corner of a farmers field...i've popped you into favourites so i can peek in on you!
kitty
Hi Gillian
Your plot looks really nice - not like the lumberyard mine is! Very pretty - almost potager-like. I bet it will be stunning when you've filled the beds with stuff!
moonbells
ps 11 cucumbers! wow! I've got to go buy a greenhouse specimen at some point... and then see how it takes the red spider mites to eat it... darn things have been munching away on my aspidistra all winter :(
I use ground cover material thats very strong, says it lasts for 10 years. It's a meter wide which half of that is burried into the ground each side. Or you can peg it down with special pegs.
I have a main path down the middle which i've paved so I can get the wheelbarrow down and the other paths are carpet..courtesy of the local carpet dealer who saves me all of the long narrow offcuts.....it makes for colourful paths that can be changed when necessary.....I have made raised beds between the paths. I have been offered free wood chips, in fact they have been delived but the old hands tell me not to use them as they encourage wood lice which will eat my veggies...apparently!
Quote from: diver on April 18, 2005, 19:09:50
I have been offered free wood chips, in fact they have been delived but the old hands tell me not to use them as they encourage wood lice which will eat my veggies...apparently!
Woodlice are not a real threat, slugs will be your main enemy, :o woodlice will be attracted to your compost bin and munch on rotted leaves etc: I think the traffic on the pathways would be enough to discourage them. ;D
Here's a Royal Horticultural Society link that may put the old hands minds at rest ;)
http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0202/woodlice.asp
Our wood chip was full of chipped bell bine roots - beware we didn't know until later that year when it started to sprout.
Bell bine? Can you eat it??!! ???
Quote from: Lizard Man on April 18, 2005, 20:45:22
Bell bine? Can you eat it??!! ???
If you could I have enough to supply Tesco! >:(
I hammered pegs in plot and divided into quarters with rope, making four bits with a "cross" path in centre(top to bottom and left to right)
Carpets and stuff also helped, cardboard and the weeds grew through it!
Wondered about wood chips?
I like the idea of lawn edging but would prob damage with wheelbarrow/trailer?
Our other plot has grass which I am starting to dig out as the weeds seems to like it as a jump across barrier.(if you know what I mean) I think that is why people dig round the plot edge deeper than the rest of the soil?
like when edging? slows the jumping onto plot of certain grasses? Or have I got the wrong end of the stick again?
I dont want too many small beds as it hinders the rotivator which in turn helps my back!!! 40 on thursday so geting on a bit ;D
Hi
I took over my second half plot this time last year and the previous tenant had used carpet strips between the beds. I have been lifting the perishing (literally) remnants for months.
Weeds/couch grass had grown through plus it seemed as though it was a breeding ground for the slugs.
A good many carpets are polypropylene (plastic) these days so rotting isn't a big issue.
I decided to put down slabs to divide the plots as this makes rotation easier and clearer...these do have some slugs residing beneath too but not so many. Our local paper has people selling slabs at very cheap prices but often you can see them lying around in gardens.... this is where your negotiating skills come into their own..freebiesl
Derek
Quote from: Derek on April 19, 2005, 07:51:55
Hi
I took over my second half plot this time last year and the previous tenant had used carpet strips between the beds. I have been lifting the perishing (literally) remnants for months.
Weeds/couch grass had grown through plus it seemed as though it was a breeding ground for the slugs.
This is where lifting the carpet regularly is a good idea - if it starts to disintegrate, replace ASAP. And because the underside attracts slugs, you can put the boot in as you lift to check...
Quote
A good many carpets are polypropylene (plastic) these days so rotting isn't a big issue.
The downside is the chemicals in that type of carpet if you're organic. If you're not, then no problem!
Quote
I decided to put down slabs to divide the plots as this makes rotation easier and clearer...these do have some slugs residing beneath too but not so many. Our local paper has people selling slabs at very cheap prices but often you can see them lying around in gardens.... this is where your negotiating skills come into their own..freebiesl
Derek
Wish I had room for slabs but they're invariably wider than I want. And since my lotties are very very sloping, slabs might provide a slippery surface. I shall stick to carpet (literally! ;D ;D)
moonbells
Quote from: Andy H on April 18, 2005, 21:31:1740 on thursday so geting on a bit ;D
You poor old thing :-[
wait 'til you're my age ;)
(cue tim)
Happy Birthday ;D
There you go - grass paths as they were on Sunday :) !Â
(http://www.keirg.freeserve.co.uk/diary/photos/05_apr/plot.jpg)
With all the rain, walking up and down them has really hammered the couch grass ;D .
Hmmm - with all the rain, sowing a lazy bed was more like working a paddy field. And I'm at the TOP of the slope!
All best - Gavin
I'm going to have a go at making temp paths.....have to sleep on it.
:o Why's that Ken ??? Missus kicked you out again ??? ;D ;D
Took a photo of our lottie this afternoon which shows our lottie paths. Like Ceri I use bark chippings from the council. Wooden edges to our beds, some weed suppressing material in between cut to size and bark on top. We have some moveable wooden paths on larger parts so we can be more flexible when we rotate. I do prefer the plot to be broken up a bit as it makes it easier to manage. :) busy_lizzie
thats lovely busy!
i asked the question about paths-the rate im going there isnt going to be enough room for a f*g paper let alone a path in between beds! :D
where did all that space go that i had in january??
and i havent even planted me squashes yet!
squash being the operative word! ;D
kitty