brand new allotment - Help!

[purple wellies]

hello there,

I have recently got a brand new allotment, it previously was grazing pasture.
It has been ploughed and i think furrowed (i don't know what this is). I would love some advice on what to do to get it ready for planting.

1) There are lots of tuffs of grass on or near the surface. Am i best to pull all these out and compost them?

2) The soil is in quite big clods can I just rake the surface or do i need to fork it all over?

3) I have seen people on the tv treading down the soil so there isn't big air spaces do I need to do the same?

4) I was planning on seperating the allotment into beds with paths around them

What is the best and cheapest thing to make the paths? Bark? grass? polythene?

5) I have got a good amount of well rotted horse manure is it best to just put it in the holes i make to plant or distribute it all over or do both?

Any advice will be much appreciated, I'm itching to get started i just don't know what to do first.

thankyou

[OllieMartin]

Hi,

Like you I'm new to this, so can't really give you any advice. but I'm in the process of converting half my garden, so we're doing the same thing at the same time. Will be interesting to keep track of how well you get on in comparison.

Only other thing to say is "good luck" and "race you!"

[onlinecop]

1)Compost them
2)Fork over then rotovate a few times
3) Unsure on this
4) build raised beds or leave untouched soil for paths
5) well rotted horse manure at least 12mths old or older lay it about 4" thick all over leave for sometime then rotovate it in.I personally use cow muck,or chicken manure

Also look at this How to clear an overgrown allotment of weeds

[tootles]

1 - Do not compost if couch grass.
2 - I would rotovate, but you could just fork over.
3 - brassicas like a firm bed but most plants are less fussy. Firm in your plants as you go.
4 - my paths are just the well trodden uncultivated bits. I don't use raised beds as I find rows more adaptable.
5 - I have spread my manure over the whole bed in the past, this year I have just been putting it along the rows I have marked out, no results to show just yet though.

Everyone is different, you will find what suits you best in time. If the grass is not couch, you could dig it up in turves and simply turn them over (grass side down) and plant straight into the underside.

[geoff]

I think the word you're looking for is 'harrowed' A harrow is a kind of giant metal brush or rake that is dragged over ploughed soil to make it less lumpy and ready for sowing; less lumpy in farming terms that is, still not fine enough for gardening
Your questions have been asked, and answered, in the past; just browse through previous threads
Don't try to get it all perfect in one year; that would involve a lot of hard work and probably end in disappointment. You have to think and plan long term when you start gardening, that's why it's (meant to be) relaxing

Best of luck!