Using really old manure in raised beds

[pigletwillie]

One of our two plots is laid down to fruit and raised beds, 20 of then at the moment.

A real bind was finding anything to fill them with that wasnt going to break the bank. Each 8 x 4 bed needs a tonne and the 13 x 4 beds nearly 2 tonnes to fill and with top soil coming in at nearly £30 a tonne another alternative had to be found.

Our local farmer has a huge pile of 10-12 year old manure with the cionsistency of compost so we experimented with using that. Fully expecting it to be too rich we planted the beds and sat back.

With hind sight we should have realised that a good proportion of the nutrients would have weathered out and all would be ok.

It was a roaring success and to show how well it went, here is an 8 x 4 raised beds worth of onions grown in it.

[Lesley Jay]

Wow Pigletwillie I wish my onions were like that!!

[pigletwillie]

A brucey bonus Lesley is that these were watered about every 7-8 days in the dry weather as the manure really holds onto the water. I saves lugging the hose or cans around every day thats for sure.

[Dave]

Very impressive!

[supersprout]

Crikey, you were one lucky piglet
Great picture

[Squirrel]

Is it my machine - I can't see a picture

[nick the grief]

Nope it's not you Squirrel, I can't see them either.

[Lesley Jay]

Where have they gone???

[nick the grief]

I have to say LJ that I had troubles earlier on & lost the vine altogether, I don;t know if the surver went down or somethng.

[bramble]

Well done piglet. A great cro[p of onions. Well deserved as it sounds like you worked hard for them.
By the way, what variety were they, were they winter onions and did you have any thick necks at all
Regards, Gabrielle.

[pigletwillie]

Hi Gabrielle,

I had heard mixed reports that sturon were better than setton so to settle the argument I grew a bed of each. Both types came up brilliantly with nothing really between them. I had one go to seed but found that to be a red baron that I had used to fill in a gap where our local fox had dug one out so none went to seed out of nearly 400 sets.
My red baron are a disaster with 50% run to seed (heat treated as well) but the other onions and shallots from seed have also done well and will need lifting in a couple of weeks.
The shallots grown in an adjacent bed have done so well that there are hardly any small enough for pickled onions and as they are great favourites of ours, its almost disapointing. Its perverse to complain when a crop grows well so I shant.
In all the manure beds have been a great success.

[Squirrel]

Wow piglet! Those are some onions those are! Glad the pic re-appeared I was getting withdrawal symptoms!

[nick the grief]

Didn't reappear for long as it's gone now I grew Electric & Radar this year for the first time & they were pretty good for overwintering onions . I lost a few (about 7 I think) but the yeild has been OK

Here's one of the Red ones (Electric I think)

[Squirrel]

Well how weird that pics just appear and disappear! I am sure that there are a couple of gremlins running around on here! Been very slow today and timed out no end!

[bramble]

Hi Piglet, sorry to keep asking questions but did you grow them from sets or seed. I grew sturon from sets and while i got a great return and great in size about a third developed hard neck. Congrats once again and well deserved.
Gabrielle.