Hello, Does anyone have and experience or views on how best put vegetable beds to bed over winter. I am considering Planting a cover crop fleece. or simply mulching heavily with manure and covering over. Any advice ? Thank you
I'd spread some nutritious material on them before covering them with builders membrane (sheet plastic) until February. Leave the worms to do the rest and you can look forward to a weed free start in March.
Part of our veg patch will have veg growing through the winter … broad beans, brassicas, Swiss chard and possibly some winter lettuce if I get around to them.
I don’t grow carrots here so I’ll clear the rest of the patch and spread manure over it and leave it for the weather, hopefully some sharp frosts, to do their job.
I don’t cover with plastic or cardboard. In my experience that’s just providing the slugs with a cosy home for the winter 😡
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Normally I'm like you Dove, all I have this year is a few sprouts, kallete,chard, perpetual spinach. I just weed,lot of oxalis here,and Chuck on some homemade compost and a bit of manure.
I start from a need for durability. Cardboard, even newspaper, suitably weighted down as others have said, will do the same job BUT can't be re-used over several years. Neither option is right or wrong. Take your pick.
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Make sure it’s properly weighted down though as the winds will pick up.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.