i got myself a half allotment!

[Sam.k]

yay for me! it has a couple of apple trees that ive already raided so quids in!
sadly it looks like a jungle and has all sorts of sheeting down that the weeds have grown through and over.
now I don't drive so I cant get any machines to help me clear it so what can I do to get started? I am currently eying up machete's
any tips for a newbie?

[Nannysally99]

Good for you Sam, someone with good advice will be along real soon

[Bonsai Si]

Ask around and see if anyone else on the plots has any machinery you can borrow/hire?

Brushcutters are not that heavy and usually come with a harness to make carrying easy?

Get a bloody good Spade and Fork for after, you'll need them.

Enjoy the plot and others will ask the same, so make with the pictures already!

[sparrow100]

And if they don't have machinery, they might have a mattock they could lend you. They are a godsend for getting through difficult ground.

Congrats on the plot - it's a great time of year to get it. Even if you can't work the soil much, you can still raze what you don't want and cover it for winter. It'll knock the weeds back and give you an easier time of it in the spring. Do you know wbat soil you have? Mine's fairly heavy clay and is already nearly unworkable because of all the rain.

And yes - where are the pictures???

[noviceveggrower]

Congrats on getting your plot. Have a chat to the other allotment holders to see what the previous holder did or did not do. Also they will tell you if there are anything on the plot like fruit bushes or strawberry plants that you might want to keep.
We have a small rechargeable weed strimmer from B&Q and that hacks the weeds down pretty good. We also have a blade on a long handle from spears and Jackson ( think its called a long handled slasher blade) and that is fantastic for having a mad hack at stuff from a safe distance, very good for brambles.
I have just got my new plot at a new site and at the moment I am digging up bindweed by the wheel barrow full.
Sparrow says we like pics and we do It also give us chance to ID weeds and plants that you might want to keep or chuck.
Personally I would pull the sheeting back a bit by bit and dig the bit you have uncovered.
What sort of sheeting is it?
Are you able to burn stuff on your new plot?
My I also suggest going down with a piece of paper to draw a plan and write notes down.
Hope this is helpful

[Sam.k]

ive got a mattock so that's a start.
anyone got any idea what this tree is?

didn't think of pictures at the time, next time round maybe!
the soil looks pretty good from what I can see, lots of wildlife in it and a whole army of frogs and slowworms, I imagine I will make a little section for them to live in to help with the pests.

[veggiechicken]

Congratulations Sam. Exciting times ahead
Looks like a cherry tree.

[noviceveggrower]

Might be a cherry tree, not to sure. Someone will be along soon to tell you what it is.

[WendyC]

Third vote for a cherry tree. I took on a second plot this time last year and whilst planting opportunities aren't as great as the spring, you can spend the autumn and winter getting ready for spring.

[Bonsai Si]

Another vote for Cherry tree.

[nellie-m]

Cherry tree. And very envious about your slowworms I am. My granddad brought one he had caught for me when I was a child and I loved it, what a perfectly smooth skin, like pearls and gemstones, and such beautiful eyes, looking at me. I loved it so much I took it to my favourite spot in the woods, near a little creek, and left it on the sunny side of a nearby slope. It was one of those moments in paradise.

[Sam.k]

Myself and my brother used to go out into the woods and catch all sorts of things to take home pets, slow worms, frogs, toads, grassies. We even tried to catch a adder but saw reason.
My mother always told us that nature needed to stay in nature but we where so desperate to watch the creatures.

[Sam.k]

Ok pictures
It's been,hacked back a bit now

[Nicos]

Looks good!
Just don't overdo it initially unless you are super fit!

[alldigging]

Get those docks cut and put into a black compost sack and left for a few years.