A couple of weeks before I’m ready to plant them out, we remove all the weeds, sprinkle in some bone meal and pile a load of compost on the top. When planting just dig around in the planting hole to mix everything in.
I can remember digging the trench, 12” I think some one said, pile in the compost, scrunched up newspaper anything else green, fill it all back in. When I came to dig them out the roots were no where near all the muck, so now the compost goes on the top few inches. The yield of beans is just the same and the work is far less.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
When they moved into their house they ended up with a variety of builders bags, some of which were slightly porous. The non-porous ones she did put holes in, stuck a couple of inches of grit and pebbles in the bottom and made holes in the sides at each end.
They don't keep their shape perfectly but she had them stacked against each other up against the back of their garage, you only need 6-12" of dirt (depending on what you're growing) and they deform anyway once you start watering.
What are you hoping to grow? I see from your other posts that you have potatoes already and lots of weeds! How is that going?
Ahh okay. Well we have 2 of the large bags, and we don't have anywhere we can really prop them up against.. I'm unsure whether I should get some sturdy wood, just to maybe support the bottom 6-12" so it kind of keeps it's shape a bit there, or whether it's a wasted effort ha.
As to what I'm hoping to grow, to be honest.. I'm not 100% sure yet as to what I want to go in there...
I have some carrots to plant, and also I recently potted some broad and runner beans that I was given (I've never done this before), so wouldn't mind put them in one of the bags when I have it secured/holes put in, and canes in place...
So, if suitable (It's all trial and error for me right now as I'm new to most of this)... I wouldnt mind having carrots in one, maybe with the lettuces are growing in the greenhouse right now (I know right, there is no sense in my mass random growing ha!), and one for the beans... Just as a trial and for fun.
I do also currently have tomatoes, cucumbers, courgettes, capsicum peppers, jalapenos, peas and onions growing in other grow bags and proper pots, and they're all coming along well. I love growing and seeing them go from seeds to first coming up, to being able to eat something from them
In terms of the weeds... I will be spending time most evenings nad the weekend trying to dig up as many of the alkanet weeds as I can (it's not going well, as they're super brittle), and also digging up the other annuals and other weeds... It's going to take me a good while if I'm honest as I haven't bothered tackling it before, but now that I'm really wanting too... little and often should get me there!
A couple of weeks before I’m ready to plant them out, we remove all the weeds, sprinkle in some bone meal and pile a load of compost on the top. When planting just dig around in the planting hole to mix everything in.
I can remember digging the trench, 12” I think some one said, pile in the compost, scrunched up newspaper anything else green, fill it all back in. When I came to dig them out the roots were no where near all the muck, so now the compost goes on the top few inches. The yield of beans is just the same and the work is far less.
That's helpful to know, thank you! I have been also looking at videos online of no-dig growing, which seems to show no difference in the yield, so it seems a very good idea!
You could try pushing four stout poles in the ground in a square the same size as your bag and then tying the corners to the posts with some wire? Alternatively if you can get hold of some thick bamboo canes, you could try inserting these into the corners of the bags. The big bags of course do stand up by themselves if they are filled to the brim but it would take an awful lot of soil. I think they would probably unravel if you cut them down to a reasonable size.
Well @DorsetMark you really have been bitten by the (benign) bug! I can totally sympathise with the weed clearing and am cheering you on
I had to reclaim the garden after my husband died as it was left to its own devices for several years, little and often over a few years is definitely the way. I concentrated on a small patch ( usually about 4 sq yards) and put barriers up to help deter my enemy - couch grass. Just bits of discarded chipboard, old lawn edging, just anything over 1' long and 6" wide. There is something very satisfying about bare soil.
I found this lovely friendly forum about four years ago after I had worked through lots of trial and even more error and I find it very inspiring - although I still suffer from the echoes of my father's voice ringing in my ears, hence the bean trenches! But I have never been dedicated enough to go down 12" I have to admit.
You must let everyone know how you solved the sagging bag problem though and if you adopt the no dig principle how that goes. I don't post often - not much useful to say usually, but I read lots and learn lots. Carrots were my Nemesis until last year so good luck with yours.
"The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it." Sir Terry Pratchett
I was thinking along the same lines as @Lizzie27 , but I'd put the bags in place and knock in some stakes or something on the insides of the corners, through into the ground (you need drainage holes anyway).
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
You could try pushing four stout poles in the ground in a square the same size as your bag and then tying the corners to the posts with some wire? Alternatively if you can get hold of some thick bamboo canes, you could try inserting these into the corners of the bags. The big bags of course do stand up by themselves if they are filled to the brim but it would take an awful lot of soil. I think they would probably unravel if you cut them down to a reasonable size.
I think that's a great idea, and exactly what I'll do this weekend. I think I can get some poles quite easily, and then use some strong rope or wire as you said. That will hopefully give a reasonably sturdy base to the bag. I think the amount of soil needed to fill the bags would be.... massive. Ha! Thank you for the advice
Well @DorsetMark you really have been bitten by the (benign) bug! I can totally sympathise with the weed clearing and am cheering you on
I had to reclaim the garden after my husband died as it was left to its own devices for several years, little and often over a few years is definitely the way. I concentrated on a small patch ( usually about 4 sq yards) and put barriers up to help deter my enemy - couch grass. Just bits of discarded chipboard, old lawn edging, just anything over 1' long and 6" wide. There is something very satisfying about bare soil.
I found this lovely friendly forum about four years ago after I had worked through lots of trial and even more error and I find it very inspiring - although I still suffer from the echoes of my father's voice ringing in my ears, hence the bean trenches! But I have never been dedicated enough to go down 12" I have to admit.
You must let everyone know how you solved the sagging bag problem though and if you adopt the no dig principle how that goes. I don't post often - not much useful to say usually, but I read lots and learn lots. Carrots were my Nemesis until last year so good luck with yours.
Thank you, I have indeed. It is also well known for being good at helping with anxiety and depression, so that also appeals to me too! I do love planting and seeing progress... The weeds... will be worked on again this weekend! Mark v Weeds part 2 ha.
Sorry to hear about your husband, that's awful, but good that you had a project to tackle! I'm a bit confused by what you mean with the couch grass You said put chipboard or something down, which makes sense to me, but then you like bare soil. I'm getting confused, but I presume you mean, the chipboard helps with the weeds, once you have cleared them, and alternatively, you also like bare soil?
The forum seems awesome, and I get blown away by some of the knowledge some people have. I saw someone putting up photos of weeds and everyone was commenting on what they were. I'd not have a clue. I think this will be a great place to browse for info, and also to ask for help, but how much I contribute... that'll be minimum for sure.
Maybe fold the sides of the bags over to the outside if they're deeper than you need.
Someone at my work, who gave me the idea, advised of that and that it is what they do, and they then unfold them as they add more soil as the potatoes grow... and I like that idea, however the bags do have straps on the sides, that would be useful I imagine to hold the bag in place...
Although, if I roll the sides right down once it's all staked into the ground, maybe the sides wouldn't move at all... That's a distinct possibility.
Posts
I can remember digging the trench, 12” I think some one said, pile in the compost, scrunched up newspaper anything else green, fill it all back in. When I came to dig them out the roots were no where near all the muck, so now the compost goes on the top few inches.
The yield of beans is just the same and the work is far less.
I had to reclaim the garden after my husband died as it was left to its own devices for several years, little and often over a few years is definitely the way. I concentrated on a small patch ( usually about 4 sq yards) and put barriers up to help deter my enemy - couch grass. Just bits of discarded chipboard, old lawn edging, just anything over 1' long and 6" wide. There is something very satisfying about bare soil.
I found this lovely friendly forum about four years ago after I had worked through lots of trial and even more error and I find it very inspiring - although I still suffer from the echoes of my father's voice ringing in my ears, hence the bean trenches! But I have never been dedicated enough to go down 12" I have to admit.
You must let everyone know how you solved the sagging bag problem though and if you adopt the no dig principle how that goes. I don't post often - not much useful to say usually, but I read lots and learn lots. Carrots were my Nemesis until last year so good luck with yours.
Thank you for the advice
Sorry to hear about your husband, that's awful, but good that you had a project to tackle! I'm a bit confused by what you mean with the couch grass
The forum seems awesome, and I get blown away by some of the knowledge some people have. I saw someone putting up photos of weeds and everyone was commenting on what they were. I'd not have a clue.
I think this will be a great place to browse for info, and also to ask for help, but how much I contribute... that'll be minimum for sure.
I'll keep posting on the bag/weed situation
Although, if I roll the sides right down once it's all staked into the ground, maybe the sides wouldn't move at all... That's a distinct possibility.