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Allotment Newbie

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  • 10-02-2016 11:53pm
    #1
    eoinmorris
    Registered Users Posts: 35 ✭


    Hi All,

    Any tips for an allotment newbie? The site is totally over grown with long, course grass. It's 50 sqm. I'm hoping to grow a selection of fruit and veg.

    Any tips would be warmly appreciated!

    EM


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    #2
    tampopo
    Registered Users Posts: 2,333 ✭✭✭tampopo


    eoinmorris wrote: »
    Hi All,

    Any tips for an allotment newbie? The site is totally over grown with long, course grass. It's 50 sqm. I'm hoping to grow a selection of fruit and veg.

    Any tips would be warmly appreciated!

    EM

    Start small. A half or a third. You don't want to go at it like a mad thing and get completely sick of it in your first year and jack it in after six months.

    Most newbies do this and give up.

    When you see what it takes to do a half, or what you can manage, or what it takes out of you to do what you do, then you could kick on the next year.


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    #3
    baaba maal
    Registered Users Posts: 772 ✭✭✭baaba maal


    Well established grass cover really needs to be eliminated totally from the area in my opinion- if you're not going organic, use a systematic weedkiller (you will be treating in advance of planting anything, so the subsequent crops won't be affected). I thought that in a lot of allotments, they turn the plot for you when you take it over? If so, it is a lot easier to pull out the grass (roots and all) if you do it when it is just turned. If you were able to treat the full plot, just cover over the unused portion with opaque plastic sheeting until you are able to plant.
    I agree with tampopo in terms of the manual digging- it really is hard going digging through cold, wet soil to break it up so, if the above isn't possible, definitely only take over a portion of it in year one- and again, if you cover the unused part with plastic sheeting now, it will be a lot easier to dig it over next winter/spring.


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