new allotment help needed

[teddyhawks]

hi all just taken on a new allotment,which is rough ploughed was thinking of slowly digging by hand what other help and advice can you all give it may be to heavy to rotavate plus the cost of hiring one is silly.

[MaureenHall]

Cover what you can't manage all in one go, then start a bit at a time, the job doesn't seem so daunting then. Once you've got some of it dug over and de-weeded, plant something - you'll be amazed at how this bit of "something in the lottie" will spur you on to the next bit

[teddyhawks]

hi what can we grow at this time of year

[PAULW]

As Maureen says hand digging and de weeding will let you get to know your plot, but if you want to hire a rotavator make sure the hire company give you one that is man enough for the job, timing is also to be taken into consideration on that sticky Leicestershire ground so says my mate who lives over the hill from you in Broughton Astley

[Capsid]

The large clumps will get broken down over the winter by frosts, so there's no hurry to dig it now. You can also lay a good amount of compost/manure over it which will get dragged down by the worms. Or you could sow green manure and dig that in in the spring. You can plant onions and garlic sets now and sow salad leaves, spinach and turnips; in November sow Aquadulce broad beans.

[di]

I'd guess it depends on what state the land was before it was ploughed?If it had been previously worked & therefore fairly weedfree then cover with manure.If however(as ours was)it is covered in weed then I personnally would try to dig & fork through trying to remove weed root before you manure.Rotovating is going to chop up roots into lots of pieces which come spring will all shoot & take hold.It's taken us a lot longer than some of our "rotovating"friends to get on top of our plot,but as far as weed control we are WAY ahead!!I think the important thing is to work at a pace you can manage & try to look at what you've done & not at what you haven't!!I'd definately second the advice to plant up as you dig.It gives you the added incentive to look after where you've been if there's crops to tend!And you get that buzz that you're growing something!All the best!

[Two_Sheds]

If you have perennial weeds like bindweed, thistle, bramble, it would be a good idea to cover the ground with anything that blocks out the light (to weaken the roots).

I did a patch with carpet and another with an old wooden fence panel ... the fence panel worked best (and could be composted afterwards). After 6 months, the weeds were almost gone; only a few weakly roots were remaining, and they were so easy to dig out.

[teddyhawks]

HI THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HELP we went today geoff and i and did a bit of digging well does not seem as bad as thought will only take a few weeks ha ha !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! will put you all some pics on when i work it out

[Two_Sheds]

Of course, once you've cleared the perennial weeds, all the annual weeds will start germinating ! (at least they're easier to pull out)

It's a good idea to always have your soil covered (with a crop, a mulch, or a green manure) to stop weed seeds from taking over. Nature abhors a vacuum you know