Hello from Sheffield novice gardener.

[mandys muddy dump]

Hi all,
I'm from Sheffield and have Just started to enjoy the garden, I have recently moved into my new home that has a really large garden and am feeling a little overwhelmed. I am a complete beginner and am unsure as to where to start because so many things need sorting. We have a drainage problem as the garden does tend to suffer from localised flooding. It is a really heavy clay soil and so am unsure what I can do. I know some have suggested Manure, but I wonder if this will work on such constantly wet ground.
I am looking into the cost of Railway sleepers to make some tall raised beds as I have Back problems so also wondering if I fill these with compost and top soil if veg will grow in them as I intend to make them at least waist high (I'm 5'9) so as to help with the back issues. I am hoping to learn as much as I can so that I can manage my garden so that it is viable for both the wildlife's needs and my organic veg growing.
I recently found many catterpillars on my sprouts, I tried to pick off all the caterpillars (putting them on other plants so that they may feed on them so as to try not to kill all the butterflies/moths off) but they ravaged my sprouts and left me skeletal remains. Thankfully they have started to grow new leaves and even some tiny sprouts! Can anyone tell me should I remove these tiny buds so that the plants have a better chance to fruit later or should I leave them and let them grow? also if you cut the sprout cane will this kill of the whole plant or will it re sprout new leaves and produce veg again?
what do i do to collect and resow rocket seeds?

oohh so many questions and unsure as to where to look for the best advice!!

Any tips on gardening and also Organic growing would be very gratefully received.

[HeyWayne]

Welcome aboard Mandy.

You may find that the sprouts are being attacked by pidgeons - they will strip a plant bare. Try netting it over to keep them off.

The raised beds idea sounds great - if not a little costly. I too have trouble with my back and am quite tall. There are plenty of back-saving methods/tools to help, I'm sure if you plug it into the search facility you'll find plenty to get you started.

You must be in one of the valleys in Sheffield as I'm not sure there's anywhere else flat enough (my out-laws live at the top end of Sheffield).

Good luck.

[shirlthegirl43]

Hi and welcome to the vine.

[pdblake]

Raised beds are great for growing veg.

[Rhona]

Hi Mandy! I'm in Sheffield too. There's tons of good advice here but this site really should come with some kind of addiction warning on the packet!

[Two_Sheds]

I tried to pick off all the caterpillars (putting them on other plants so that they may feed on them so as to try not to kill all the butterflies/moths off) but they ravaged my sprouts and left me skeletal remains. [/COLOR]

You'll never kill off the Cabbage White, however hard you try
If you leave the caterpillars, they make more butterflies, then more caterpillars, which turn into butterflies, which lay more eggs ...

[Two_Sheds]

my sprouts ... have started to grow ...some tiny sprouts! Can anyone tell me should I remove these tiny buds so that the plants have a better chance to fruit later or should I leave them and let them grow?

those buds are your sprouts. Pick them off, and you won't get any

Hello, by the way

[zazen999]

Hi Mandy

Have you thought of pallets for raised beds...sleepers re ridiculously expensive and leech out goo that really isn't good in the soil. Freecycle is a good source of pallets for nothing.

And welcome to the Vine.

[Two_Sheds]

I am looking into the cost of Railway sleepers to make some tall raised beds

We had a lorry load of condemned scaffold boards delivered to our site for £100 ... that worked out around £1 per board, or £4 for a raised bed (£8 for a double-depth bed).

As said above, pallets are free, but you'll need to do some work to get some, and then to break them up.

[percy charlie]

growing potaoes is good for breaking down clay soil, so id manure, and add in some mulch of dead leaves and finely shreaded newspaper and any compost spare you can use, even if its been previously used from pots ect and dig in now for over winter and then plant some potatoes, you can grow early and main crops. strawberry plants often do well in clay soil. if you can get your hands on a percy thrower how to grow fruit and vegtables book (ebay or amazon) this give usful growing tips for different fruit and veg in soil types it my bible. im only 25 miles from sheffield.

[percy charlie]

You must be in one of the valleys in Sheffield as I'm not sure there's anywhere else flat enough (my out-laws live at the top end of Sheffield).

Good luck.

hey wayne as far as im aware sheffield is 15 miles from where sherwood forest ends around worksop where robin hood and the outlaws of sherwood forest lived. lol
did you really mean outlaws or did you mean in laws.
im married but dont have inlaws, hubbys mum died years ago before we met and his dad died just over 4 months after we married, but told hubby hed never get anything better than me so he best look after me, so i take it i pasted as being good enough as he hated hubbys first wife.

hubby gets on well with my parents him and my dad go rc petrol radio controlled car racing and have baja 5b cars so spend weekend in the garage or off racing somewhere giving me peace and quite arrrrrr

[bluemoon]

Hi Mandy from another Sheffield Grape.
Percy Charlie, Sherwood Forest used to be loads bigger and covered much of where Sheffield now lies, there are plenty of scraps of it left within the boundaries for HW's outlaws. Little John is buried (supposedly) just outside at Hathersage and Robin Hood was often called Robin of Loxley (Loxley is now a Sheffield suburb). I still don't understand why the airport was named after him though.

[mandys muddy dump]

growing potaoes is good for breaking down clay soil, so id manure, and add in some mulch of dead leaves and finely shreaded newspaper and any compost spare you can use, even if its been previously used from pots ect and dig in now for over winter and then plant some potatoes, you can grow early and main crops. strawberry plants often do well in clay soil. if you can get your hands on a percy thrower how to grow fruit and vegtables book (ebay or amazon) this give usful growing tips for different fruit and veg in soil types it my bible. im only 25 miles from sheffield.

thanks to all who have sent me a reply, I am trying to get to grips with this site as I'm new to it all. I have my sprouts in a small cold cover ( plastic mini greenhouse thing) but they still got in! I know that the little buds are my sprouts, but was told that if I took off the little sprouts as they budded that i would help the plant to grow and would get a bigger crop second year round? I was hoping to get new sleepers so as to avoid any chemical transferance, thought about pallets, but wasn't sure if they would be strong enough! I have no idea how to even start and feel very out of my depth!! I have also been told that when you buy potatoes from the shop and don't use them and they end up growing roots that you should plant them and they will grow is this true?
as I said many thanks for all the replies, I am getting a little more excited rather than daunted as I read all the replies, but still feel I'm not really good enough for the job lol!
Thanks
Mands

[Flummery]

Hi there. You won't get anything from sprouts the second year, they will just go to seed. PLEASE leave your little sprouts to get big!

Welcome to the vine, by the way!

[FionaH]

I am getting a little more excited rather than daunted as I read all the replies, but still feel I'm not really good enough for the job lol!
Thanks
Mands

Mandy I feel like that a lot of the time! Especially when I started my first veg bed back in the summer. However there is so much useful advice on here and so many helpful people that things become much less daunting. Try to remember that things have two choices, they grow or they die, and its ok. Im aiming for progress not perfection, which is a darned good job when you look at my veg bed