Cant dig

[has-bean]

Help someone - I have been told no digging or heavy work for a few weeks due to an injured shoulder. I have yet to plant my late crop potatoes and also prepare a few beds. The beds are starting to weed with gusto and will soon be well out of control. Does anyone have any opinions on whether it would be wise to plant the maincrop in the fairly looses but weed soil and rely on hoeing up later when am better, or would a gd dose of roundup followed by a later planting in 3-4 weeks be better??


Am going to cover the other areas with black plastic for a few weeks and hopefully keep weeds down till can plant out runner beans and courgettes in 4 weeks or so.

Any advice welcome but heavy work out of question

[welsh veg grower]

what a shame, there has been a discussion on her about weeds in the last few days. It was about heavy weeds but some good ideas on it.

I know of a pal who put down thick black plastic on reasonable ground i.e. some clearing of heavy weeds had been done and small weeds had reapeared. He put the plastic down and planted the potatoes via very small holes cut in plastic and a hand trowl. He didn't get as heavy crops as I have had but not sure if that was plastic. It could have been he didn't plant them deep enough / far enough apart.

Worth a go or pop some in half filled compost bags saves digging. I also planted some in the builders one ton bags you know the ones the sand come in. Ask at a building site they will often give them to you as they are no longer refundable. Just get it in position and add bags of cheap compost, some sand, soil etc and you can get a good crop, used this when I couldn't get enough areas dug when we first started out veg growing.

Hope you are back to full digging duties soon.

[rustylady]

I'd plant the spuds if you can do that without causing further damage to yourself. If the weeds are new soft growth they shouldn't be too much of a problem. Once the spuds get going their top growth will smother any weeds no problem. Hope you feel better soon.

[has-bean]

Thanx for the advice. Have black plastic as a stand by but will maybe weait a week or 2 and see what improvement i get. Have about 80 potatoes to plant so bags impractical and need to fill em which involved digging of sorts. maybe a trowel and hand weeding slowly is the ansa - at least have time.

I reckon your pal got low yeild with plastic as difficult to water. Fingers crossed will get some crop still tho

[nick the grief]

Hi HB,

Can you hoe the weeds off? then plant your spuds with a bulb planter and cover with any Muck/compost you have then put the black plastic over. WHen you see the tops start to push up carefully cut an x with sharp knife - you wont nee to earth them up then either

[has-bean]

Thanks guys all good advice may try a variety of solutions

[dexterdoglancashire]

Hope you are soon feeling better has-bean. Good luck with the tatties
Bernie aka Dexterdog