beds, straw, manure and topsoil

[queen of the cobs]

Dear All,

Some digging advice sought.

Now, I do dig at the plot, I dig pretty regularly, but it's not my *favourite* part of allotment life.

Last autumn I topdressed some of my beds with some manure-y straw and left it to mulch down and be dug in by the worms. I do this each year and then dig it in properly around april before planting out ... and then spend the rest of the spring battling the weeds.

I was wondering, what if I didn't dig it in, but covered it with the leafmould/topsoil mix I was planning to top up the beds with anyway, leaving the straw-y layer to keep weeds down. Will the veggies like that, and can they grow through the straw to the ground beneath? Or what about not covering with topsoil/leaf mound, and just planting through the straw?

hmmmmm?

[Aberdeenplotter]

not a method I have used nor intend to. I use fym or compost in the drills in my potato bed and I don't ration it. That way, the spuds get nutrients and also have an environment which retains moisture for when things dry up later in the season. The crops the following year get the benefit of any left over nutrients and the humus content of the soil has been improved. Mind you, I have very few worms because of an infestation of New Zealand Flatworm so anything I leave on the surface just lies there.

That's just the way I do it though and I'm sure that others who use a no dig method will tell you what they do.

Edit note : As my potato crop gets moved around as part of my scheme of crop rotation,
a different part of the plot is manured/improved every year

[Snadger]

Dear All,

Some digging advice sought.

Now, I do dig at the plot, I dig pretty regularly, but it's not my *favourite* part of allotment life.

Last autumn I topdressed some of my beds with some manure-y straw and left it to mulch down and be dug in by the worms. I do this each year and then dig it in properly around april before planting out ... and then spend the rest of the spring battling the weeds.

I was wondering, what if I didn't dig it in, but covered it with the leafmould/topsoil mix I was planning to top up the beds with anyway, leaving the straw-y layer to keep weeds down. Will the veggies like that, and can they grow through the straw to the ground beneath? Or what about not covering with topsoil/leaf mound, and just planting through the straw?

hmmmmm?

You mean like this?

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ment_5573.html

Excellent idea..................I've never had enough straw to utilise though!

[northepaul]

I like your idea queen of the cobs!

[queen of the cobs]

Think I might trial it with a couple of beds this year and see what happens.

Gotta be better than all that weeding!

[Newton]

Check out www.charlesdowding.co.uk | No dig gardening

No dig gardening is very interesting. I am trailing it this year! Mulching with manure and planting through it is the main basis of the technique.

[solway cropper]

This is my third year of no-dig and it's working fine for me. I've just given two of the beds a good covering of compost and they'll get another layer of sieved compost before planting begins. Most of my veg is now started off in modules and planted out with a good root system so it gets off to a flying start.

There is also a similar technique known as 'lasagna gardening' which you can google to learn more about.

[veggiechicken]

I wouldn't dream of digging it in! Just leave it, it will rot down of its own accord. I mulched my potatoes with straw one year, saved earthing up and I could rummage around in the straw for the potatoes.

[Snadger]

I NEVER earth up tatties..............lifes too short!

[Two_Sheds]

I don't dig, never have (by that I mean a routine "winter dig" or an annual "digging in of manure". In fact I've never used farmyard manure either.

I dig out potatoes of course.

Otherwise, I just pull out the weeds that are in the way when I want to put a crop in. I try to leave the soil always covered with something, whether that's green manure, a mulch, or even just weeds (although you do have to take them out before they seed).

Keeping the soil covered helps to conserve moisture (but watch out for slugs), reduces erosion and dessication, improves the soil habitat for worms etc, and it reduces weeding by an enormous amount too.

Unfortunately, everyone else on my site lives by the brown desert policy, so they think my plot is perpetual weeds: they can't get their heads around the no-dig thing.

[Dynamo]

I NEVER earth up tatties..............lifes too short!

I know what you mean. I didn't earth up my taties much last year, but I regretted it. There were loads of tubers sticking out of the ground that were green and/or covered in worm/slug holes. I reckon I'd have harvested twice as many taties if I'd earthed them, so this year I am definately going to do it.

[Snadger]

I know what you mean. I didn't earth up my taties much last year, but I regretted it. There were loads of tubers sticking out of the ground that were green and/or covered in worm/slug holes. I reckon I'd have harvested twice as many taties if I'd earthed them, so this year I am definately going to do it.

I like to keep my soil fairly fertile by adding lots of organic matter. I usually dont need to dig up my spuds, just furtle them out by hand.I can't say i've seen any difference in crop size, I have less green tattie's as there is less surface area for them to go green, and no drying out of the ridges.
Its horses for courses I know, but I certainly won't be going back to earthing up.

No dig either............thats what the worms are paid to do with a payment of copiious ammounts of organic matter.!

[Two_Sheds]

I didn't earth up my taties much last year, but I regretted it. There were loads of tubers sticking out of the ground that were green

No need to earth them up, just mulch them (I use sheets of wet newspaper topped with grass clippings). It makes harvesting so much easier, and the spuds cleaner

[Kaiya]

Ooo I like that idea (newspapers + grass). I have issues digging out potatoes as my clay soil is indistunguishable from potatoes in texture, so they get speared or bisected regularly.

Unfortunately, everyone else on my site lives by the brown desert policy, so they think my plot is perpetual weeds: they can't get their heads around the no-dig thing.

I'm in the same sort of position - unused areas of my plot were covered in marigolds last year - the only orange spot on a vast field of brown with a bit of green I'd rather marigolds than grass!