Oh what a shame @Gardengirl.. I note that several of the people on my site have given up with keeping hens for various reasons. In spite of every care problems with foxes & rats seems to be 2 of the main ones. I managed a bit of digging yesterday but it was a bit sticky.
@Gardengirl......late seeing this but how horrid for you. Easier for me to say than for you to act on , but please try not to blame yourself for this accident.
Popped up to the allotment yesterday,too cold and miserable today and thats' just me! Must do something about the leaking greenhouse roof. Every time i go i have to empty trays of water. If and when i have seedlings growing,if it rains they won't stand a chance!
I’ve made the most of my week off during lockdown by digging up a few beds.. I’m thinking of using seaweed as mulch since I live near the coast.
Should I just spread them over the bed itself and then cover with weed suppressing membrane and let nature do its magic until late spring when I’m ready to plant out my seedlings?
How long would it take for the seaweed to be broken down and be absorbed into the soil?
I was planning on digging a few more beds this weekend but the ground must be frozen solid seeing as it’s dipped below zero degree consistently since Monday..
Also, in terms of the sizes of the beds.. being a complete novice I just did some rough calculations based on recommended plant spacing and dug out beds to those dimensions.. what do you guys think of the following?
Dahlia bed - I have got a 380cm long x 150cm wide bed - I intend to grow around 10-12 dahlia in two rows in that bed giving them approximately 60-75cm space between plants.
Carrot patch - 3m long x 60cm wide - I have bought a carrot fly cloche of that dimension therefore I thought I would just dig out a bed of similar size so it will fit over it..
Sweetcorn patch - 2m x 2m square bed to grow 4 rows of 4 sweetcorn plants (therefore a block) - that should give me 50cm spacing between plants
And lastly, my pumpkin patch - I am thinking of growing Uchiki Kuri (and maybe Crown Prince) vertically instead up an arch (I found a way to construct this with gardening pole and sturdy livestock wire mesh fence so gonna give it a go) - the arch will span across a 2x2m patch so I will grow ?four squash on either side of the arch giving approx 1m space between them?
I’m also tempted to grow one or two squash within the sweetcorn patch to maximise the use of space but not sure if it would lead to too much competition (seeing as I don’t intend to grow beans up to sweetcorn and therefore won’t benefit from its nitrogen fixing property)
I look forward to hearing what you guys think of this plan.. and how I could improve it?
Hi @celcius_kkw The only time I've seen fresh seaweed used was chopped up roughly, added to a shallow trench and then covered with soil/compost heaps into which the plants went. Don't know if that was the usual way to do it.
I think seaweed will breakdown quickly but it needs to be in the soil. As for bed size the usual idea is so you can work it from the side and not have to tread on it. For the average person that is no more than 4ft wide. You can make them any length you like depending upon what fits your area or what is convenient for you.
Posts
I managed a bit of digging yesterday but it was a bit sticky.
Fixed shelf racks in new shed & o/h moved stuff from old shed
Next job to fix some shelves & hooks
Pruned chrysanthemum & sedums , another pile for burning 🔥
I’ve made the most of my week off during lockdown by digging up a few beds.. I’m thinking of using seaweed as mulch since I live near the coast.
Also, in terms of the sizes of the beds.. being a complete novice I just did some rough calculations based on recommended plant spacing and dug out beds to those dimensions.. what do you guys think of the following?
And lastly, my pumpkin patch - I am thinking of growing Uchiki Kuri (and maybe Crown Prince) vertically instead up an arch (I found a way to construct this with gardening pole and sturdy livestock wire mesh fence so gonna give it a go) - the arch will span across a 2x2m patch so I will grow ?four squash on either side of the arch giving approx 1m space between them?