How should i grow my Tatties?

[krazy_krok]

I've still not decided how i'm best to plant them. I've a 5m x3m bed which has a thin layer of manure spread as a mulch. I have 20 Early's, 14 second early's, 10 early main and 20 late main. I know i won't get them all in that space so will grow a few in some old bins i have. Took over my plot last year and although i've cleared most of the weeds i'm worried they'll come back-had'nt been used for bout 10 year, Loads of Coach grass. I have a big roll of weed membrane which i'm planting most of my veg through and access to more well rotted dung. Should I:

1) Cover with membrane and plantstraight through it?
2) Risk it and leave uncovered tackle the weeds as they come, put manure in the planting trench and earth up?
3) Build mounds on the soil with manure/soil and cover this with membrane(maybe even bulk up the mounds with straw if this is ok)?
4) Read somewhere bout coach grass growing through spuds, so similar idea to number 3 but building the mounds on cardboard to stop the coach grass getting them and covering with membrane?
5) Any better ideas?

Thanx in advance for your help people, brains fried trying to work outs whats best, must of changed my mind a dozon times already

krazy_krok

[zazen999]

We had the same problem last year, and spent a fair while digging couch grass up through the spuds. We just put the spuds in [the ground was clay newly rotavated], and covered them. When they started to show, we put newspaper over them [cut holes in the middle, only 3 sheets of paper on each] and earthed up over it.

This year, I had a big sheet of card and so 10 of my Kestrels are planted through the card. The rest are just in the ground as we managed to get rid of the couch grass.

If I was starting again from scratch, I'd probably plant through membrane, the problem with this is that any weeds make straight for the hole and you end up having to weed very carefully round the hole and damaging the foliage if you aren't careful. But, when it comes off it is really easy to dig out the weakened couch grass roots.

Or - give it a really good dig over and remove as many roots as you can and just take the rest out when they grow back.

[womble]

Whatever you do, the couch grass roots will spear straight though a spud if they are there and nothing you have quoted doing will stop that.
If you use cardboard, lift it now and again to look for slugs.