Just got an allotment (Merged)

beefster

Not sure how i find out how the rolls of old carpet are wool or not? Unles the hessian backing is a give away?

I have got some large flower beds that i want to convert to shrub beds for less mtce so the membrane would be relocated to there with a mulch on top. So it would serve a double purpose.

1.5m x 100m is £44 on Ebay delivered free.

1 litre of roundup 3000 (covers up to 3000 sq m) £28.50


Just found another plot..... same size but again very over grown. Neighbour says it was clear and looked after very well up until the owner was taken ill 18 months ago..... reg manuare / crop rotation etc. Plenty of work on here?!

angie_loves_veg

If I can remember from my textile chemistry lessons -

Take a tuft or two of the 'wool' from the carpet.. (in a safe place and all that).. hold it above a flame.

If the fibres MELT into little plastic 'beads' then you are dealing with something man made (ie not wool). These beads can stick to skin (and will burn), so please use tweezer/pliers to hold fibres.

If it smells of burning hair then it is likely to be wool.

If it does both, then we could guess that it is a blend!

The carpet will do the job (on the lottie) whatever it is made of, but some people have raised concerns about the chemicals in a non wool carpet. Frankly, this is only really going to concern you if you are going the organic route - as you are considering Roundup (etc), then I guesss 'organic' isn't your highest priority right now. Anything that has been previously used/stored in a shed is (imho) likely to have lost many of its VOC's anyway over time.

I guess I would use the carpet, and save the £44 for seeds or small starter plants - you will be able to eat them


:dance:

jellymid

I had a problem similar to this three years ago. If you use landscape fabric that allows water through, you can still plant through it, whilst it carries on suppressing the weeds. Pumpkins, courgettes, sweet corn all work well. You can then work you way along the plot, deep digging, rolling up the fabric as you go. It just keeps things under control and isn't so demoralising. When I got to the last part of my plot last year, I lifted the carpet to find the soil in a lovely condition. The bind root weed had rotted away and it just needed digging over. Good luck!

JayneC

Hi,
I have thought about getting an allotment but as i work full time as well as having kids - 3 at home, 2x teenage DDs and 8yr old DS plus 2 older that have left home - I worry that i won't have time to look after it properly.

How much time would I realistically need to spend there to keep it under control?

I only have a tiny yard and not much room to grow veg, although I have crammed in 2 x apple trees in pots, some strawberries, herbs, tomatoes, courgettes and spuds in bags!

So w'dya think?

Jayne x

Gabriel-Ernest

We both work fulltime and have 2 allotment with a friend (no kids but other hobbies that we manage to fit in). In the summer we're down there most evenings, if only to pick stuff for dinner and do a bit of weeding and socialising. This time of year we go one day at the weekend if the weather's okay. I'd recommend an allotment to anyone, and it's ideal for getting the kids involved too - set them competitions to see who can grow the tallest runner beans, biggest marrow etc. Get them interested in how food grows, introduce them to unusual food they haven't tried before.

If you get an overgrown one, it can seem overwhelming, but you just start at one corner and clear as much as you can, even if you don't get it sorted in one season. Wonderful exercise and so satisfying.

JayneC

Thanks for that, think I'll make enquiries with the local council to put my name down. Youngest DS will prob be happy to get involved but not so sure about the teenage DDs though!! think I'll have to work on that one:p

**Twinkle**_3

Hi JayneC,
I really want to encourage you to have a go. My boyfriend and i have taken on a second plot this autumn. We run our business, full-time, have a baby 6 months, and a toddler 20 months and i also have a 16 year old, who strangely enough shows very little interest, but comes in handy for the odd bout of babysitting.
We grew so much last year that we quickly out grew our first small plot, we grew courgettes, raspberries, pots', leeks, broccolli, lettuce, spinach.....the list goes on!
It is hard work initially, but once you've dug it over, area by area doing as much as you can without tiring yourself too much and i did this through both pregnancies, you'll soon be eager to start sowing.
Get the children involved, my toddler loves it, he gets filthy stumbling about squashing everything as he goes, but he loves 'helping'. During last summer he ate raspberries, straight off the bushes...often helping himself, peas straight out of the pods, and the pods themselves!! This summer, no doubt he'll teach his little brother to do the same!

**Twinkle**_3

Do not get it rotovated, although many people use this method as a quick fix, all that happens is that the weeds and any other rubbish get chopped up, so where there was 1 weed, there will soon be 5. If you still choose this option, you will still need to use roundup. My partner and i have 2 plots, we dig down the depth of the spade, turn over the soil and let the roots die off, both our plots are fairly weed free.
Remeber the old saying goes; '1 years seed is 7 years weed!'

speedyjoe

You could just dig it and remove the roots - but unless you are a masochist I don't think that's a good idea. As has been said before the best bet is wait until spring and dose it with Roundup. I don't like chemicals in the garden but glyphosate is just such an labour saving one, and it appears pretty safe, that I make an exception for it.

Linda32

Yes, I say go for it as well, you do alot at home so your obviously bitten by the bug.

We both work full time, no children though. We go to ours for no more than a couple of hours on either Sat or Sun and during the summer evenings for no more than an hour, 2-3 times a week.

Last year, we had Parsnips, Garlic, Srawberries, Runner Beans, Spuds, rasberries. (Its was only our first year)

Only half our plot is used at the moment, it takes time but you can work section by section and you soon get the hang of it. It really is food for the sole, it can be hard work but its rewarding and during the summer you spend alot of time learning on your fork listerning to the birds.

Hows that for rose tinted glasses, then?