Allotment: Woo Hoooo!!! :) :) :)

[ForgeCorvus]

Also, Acquiring old tools (or just the heads) and learning how to fit new handles and/or renovate them is a joy in itself.... As well as being Green (and frugal)

[jennyjj01]

I bought an "Azada" for the plot then discovered that the Chillington hoe was identical and cheaper. ...
2 hours is good going. You may ache tomorrow. Just take it steady and you will get there.

Waiting on an azada, I've been taking the odd two hour session. Not everyday, mind! What a sisyphean task

I'm still mostly using the rake and fork and most of the tall stuff is down. But the ground has not been dry for any session and frankly I'm struggling: When I rake up weeds, I'm getting as much sticky soil in my rake as I'm getting weed. I don't want to be dumping soil into the compost as well as weed material, but trying to separate them by hand is a real chore. And I can't really wait for nice weather to dry the soil out. Can I?

Lifting weed roots from the loosened soil by hand is super tedious and back breaking and it just feels wrong. Just like on the rake, the roots are sticking well to the soil and both stick to my gloves. I can well understand why people rotovate or do no-dig. Digging is hard work! Getting roots out of where I dig is harder still.

I've identified the weeds as mostly couch grass, ground elder and creeping buttercup (I think). So I need to remove as much root as possible.

So, Running ideas by the collective......

Do I pray and wait till the soil is dryer before re-raking, when it will be easier?
Instead of trying to pull the weeds out of the clagged up rake, should I try sieving the soil or is that harder work still? Would sieving be over-kill?
What about running a tonne of soil into a nice heap and then using that as a top layer above cardboard?
Do I bite the bullet and not worry about sending lots of soil to the heap?

I'm over thinking this, aren't I?

Much as I'd like to do no-dig, I'm not yet prepared to invest the £££ in a tonne or more of mulch or compost. The soil seems well structured and rich, so that has to be my growing medium for the time being.
Soil is slightly sandy. I guess I should find out about PH and other soil geekery. I don't think it will drain very well. It's flat and there are hardly any stones at all.

[GillyBee]

If you can cover the soil with old cardboard weighed down with anything you can get (bricks, pallets, etc) it will start to get the weeds under control and make things easier when you either dig or find some compost to throw on top. Even black plastic or landscape fabric will help but is unlikely to be free.

[jennyjj01]

If you can cover the soil with old cardboard weighed down with anything you can get (bricks, pallets, etc) it will start to get the weeds under control and make things easier when you either dig or find some compost to throw on top. Even black plastic or landscape fabric will help but is unlikely to be free.

Thanks I'm using tarpaulins already. Not black, but they are helping knock back the weeds till I can tackle them. and helping to keep clear those areas I've done.

Cover the next big area, then when I have a bit cleared cover that again.

It's not going to eliminate these perennial weeds, but it helps.

With no-dig, I'd lay down cardboard and put 4-6 inches of compost on top. But I'm too tight to buy compost. I MIGHT put sieved topsoil, or some other mulch on top of some card, or I might put the card down and plant through holes. Apparently Spuds or courgettes can help suppress weeds.

I've got infinite cardboard lined up, with a bit of luck..

[GillyBee]

Spuds suppress weeds because you have to keep earthing them up whcih stops weeds from moving in.

Perrennial weeds have strong roots that store a lot of food (just like preppers ) Killing them off involves exhausting their supplies so they can't grow back. Options include
Starve them of light for a long time
Cut them up repeatedly - e.g. rotovate an are every week or two until they dont come back. This DOES chop the roots into little bits whcih all grow but each little bit has less store to work with. Or cut the tops off repeatedly (e.g. lawnmower weekly ) before they get the chance to refill the root store.
Dig them out - but you have to get all of it or you have to keep repeating
If all else fails, poison them with a systemic weedkiller. Not eco but can sometimes be the only way to get a grip on a bad one.

One of the old boys on my previous allotment dug down over 6 feet chasing a bindweed root and it was still going strong. I either cut/dig repeatedly or for bindweed or ivy, I stuff the top into a plastic bag with a little gyphosate inside and let it have a "drink". Big brambles took us a year but repeated digging out worked. Nettles ditto but a bit quicker.

[jennyjj01]

Spuds suppress weeds because you have to keep earthing them up whcih stops weeds from moving in.

Perrennial weeds have strong roots that store a lot of food (just like preppers ) Killing them off involves exhausting their supplies so they can't grow back. Options include
Starve them of light for a long time
Cut them up repeatedly - e.g. rotovate an are every week or two until they dont come back. This DOES chop the roots into little bits whcih all grow but each little bit has less store to work with. Or cut the tops off repeatedly (e.g. lawnmower weekly ) before they get the chance to refill the root store.
Dig them out - but you have to get all of it or you have to keep repeating
If all else fails, poison them with a systemic weedkiller. Not eco but can sometimes be the only way to get a grip on a bad one.

One of the old boys on my previous allotment dug down over 6 feet chasing a bindweed root and it was still going strong. I either cut/dig repeatedly or for bindweed or ivy, I stuff the top into a plastic bag with a little gyphosate inside and let it have a "drink". Big brambles took us a year but repeated digging out worked. Nettles ditto but a bit quicker.

I can see this is going to be a long process. If I use weedkiller it will be very selectively and painted onto target weeds. I really don't think it I'll get anywhere near to fully clearing out the roots. It'll just have to be a game of whackamole. I rule out rotavating

[Arzosah]

Spuds suppress weeds because you have to keep earthing them up whcih stops weeds from moving in.

Perrennial weeds have strong roots that store a lot of food (just like preppers ) Killing them off involves exhausting their supplies so they can't grow back. Options include
Starve them of light for a long time
Cut them up repeatedly - e.g. rotovate an are every week or two until they dont come back. This DOES chop the roots into little bits whcih all grow but each little bit has less store to work with. Or cut the tops off repeatedly (e.g. lawnmower weekly ) before they get the chance to refill the root store.
Dig them out - but you have to get all of it or you have to keep repeating
If all else fails, poison them with a systemic weedkiller. Not eco but can sometimes be the only way to get a grip on a bad one.

One of the old boys on my previous allotment dug down over 6 feet chasing a bindweed root and it was still going strong. I either cut/dig repeatedly or for bindweed or ivy, I stuff the top into a plastic bag with a little gyphosate inside and let it have a "drink". Big brambles took us a year but repeated digging out worked. Nettles ditto but a bit quicker.

That's a great post, GillyBee! I think its one of those that I have to copy and paste - sometimes people write things on here in a few sentences that would take a whole book to write

[jennyjj01]

Driving home tonight, I spotted a supermarket shopping basket at the side of the road.....

..... It's a complete riddle to me

So I snatched it up.

No. I'm not kidding. The consistent hole size and solid construction seem to make it ideal for sieving my weedy soil through. 'Sperimenting with it tomorrow.
If it works, I might invest £1 in a full sized shopping trolley...
... That bit was a joke.

[Arzosah]

That's a great idea!

[jennyjj01]

Waiting on an azada, I've been taking the odd two hour session. Not everyday, mind! What a sisyphean task

I'm still mostly using the rake and fork and most of the tall stuff is down. ...

Lifting weed roots from the loosened soil by hand is super tedious and back breaking and it just feels wrong....

I've identified the weeds as mostly couch grass, ground elder and creeping buttercup (I think). So I need to remove as much root as possible.

This may amuse some of you. I suppose it's also a useful tip on anyone taking on an allotment jungle...

I was close to tears: Having raked up a couple of cubic metres of top growth, I've been forking and raking and forking and raking again and even trying to sieve to get out the roots. Sisyphus had it easy!

BL006Y COUCHGRASS!!!!!
BL006y BINDWEED!!!!!

The areas that I'd superficially cleared above deck were nearly a foot deep in mats of couch grass roots. I was out of my depth and starting to despair. Clearing less that a square metre per hour, there's no way I'd be getting a harvest this year, unless someone knows how to make couch grass root soup!

But then I got chatting to a 'neighbour': Apparently a few plotholders have decided to surrender their plots! I knew how they felt. But hang on.....

..... A short phone call later, and I've arranged to...
...
... Swap my plot ...
... for one that was cultivated last year and has barely any weeds.

It was a no-brainer. Granted, the hours I've already spent will benefit some-one else, or no-one at all, if the plot goes unadopted. But that one phone call has probably saved me weeks of weeding.

Call me lazy? Call me dumb* for not waiting for the best plot in the first place.
But call me Chuffed to bits that I chatted to a stranger and learned the easiest way to get from an overgrown plot to a neatly prepared plot.

Details to be confirmed, but touch wood my phone has been more effective than an Azada.

If you don't ask: You don't get.

*I invite you to comment on my selfishness or whatever.