UK: Allotment beginners – what to do if your new plot looks like a shambles
Experts offer tips on how beginners can get a new veg patch up to scratch.
By Hannah Stephenson
The Independent, Dec 20, 2022
Excerpt:
“A full-size allotment is too much for a single new gardener,” he reckons. “In the old days it would have been a family experience. Find friends to help and take on part of it. In a weedy situation, lay down black polythene over the organic matter/compost in the first early spring to help suppress weeds.“If you are a new grower, it’s asking a lot to take on a big space. Scale it down. I have a bed that’s 1.5 x 5m which gives 100kg of food every year.”
Manage your expectations
“I don’t want to frighten people off, but you may be taking over soil that’s been worn out by repeat cultivation and not enough goodness put back in,” he warns. It may take a little time to get the soil back up to scratch.
Cut the weeds back
“The first job is to cut the weeds down to ground level, using shears, a scythe or whatever you have to cut vegetation, so you can see what the surface is like,” Dowding says.
Level the ground“I’ve noticed that quite often people who have harvested potatoes leave the ground looking like the surface of the moon. If you have a very uneven surface you will need to take a spade to it and cut off the ridges and put them in the hollows.”
Compost the area
Once the allotment has been weeded you can put cardboard sheets down to keep the weeds at bay and add a layer of compost on top of that – 2in minimum. February or March is the best time to put the cardboard down, he says. You will be able to sow seeds in the compost above it.
