Advice on clearing ground for veg plot

banana republic

Hi, hope some of you with more experience than me can help as I'm confused.

I'm trying to turn a neglected part of the garden into a veg plot. My plan is to eventually have two edged raised beds, about 10ft x 4ft with a 2 ft wide path going down the middle. The ground was covered with grass and weeds but I marked it out and started double digging a few days ago. Dug the first trench, moved the soil (including the sods of grass and weeds to the other end), then took of the sods of grass on the next row and dumped it in the first trench. Then covered that with soil. I've been working my way down the plot and intended to leave it for the winter but this is where I need some advice.

I'm not sure if I should have used weedkiller on the plot first before I began to dig. I realise that I've chopped up weed roots and that they're all over the place now. It seems impossible to remove them all as some books tell you to do. I intended covering the whole area with either cardboard or weed suppressant material for the winter in the hope that it would kill off the weeds, but I've seen other advice to just dig it and leave it open to the elements so that frost will break the soil down and hopefully kill off some pests and weeds. So which should I do? Cover it or leave it open to the elements? Any and all advice would be much appreciated. Thanks.

dardevle

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if you leave the ground uncovered after digging then you are guaranteed a bumper crop of weeds before the frost hits, robbing the soil of nutrients...i would be inclined to cover with black plastic that will suppress weeds and also prevent soil runoff and nutrient leeching from the heavier rains during winter.


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banana republic

Thanks dardevle. If I'd used my head I would have realised that's logical, that the plot I've just dug would have ended up looking like it did before I started digging if I left it uncovered. (While I was digging yesterday I could see dandelion weed seeds floating through the air and landing on my plot.)

I suspect previous builders used the plot to bury building debris. I removed a lot of big stones and lumps of cement but it's still quite stony. I've seen the advice about putting manure in when you're double digging but I feel the ground isn't good enough for that yet. I thought I might cover it until spring to try to get rid of the weeds and then dig again, remove as many stones as I can and put in manure at that stage? Any advice, opinions or experience welcome.

Thanos

Giving it a good turn now and getting as many stones, parts of bricks etc. out is a good thing. Then cover it with black plastic, make sure it is thick enough that no light gets in (double as needed).
Then in the spring (as you suggest) give it another dig over, removing stone and weeds (if there are any) as you go. At this point you can also add in your compost.

I always have things still growing in the soil druning the winter, cabbage, brocolli and the like. Then in about Feb. I give it a turn to let the frost at it, helps kill off bugs and break up the soil. I still have a cover and watch the weather and cover again as needed. You dont want to end up with muck! Then about March I dig it out and add in layers of compost, soil and fill it back up.

banana republic

Thanks to you both for the advice. I know what to do now but no doubt I'll be back in the spring with lots more questions.