This was a Godsend for me about 12 years ago and may work for some still.
Do an on-line browse for 'Strawberry Growers' in your area and I think you'll find the modern method of growing the fruit is to mount growbags on trestles, about 4ft off the ground, with an irrigation hose running alongside, so that pickers suffer less fatigue through continually bending down to ground level. Each bag is slit lengthwise, and again three times across, to accommodate six plants per bag.
My local grower replaced his bags annually, stacked them up (face down) for a year to supposedly kill the plants, and then made them available to anyone on a 'come and get 'em' basis. Over a couple of years I must have had around 300 which I used for a variety of purposes, but one lot was especially useful. Very carefully, I turned them over, slit side down, and eased the plastic off them. Placed in pairs side by side and the length of a row, I pressed my onion sets into them and had a great crop, which suggests that what the fruit needed was different to what my onions did. After cropping, I dug them in but, if anyone has a grower nearby, a recce might produce good results?
When you have heavy clay, any difference adding tea/coffee makes will be negligible, unless you're adding tons of the stuff. Adding organic matter is the way to go, and start a compost heap as well, and add the tea/coffee to that. Remember to add cardboard/brown materials/kitchen waste etc, not just green plant material. If you can get neighbours to give their plant material too, that's great. Grass clippings are fine with plenty of 'dry' brown waste, as long as it hasn't had any chemicals added for about 6 weeks or so. As @Posy says, break up the base of areas you've dug with a fork, and add plenty of compost when you plant anything. The planting will help if you choose wisely. I'm afraid it isn't a quick process though, especially if soil is compacted. Good luck.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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This was a Godsend for me about 12 years ago and may work for some still.
Do an on-line browse for 'Strawberry Growers' in your area and I think you'll find the modern method of growing the fruit is to mount growbags on trestles, about 4ft off the ground, with an irrigation hose running alongside, so that pickers suffer less fatigue through continually bending down to ground level. Each bag is slit lengthwise, and again three times across, to accommodate six plants per bag.
My local grower replaced his bags annually, stacked them up (face down) for a year to supposedly kill the plants, and then made them available to anyone on a 'come and get 'em' basis. Over a couple of years I must have had around 300 which I used for a variety of purposes, but one lot was especially useful. Very carefully, I turned them over, slit side down, and eased the plastic off them. Placed in pairs side by side and the length of a row, I pressed my onion sets into them and had a great crop, which suggests that what the fruit needed was different to what my onions did. After cropping, I dug them in but, if anyone has a grower nearby, a recce might produce good results?
Adding organic matter is the way to go, and start a compost heap as well, and add the tea/coffee to that. Remember to add cardboard/brown materials/kitchen waste etc, not just green plant material. If you can get neighbours to give their plant material too, that's great. Grass clippings are fine with plenty of 'dry' brown waste, as long as it hasn't had any chemicals added for about 6 weeks or so.
As @Posy says, break up the base of areas you've dug with a fork, and add plenty of compost when you plant anything. The planting will help if you choose wisely.
I'm afraid it isn't a quick process though, especially if soil is compacted.
Good luck.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...