Panic! Now what?

[1Bee]

Well the site manager was as good as his word and has levelled the second half of the plot. We'd talked about maybe making a mound in one corner for the boys to play on, but obviously that didn't work out, no problem.

Before :


After:


It's all good, but somehow it's sent me into a flat spin!

I'm conscious that I need to act or the perennial weeds will take over. I'd like to put some of it to grass, have some space for the boys to dig holes and get muddy, I'd still quite like them to have a mound, I could have a couple of raised beds.... But I don't know what to do now!

For grass, is it rake, pick out weed roots and sow grass seed?

All suggestions (for things needing minimal time and money!) welcome!

[bikermike]

coverage of any sort will slow down the weeds.

If you want an area where they can play and if remain mud, how about having a fire?
The allotment authorities on my place wanted to burn some wood and asked if they could use my plot. I said yes, (to be helpful and to get the ash), but it's had the side effect of leaving a nice area in which nothing has grown yet. Frequent toddler tramplings and investigation help.

But try to pick somewhere that is in good view. The patch is in the blindspot of the shed from where I'm usually working...

[sparrow100]

Cover anything you aren't going to sort in the near future. Personally I would get a stack of large thick cardboard (bike shops will be doing a roaring trade now the sun is out and those boxes are BIG) and lay it down to exclude light. It won't look pretty but it really works. If you were feeling fancy you could have a layer of manure underneath to feed the soil while it waits. When you get to sorting that bit of it, you won't have to worry so much about annual weeds and perennials will be much weaker.

[nickdub]

best to pick a spot for grass furthest away from greenhouses and windows, so ball games are less likely to be costly in future years.

Seed is cheaper, but turf is quicker.

[Chestnut]

Agree, coverage of any sort is good, whether with cardboard or plants, will limit the opportunities for weeds to get a hold.
I would go with cardboard or sow some green manure seeds for the areas I am not ready to plant yet.
There are also plenty of crops that can go straight in the ground at this time of year. Most of the seed potatoes in the shops are already chitting themselves so could just go straight in. Seeds for stuff like beetroot, broad beans, peas/mangetout, chard, carrots too- all will grow reasonably quickly to fill the space.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/pdfs/vegplanner.pdf

[veggiechicken]

Don't panic - there's no need.
Grab yourself the back of an envelope and jot down what you'd like to see there - be it a mound, lawn, whatever you fancy.
Next, measure the plot and have a stab at fitting your wish list onto it.
Decide on your priorities - ?play area and start work on that.
Cover all the rest of the plot with weed suppressing something - cardboard, plastic, etc.
Then take it one small step at a time................and take photos to remind yourself how much you've achieved.
Above all, have fun it'll be great, no matter how much you get sorted.

[Penellype]

I agree, cover it with something - plastic or cardboard, until you can sort it. Plan what you want where - I had 3 or 4 attempts at planning my allotment, and turned all the beds round 90 degrees from my first idea. Measure it too, so you know how much space you have.

Don't panic, enjoy!

[1Bee]

All good suggestions, thank you.

VC's is the reply that's 'talked me down'. Yes. Sketch, prioritise, cover the rest.

We've got this.

[burnie]

The good old favourite of planting spuds in it?(gives you a crop, you remove the weeds when you lift the crop, bit of hoeing in the mean time)

[veggiechicken]

I knew you could do it, 1Bee.
Don't forget to share your ideas and photos 'cos we're all looking on from the sidelines and cheering you on.

[1Bee]

First thoughts...

The two existing beds running horizontally in the middle with potatoes in (Sarpo blue danube and axona, for the curious....) and planned for pumpkins and courgettes are a bit wider than shown here. They're a bit too wide for easy use, so next year I'll make them a bit wider and split into two. The blocks to the right are raised beds, with sunflowers behind.

[1Bee]

And my lovely local woodsman still has live willow for sale, so we're go for the willow den.

[bikermike]

I *love* your allotment plan oneBee!

my little one would love that. I may steal some ideas.

On the top end - couple of thoughts
1) I am trying to standardise my bed sizes to give more flexibility (and because I am a keen rotater).
2) some of the gaps between beds look narrow to get a barrow through. Can you access the plot from round the outside?

[1Bee]

Oooh thank you Bikermike!

I don't have a barrow... LOL

Yeah, some of them are quite narrow. I'm gradually replacing them with slightly more robust weed membrane rather than the fragile stuff I used before. I use weed membrane because if I'm going to weed, I'll be damned if I'm going to weed non-productive areas... When I replace them I'm making them 50cm wide, which is fine for my purposes. The grass path which runs all the way up the right hand side, and then across to the tool chest is much wider.

It's been a bit of an evolution, as these things are. Bed 1 is too wide, the currently empty one is too narrow... but I'm happy with the mix for now.

I think I'll end up planting some honeysuckle into the hedgerow and dot some pumpkins around where I can.

I've also got lots of flowers to go in this year... Eeep!

[rary]

All good suggestions, thank you.
VC's is the reply that's 'talked me down'Yes.

You are lucky she usually tries to wind me up
But she is right, we read the gardening magazines where they tell you this is what you should be doing, this month, but this month with most mags mean next month and I my case usually about five weeks later.
(Not trying to confuse you 1Bee, though VCs a different matter)