Gardening queries and general plans

ThePrettyDamned

Let's do this.

I have an allotment (living in a flat, this is my garden). It's on very, very heavy stony clay that is fully compacted on perhaps 30-40 percent of the plot. The rest is stony heavy clay, but not compacted and certainly not ideal, but holds water and will grow things. 

The good area I dug last year, incorporated compost (from bags, composted manure etc) and had a great harvest. These beds are now no-dig and had a compost top layer applied last year, and onion and garlic sets sown. I also put some broad beans in. 

The rest is a toughie. It's currently flooded (as you would expect on heavy clay). I have a compost heap that is perhaps half compost, quarter partly composted and quarter preserved in the cold weather. I was wondering whether I should pull off the unbroken down top layers, spread the good stuff, then leave the rest to continue breaking down - or whether I should wait for a couple more months. Any thoughts? 

I've sown chillies, sweet peppers and some lettuces, which will be going on a no dig bed in about a month or so undercover. The peppers will be grown indoors until at least late April. 

Next month will be sowings of onions and a second sowing of lettuces. I sow into loo roll inners indoors, then just bung the whole thing in the ground! Worked fantastic last year, and means less plastic waste from flimsy containers. 

Anyone have any plans for the coming few months? And does anyone have tips regarding compost? My heap was very wet since it didn't have a lid until November, and I've added lots of torn up cardboard to help somewhat but it's still pretty wet. 

boogieman

Personally I’d let the compost rot down fully. It gets more usable that way, otherwise you end up with loads of stalks and twigs that always seem to get tangled up in the fork when you try to dig it in. 

We sometimes used Garotta to help speed up the compost, seems to work well. If your heap is too wet then try adding straw, or shredded paper also works well. For instance if we’d put in a load of grass clippings we used to mix in shredded paper (just used our junk mail and copies of the local rag and put it through the paper shredder). While it’s cold and wet it’s better to have the heap covered really, either use a plastic compost bin with a lid or at least put some boards or maybe old carpet over the top. Otherwise it just turns into a stinky wet mush. 

Got loads of plans for the garden in our new place, but it’ll have to wait this year as there’s stacks of things to do to the house first. There’s also some really tall evergreen hedges all round the garden that need some drastic pruning to let the light in. 

ThePrettyDamned

boogieman said:

Personally I’d let the compost rot down fully. It gets more usable that way, otherwise you end up with loads of stalks and twigs that always seem to get tangled up in the fork when you try to dig it in. 

We sometimes used Garotta to help speed up the compost, seems to work well. If your heap is too wet then try adding straw, or shredded paper also works well. For instance if we’d put in a load of grass clippings we used to mix in shredded paper (just used our junk mail and copies of the local rag and put it through the paper shredder). While it’s cold and wet it’s better to have the heap covered really, either use a plastic compost bin with a lid or at least put some boards or maybe old carpet over the top. Otherwise it just turns into a stinky wet mush. 

Got loads of plans for the garden in our new place, but it’ll have to wait this year as there’s stacks of things to do to the house first. There’s also some really tall evergreen hedges all round the garden that need some drastic pruning to let the light in. 

Yeah, lots of cardboard (mostly torn up into small pieces) going in along with a bag of shredded paper. 

It brought mice in, but I don't really mind that. 

I'll leave it to keep rotting. I add fairly frequently to it, every 2 days another small kitchen bucket of food scraps, coffee grinds, cardboard goes on.

Hopefully, when the weather warms it'll heat up again. At the moment it's stone cold, presumably because I can't add enough in one go to get it going! 

I'll see if it's more ready in early March, but I doubt the fresh stuff will be close... 

Roland

Garotta does a good job of starting the process on fresh green material. On partially composted material it just sits there. A microbiologist told me that sour milk work just as well, although I haven’t tried it.

What I would do is leave the compost bin as it is for now, and turn it in March when things start to warm up. Then in late May dig a trench for your French and/or Runner beans, and bury the most rotted part in that. 

LastMantra

Yeah I was going to say you really need to turn the compost or at least mix it up a bit with a fork.

ThePrettyDamned

I have turned it a few times over the last month, not so much for composting, but to kick the mice out thermometer is sitting at a steady 8 degrees celcius so we'll away from actively composting, more just barely ticking over. I've not not turned it for a couple of weeks as I want to make sure I gave some usable stuff come March, and try to get some heat going. 

I suspect I'll need a lot of bagged compost again this year, but that should leave me with the whole plot conditioned well and ready for just shallow mulches that should mostly be provided by the heap. The areas I properly dug and conditioned last year are currently flooded, but we're the last bits to go - the compacted soil is a foot deep in water in places! Mad. 

ESBlonde

Speeding up composting? Add urine for its rich nitrogen, add flat cola/lemonade/stale beer for its sugar to feed the microbes. Turn it to introduce oxygen and place a sheet of cardboard over to shed most of the rain.
Turn it again after 7-10 days to get in more oxygen.
Ideally the pile needs a bulk of at least 3ft to attain critical heat.

ThePrettyDamned

ESBlonde said:

Speeding up composting? Add urine for its rich nitrogen, add flat cola/lemonade/stale beer for its sugar to feed the microbes. Turn it to introduce oxygen and place a sheet of cardboard over to shed most of the rain.
Turn it again after 7-10 days to get in more oxygen.
Ideally the pile needs a bulk of at least 3ft to attain critical heat.

Might give the sugar tip a go. No lemonade but could dissolve some. 

Definitely not low on nitrogen! Lots of greens, including a couple of larger brassicas (purple sprout broccoli) that had root rot due to the flooding, and all of the wonderful kitchen waste we collect. It'll keep piling up  

Can't wait till we see some drier weather, hopefully next month enough for some lettuces to go out under a cloche. 

Ossyrocks

My compost bin is in a similar state. Some useful tips here which I’ll try too.

My plot is in our garden, but like you, we have very heavy clay soil, which I could probably  use for pottery if I was so inclined. 

My solution was raised beds straight on top and bought in bulk bags of compost rich soil. I couldn’t see any other way around it. It was £50 per bag, and I’ve used 10, so not cheap,  but it’s got me started and I think it will be good for a few years if I can keep adding more nutrient rich material. I started late in the season last year ( end of May) but we had loads of great veg and salad out of it. 

This year I’m better prepared and have all my seeds and compost ready to go. I also put onions, garlic and shallots in in November, which are coming along nicely for an early season crop. 

One thing I did last year, and I’ll do again this year, is get on local Facebook groups and offer up my spare plants in trade. I had a number of things which I started off, particularly courgettes and beans, in pots and I got some nice things in trade with locals who had similarly started too many of others.

Some of my greatest successes were carrots (3 crops), chard (everlasting!), runner beans (prolific), broad beans (delicious), and courgettes. Beetroots were also good and rocket just grows wherever you throw it.

I’m really looking forward to spring.

Rob

ArchtopDave

Regarding Composting, I bought a hot composting bin from hotbincomposting.com last year. Not cheap to buy, but it works really well. After as little as 6 weeks, you can have some useable compost. I'm just leaving mine running cool over winter, but once the weather picks up, it'll heat itself up to 40-50 degrees. The bin looks like it's made out of polystyrene, but it's actually polycarbonate.

I'm hoping the weather's reasonable on Monday and Tuesday, as a tree surgeon is coming to cut down three multi-trunked Sycamores, which cast a lot of shadow. I'm planning on replacing them with two lighter canopied trees - a Chinese Birch with interesting bark, and a Snake Bark Maple.

ThePrettyDamned

ArchtopDave said:

Regarding Composting, I bought a hot composting bin from hotbincomposting.com last year. Not cheap to buy, but it works really well. After as little as 6 weeks, you can have some useable compost. I'm just leaving mine running cool over winter, but once the weather picks up, it'll heat itself up to 40-50 degrees. The bin looks like it's made out of polystyrene, but it's actually polycarbonate.

I'm hoping the weather's reasonable on Monday and Tuesday, as a tree surgeon is coming to cut down three multi-trunked Sycamores, which cast a lot of shadow. I'm planning on replacing them with two lighter canopied trees - a Chinese Birch with interesting bark, and a Snake Bark Maple.

They look fine, but are a bit rich for me considering the plot is (still) a temporary allocation. If I get lucky and draw a permanent one in the next ballot, I could consider it - although I may just get a second wood frame one so I can more easily turn the heap.

I'm definitely getting a sheet of polythene or tarpaulin to use as a more effective lid when lockdown relaxes a bit! 

Ossyrocks

ArchtopDave said:

Regarding Composting, I bought a hot composting bin from hotbincomposting.com last year. Not cheap to buy, but it works really well. After as little as 6 weeks, you can have some useable compost. I'm just leaving mine running cool over winter, but once the weather picks up, it'll heat itself up to 40-50 degrees. The bin looks like it's made out of polystyrene, but it's actually polycarbonate.

I'm hoping the weather's reasonable on Monday and Tuesday, as a tree surgeon is coming to cut down three multi-trunked Sycamores, which cast a lot of shadow. I'm planning on replacing them with two lighter canopied trees - a Chinese Birch with interesting bark, and a Snake Bark Maple.

I can feel a purchase coming on.....

ThePrettyDamned

Visited today to drop off a few days worth of kitchen waste and a big piece of cardboard.

Half the plot is underwater currently so my raspberry canes still can't go in. I need to keep them alive - is moist in a brown paper bag okay? I know the roots shouldn't dry out. I'm keeping them outside in the cold to help stop them from waking up. 

Jalapeno

Old Gro-Bags are good to add to clay soil for some fibre, if you use them or know of somebody who does.  Would echo adding dry leaves/cardboard/paper for overly wet compost.  Also taking the good stuff out and truning over regularly (and covering). New Gro-bags are relatively cheap as instant compost too.

In the alotment maybe dig a deep trench (2-3ft or even deeper) somewhere and fill with gravel and/or stones to aid drainage of the waterlogged area.

ThePrettyDamned

Jalapeno said:

Old Gro-Bags are good to add to clay soil for some fibre, if you use them or know of somebody who does.  Would echo adding dry leaves/cardboard/paper for overly wet compost.  Also taking the good stuff out and truning over regularly (and covering). New Gro-bags are relatively cheap as instant compost too.

In the alotment maybe dig a deep trench (2-3ft or even deeper) somewhere and fill with gravel and/or stones to aid drainage of the waterlogged area.

We actually started digging into the trench at the front and it did help a bit, but midway through (back in November this was) there was a huge downpour so it's only about a foot deep. After all the soil run off, it's not more like 6 inches! 

Any ideas on the raspberry canes? I don't want to have wasted my money, but they really can't go in the ground yet. I suspect I'll have to pot them up... 

ArchtopDave

Do you not have just a bit of ground to put the raspberry canes in temporarily?  Known as "Heeling In" - there's a video on the Ashridge Nursery site if you need some info about how to do it.

ThePrettyDamned

ArchtopDave said:

Do you not have just a bit of ground to put the raspberry canes in temporarily?  Known as "Heeling In" - there's a video on the Ashridge Nursery site if you need some info about how to do it.

Not heard of that, but saw the video and looks like I need to take a trip to the plot tomorrow if I'm feeling better. Thanks! 

ThePrettyDamned

Well, the allotment flooding is severe and the committee have found a solution with the council, which I learn about on Monday. They've cancelled the next ballot for permanent plot allocations (mine remains temporary until this October...) and they have advised "not spending time or expense on the allotments at this time".

Prediction: site to be bulldozed, drainage dug and plots marked out from scratch. My beautiful onion, garlic and broadbean crops will be lost. Temporary plot allocations will be revoked and I'll not have an allotment. I'll go on a waiting list. Permanent holders will remain permanent. 

I'll report back Monday to see how many predictions are true! 

boogieman

Are the council likely to spend that kind of money on allotments in the current times? Can’t imagine it’ll be a cheap solution. Maybe I’m being cynical but when you mentioned bulldozers the first thing I thought was they’d sell the land off to developers. 

mrkb

ThePrettyDamned said:

ArchtopDave said:

Do you not have just a bit of ground to put the raspberry canes in temporarily?  Known as "Heeling In" - there's a video on the Ashridge Nursery site if you need some info about how to do it.

Not heard of that, but saw the video and looks like I need to take a trip to the plot tomorrow if I'm feeling better. Thanks! 

Or just put them all together in a big pot with some compost thrown loosely in. That’s how nurseries store bare root hedging ready to remove and sell, just keeps the root moist.

ThePrettyDamned

boogieman said:

Are the council likely to spend that kind of money on allotments in the current times? Can’t imagine it’ll be a cheap solution. Maybe I’m being cynical but when you mentioned bulldozers the first thing I thought was they’d sell the land off to developers. 

Or that. 

But they'd have to find another similar size plot I believe, and a lot of infrastructure around the site has already been built. We were also awarded a grant, so perhaps that grant will support the costs.