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Allotment raised bed planning
jaslack10
Posts: 2
Hi all
I wanted some advice on my allotment, which is essentially a big square of mud with weeds and tuffs of grass.
This year I marked out beds and planted straight into the ground, however weeding was horrendous and there are some really deep rooted weeds that seem to come back no matter what I do. Also one particular corner is very wet.
Over winter I'd like to reorganise it into a collection of raised beds with wood chip paths inbetween.
My intial plan is to line the whole plot with heavy duty weed suppressant fabric (so the deep rooted weeds dont come back), and then sit the raised beds and wood chip ontop.
However, do you think I should line the beds aswell? To protect the wood? Or would that cause drainage issues having two layers of weed suppressant underneath?
Any advice on where to go from here would be greatly appreciated - anyone with similar set up or experiences?
Thanks in advance
Jen x
I wanted some advice on my allotment, which is essentially a big square of mud with weeds and tuffs of grass.
This year I marked out beds and planted straight into the ground, however weeding was horrendous and there are some really deep rooted weeds that seem to come back no matter what I do. Also one particular corner is very wet.
Over winter I'd like to reorganise it into a collection of raised beds with wood chip paths inbetween.
My intial plan is to line the whole plot with heavy duty weed suppressant fabric (so the deep rooted weeds dont come back), and then sit the raised beds and wood chip ontop.
However, do you think I should line the beds aswell? To protect the wood? Or would that cause drainage issues having two layers of weed suppressant underneath?
Any advice on where to go from here would be greatly appreciated - anyone with similar set up or experiences?
Thanks in advance
Jen x
0
Posts
jaslack10 You've got some time now before spring planting becomes a factor, so covering your lot with a roll of builders' membrane will arrest weed development in the meantime. Once you take it off, it won't be that difficult to deal with the odd weed as it appears. Thereafter, as other responders will suggest, there'll be a variety of ways you can protect individual crops from being overrun. I've used lawn mowings around brassicas quite successfully, sheets of roofing felt with holes in for onion sets etc.
The reason for ignoring raised beds is because I feel that, having rented your allotment, the intermediate paths system will, unlike a normal plot, never be used. In any growing area, spaces will need to be left for access, but, as crop rotation is employed, so the access pathways will move with it, thus using ALL your allotment over time but, more importantly to me, no cost of installing raised beds or repairing/replacing them every few years.