Allotment Path Ideas Needed

mi_jardin

Afternoon all

I am getting a lottie plot in a week or so, and its completely new where they have extended the site. I am not going to put raised beds in, but still need to do something with the paths. I would rather it didn't turn into a mud slide!

Any frugal ideas anyone?

earthlysparky

Maybe cover the paths with all the stones/rocks/pebbles you dig out of the beds, and ask other people to give you theirs?

jammy_dodger

old carpet ? if its stair carpet you wouldnt need to cut it down someone on freecycle may have some to get rid of

roofing felt strips may deter weeds coming up agaon someone on freecycle may have some lurking in a shed or garage

conradmum

Some local councils give away woodchip free of charge. Not mine unfortunately. But it'd be worth giving yours a ring.

Beware of using carpet. If you allow weeds or grass to grow through it it'll be murder to get up.

rosie383

I asked on freecycle for broken paving stones to put down as paths. Realising now that it would take a helluva lot to have any impact.
I brought what I could to the lottie, took ages and they were dead heavy, and it's only been enough to do one path! Doesn't help that the car park is at the top and our plot is the very last one at the bottom of a steep hill!
One of my neighbours does a paper delivery round. Using the leftover papers, they had been rolled up tightly and lashed together with string (she said crocheted) to make a long mat. She was using it as a kneeling mat and then left it as a path. You would probably need to beg old papers off everyone, but it certainly looked good and would be too heavy to blow away in the wind.
As earthlysparky suggested, I have been using the stones dug out of the beds to put on the paths. I asked our local council for bark chips, but sadly they don't give them away.

mi_jardin

Hmmm, I like the idea of the bark chips...I will have to investigate! I did think of getting some off a tree surgeon, but they were expensive.
If not the stones sound like a good plan!

Keep the ideas coming!

Steel_2

I did once read about someone who put down a thick layer of cardboard between beds, wet it down and then spread straw over the top. Once it had rotted down they simply repeated the process.

I've always thought that having small stones on pathways is a nightmare. I did it with one path and regretted it in the spring. Once you step off the bed with muddy boots, you step straight onto stones which stick to the mud and leave you clomping round with concrete boots on!

I quite liked what Geoff Hamilton did with his paths. He was always a thrifty gardener and one of his books shows him using a combination of bricks, roofing tiles (sliced up and put in on end), old clay pipes (good for planting small herbs on the paths) and paving stones.

A bit later I'll see if I can find the page in the relevant book and take a photo of it for you.

Nice_Username

I'd avoid carpet as there are toxic chemicals in the underlay that will pollute the soil. Carpet is banned in our allotment. I'd ask on Freecycle for old paving slabs. They come up on there quite often.

Kay_Peel

I needed to construct a path in a boggy area for heavy traffic and a wheelbarrow, temporarily.

I had some Brushwood screening that was shot to bits and falling over. I also had a lot of outdoor rubber mats that had seen better days. I laid the screening on the ground and nailed/stapled it along its length. Rubber mats went on top. It crunched a bit underfoot, but was quite effective and served its purpose.

When I lifted the rubber mats at the end of the work, the screening had meshed into the wet mud and actually looked alright. I left it in place and crunched along it for the rest of the season.

I'm not saying its the answer - but it just goes to show how you can come across unlikely solutions when pushed! :rotfl:

bottlehalffull

Carpet - can be put up to the edge of raised beds. Someone did a load of paths with green carpet at the place I used to have an allotment and it looked nice.

Kimonokawaii

I have rows of raised beds. Ive put carpet down as a weed suppresant and covered it in free council woodchip. Slowly but surely as paving stones and the such like become available on freecycle and from other allotmenteers I'm replacing the carpet and woodchip.