Clearing an overgrown plot

Lettuce_Turnip_The_Beet

....and on another note.

We're not even sure if the allotment in the above photo is ours. Technically we've been allocated 8b which is next to the one I've shown, however it has a shed, it pretty well looked after and we couldn't be that lucky. We're thinking its just a clerical error.

Fingers crossed though.

Dizzy_Ditzy

I can't see the photo

Lettuce_Turnip_The_Beet

queen_of_cheap wrote: »

I can't see the photo

[IMG]http:// instagram.com/p/txXaF0kPik/[/IMG]

Lettuce_Turnip_The_Beet

https:// fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xap1/t31.0-8/10669146_10152320137156244_30703623182497505_o.jpg

I cant post links just yet. If you remove the space after the //

Cyberman60

Roundup or Glyphosphate is a bad idea IMO as that will get into whatever you grow. Organic is the way to go !!

wallbash

Just seen photo , my advice........... take up a new hobby!

Has that ever been an allotment, or just a piece of welsh hillside?
Get some goats.

wallbash

Cyberman60 wrote: »

Roundup or Glyphosphate is a bad idea IMO as that will get into whatever you grow. Organic is the way to go !!

Have you seen the picture??

Another vote for Roundup/ Glyphosphate
Not a fan of trying to be organic, will settle for something I can eat.

Lettuce_Turnip_The_Beet

Thats prime Belfast real estate. Here's the allotment we should be getting according to the plot outline.... I think theres a mistake

https:// fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xfp1/t31.0-8/10682370_10152320137416244_8853720510075323606_o.jpg

Yorkie1

I_have_spoken wrote: »

Double digging etc. is very 'old skool' way of working an allotment, and very hard work.

Right now, I'd glyphosate the entire patch to kill everything green, then cover with black polythene to stop seed germination. Alternatively, a few weeks after glyphosating rent a proper paraffin flame-gun to burn off the weed seeds then cover the ground with anything to hand.

Next spring, remove polythene and build some raised beds from decking boards. Fill with compost, topsoil and well rotted manure.

That'll give you 'no dig' beds for crops that are expensive to buy. TBH it's not worth your while doing ordinary potatoes and root veg when they are so cheap in the shops.

I agree with the suggestion of using glyphosate if you are not against using weedkillers in principle. It's getting a bit late in the season but it should still work - albeit take longer than in the height of summer.

Ensure you apply it on a dry day - when the plants are dry, and it won't be wet for at least 6 hours. Avoid a windy day too for application.

You then need to leave it uncovered until it goes yellow - usually at least 10 days but at this time of year I'd advise 3 weeks. This is because for it to work, it needs to be taken down to the roots through the plant's growth action. If you cover it up immediately, that action stops and it's been a waste of time & money to use the weedkiller.

Lettuce_Turnip_The_Beet wrote: »

Thats amazing advice and sounds exactly like what we'll do. We have been gifted carpet scraps to replace the polythene, but there are doubts of "contamination" from it. Are the worries warranted if we're about to spray weed killer all over the patch?

Carpet is banned on many allotments these days. You have no way of knowing what chemicals have been on it, or will leach into the soil. However, one major issue is that it is an absolute nightmare to get rid of. Either the weeds grow through it (I've known one person have a slipped disc trying to lift carpet which couch grass had grown through), or it disintegrates into lots of little pieces. It's horrid trying to put wet, muddy carpet into the car to take to the tip.

Cyberman60 wrote: »

Roundup or Glyphosphate is a bad idea IMO as that will get into whatever you grow. Organic is the way to go !!

There is no evidence of this at all. Organic is a very valid way of growing but misinformation and scare stories do it no service at all.

wallbash