I'm new & planning a veg plot in South Donegal -- favouring no-dig from day 1.

[Ecoboy]

I'm retiring in 2014 and working on plans for two-thirds of an acre sloping site near the sea. Slope is east west mostly. some very wet ground at west end, where I'm thinking Water feature ... why fight it?

www.charlesdowding.co.uk | No dig gardening is my current guru. Great website and great book called Vegetable Course. Can't say enough about it. Put away your spades lads and lassies! Manure, compost and seawed is the name of the game. My back can't cope with much digging anyway.

Any ideas where a fella can get woven black plastic sheeting to kill off the existing grass & weeds? I'm thinking 4 or 5 feet wide by 20 or 30 feet, for a start. Any randome thoughts anyone?
Ecoboy

[veggiechicken]

Hello Ecoboy and welcome. Lots of us do No Dig so you're in good company We'd probably not use black plastic but cover the ground with cardboard or some other degradable mulch, works the same way but you don't have to take it up at the end - just plant through it. More labour saving for you and your back

[Newton]

Like she said ecoboy..welcome to the vine. Is the west side water feature the Atlantic Ocean.......pretty cool!

[SarzWix]

I'd go with cardboard too, and lots of straw Although I have been known to use the black stuff for paths, which I got from eBay at a fair price. It's a ruddy nightmare if you strim anywhere near it though cos the frayed edges wrap round the strimmer head and jam it

[Thelma Sanders]

My back can't cope with much digging anyway

Won't the barrowing/shovelling all the manure/compost be just as hard on the back?
It's not good for mine.....and using an Azada/mattock instead of a spade for any 'digging' is easier for me

[Two_Sheds]

Any randome thoughts anyone?

Yep: plastic isn't very eco: use cardboard or newspapers instead

[Ecoboy]

Thanks everyone for those sugestions. Cardboard is good, of course, and I have lots of rocks on site to hold it down!! I have a good barrow, thanks, Thelma ( from B&Q.. the barrow, not Thelma) that allows me stand straight. I also have a mattock, but it's heavy ... great for winkling out those rocks. i have a sack-trolley for moving them, so I don't have to lift them into the barrow. I HAVE thought about this!

Why oh why would I put Guinness on my paths? You did say 'black stuff', didn't you, SarzWiz? Sorry.

I have to say, Newton, you're far more ambitious than I am about water features. I can see the Atlantic from my front door but am keen to keep it out of my plot, for the first year at least!

I've started a blog just to record the entire process, even from this far in advance. I find such things often written with 20:20 retrovision and folks leave out the difficulties of the planning and sourcing and the clearing and start with photos of a half uncleared site with the other half knee-deep in veggies. i really want to 'catch' all that awkward stuff. Hedges, brambles, drainage, rocks. All the hard stuff. Right now, it's 'T minus a full year' or more.

Thanks again all you GYO'ers. Looking forward to having fun and learning here with y'all.
Ecoboy

[Aberdeenplotter]

Did someone mention Guinness?

[Ecoboy]

You must be Scottish!! Let's stick to gardening or we'll end up bloggong about good pints! Wrong forum! Ecoboy

[Florence Fennel]

Hello and a very warm welcome to the Vine

[Feral007]

LOL I'm the sort of person who only blogs about the troublesome stuff. People probably don't know I actually manage to grow some things! Well not as much this year, as they are cooking in the ground, but usually...........

Yep no dig is the go for me too.

[alldigging]

calling a spade – a spade | Pushing Up Dandelions
This couple 'no dig'

[Aberdeenplotter]

You must be Scottish!! Let's stick to gardening or we'll end up bloggong about good pints! Wrong forum! Ecoboy

If you don't want anything discussed in your thread, it might be a good idea not to bring that up yourself to start with.

[veggiechicken]

We never stick to discussing gardening anyway

[Ecoboy]

You're right, Abereeenplotter. That's why I cried halt. Thanks.
Feral007, love the line about the restraints. Know the feeling somedays!
thanks for the referral 'alldigging'. Will give that a try.