Connie, remove all the perennial weeds - dandelions, field buttercup etc and hoe the rest down before they seed (if they haven't already.) If you aren't sure which weeds you have, post a few photos and we'll ID them for you.
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
happy digging I am winding down now in the allotment, a few plants in that will overwinter hopefully without problems, my first winter too. thank you for the advice
A (very!) old hand at allotmenteering once told me that autumn & winter were when he did all the heavy work on his plot - digging & spreading. He always reckoned it was work that had to be done at some stage before the new planting season & he was way too busy doing the fun stuff of growing & planting in the spring. Also gave him an excuse to escape to his tea shed in the winter!
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
I reckon once you've got all (ha ha) the perennial weeds out, cover with manure and at least one layer of thick cardboard, Weigh it all down with bricks/branches and pull out any weeds that get through. By sowing time you should have some lovely rich friable soil underneath.
Def. agree about garlic, onions & broad beans over the winter as well. Mine did well last year - though I daresay the mild weather helped. Spring cabbage too, although that needed to ahve gone in in August. Next year you'll have parsnips, leeks, savoys etc. to see you through as well. Yum.
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Connie, remove all the perennial weeds - dandelions, field buttercup etc and hoe the rest down before they seed (if they haven't already.) If you aren't sure which weeds you have, post a few photos and we'll ID them for you.
Just highjacking to say thank you too. First winter on the alottment here too and found this thread really useful!
happy digging I am winding down now in the allotment, a few plants in that will overwinter hopefully without problems, my first winter too. thank you for the advice
I used cardboard in my garden over grass. Has worked perfectly so far as a no dig solution. I have health issues do it has to be light tasks.
the cardboard rots down over winter, already on it's way and of course supresses weeds - or grass is my case.
I reckon once you've got all (ha ha) the perennial weeds out, cover with manure and at least one layer of thick cardboard, Weigh it all down with bricks/branches and pull out any weeds that get through. By sowing time you should have some lovely rich friable soil underneath.
Def. agree about garlic, onions & broad beans over the winter as well. Mine did well last year - though I daresay the mild weather helped. Spring cabbage too, although that needed to ahve gone in in August. Next year you'll have parsnips, leeks, savoys etc. to see you through as well. Yum.