I'm thinking maybe a greenhouse Gardengirl, I'll need somewhere to harvest some water also this site is quite sheltered. I will leave the decision until the end of the year so I don't get carried away.
Sowed/planted the onion sets I was given today, the ones I nearly burned on the oven hob Then did a bit of weeding and pulled up the left over veg, leeks and sprouts.
Started work on the area at the bottom that floods, I can't understand why it would, but it is clear that it has.
Doesn't really look like I've done anything...
This is the other side which I will clear in due course
Having problems posting - will finish post forthwith
Spent a few hours up 'lotment today, dug a trial trench to investigate the flooding that apparently occurs over winter. Found this:
About 8" down I hit clay
No wonder it floods, also found a leech living in between the layers?
My plot neighbour thinks I am digging in the wrong direction and I should be digging a trench down the slope and making a drainage channel. I'm not sure how this would work as the ground only slopes in one direction, I.e not to the side as well. Also, even if this did work wouldn't it just channel the water further down the slope? This would send it into the garden behind my plot.
My thoughts are, dig deeper into the clay, break up where possible and back fill with non-clay, contents of the compost heap, turves (?) etc and cover back up with the good topsoil. My reasoning is (after digging a hole at the high end of the plot) that the clay is everywhere as a base, but the soil has been worked and added to elsewhere. I'm unclear on whether the clay is on a slope or just the added soil but I don't see why the bottom of the plot would act as a sump either as the slope continues after the plot.?
Here's a photo of my lovely tree stick - it's Broadholme Beauty and I already think it's wonderful without having tried an apple
Only just caught up with all your adventures- (was away on hols then busy catching up after). Big move to upsticks after all the hard work on old plot but new one/ site sounds much nicer. Difficult to say much about drainage/ flooding without more info on site-situation. Lots of us have clay at that sort of depth on our plots. On our site we have some flooding issues & people have either dug drainage channels and or soakaways . (A soakaway is simply a rubble filled pit at the lowest point to act as a sump where water can collect and drain slowly away). A leech would have lived in a pond or permanently wet area.! You never quite know what has been on a site in the past.
Sorry Beaus Mum - been neglecting this thread (and the allotment)
I lost the joy over it to be honest, because of what had happened at my previous plot and then having to hurry everything into the ground before it dried out.
Been back up today for the first time in a few weeks, I'd best post a shame photo:
Everything was looking fine apart from my Glen Coe rasps, but that is shooting up from the base and I think it will be okay. It had a rough start to the year, being moved with all its canes on (summer fruiting).
Currants are kind of mediocre, think I might cut them all down and let them start again. There are loads of red and blacks on the plot already, in my opinion too closely planted so I will keep a few of each.
Got one apple on my stick! I should probably pick it off but I might not
Weeded the pot patch first:
Hope there are some potatoes underneath...I read on another thread to treat as maincrop if not yet flowering so I'll do that. The best bit of today was being able to break up the huge clods of soil that I had dug up when planting the pots - they compacted into rocks.
Onions are all still alive, doesn't seem to be any gaps anyway. Some are quite large at the lowest end of the slope, so I guess they got the most water. I'll bear it in mind for next year's crop.
The trench is completely full, even has a water beetle in however it isn't supposed to be a ditch...will carry on with my original plan of digging trenches, backfilling with organic matter (my weed heap) and raising the soil level and hoping for the best I think...
Its like being a navvy, if I'm allowed to say that?
The clay I excavated is breaking down nicely.
Did more weeding, left the opium poppies, they are all red and my garden ones are all lilac this year, will keep them for seed.
Still very weedy, probably need to start trenching again but back is a bit bockety at the mo.
Iain, just re-read your post above - have the soakaways worked on the flood-prone plots you mention?
I wonder if in conjunction with my trench plan I could dig a soakaway along the lowest part of my plot, deeper than the above trench.
I think I'll have to improve the soil and drainage for a few metres in front anyway as the trench has filled with water from the past week so with winter rainfall I think would be completely under water as other plot holders have advised me...
Victoria I have not been on (this) site much recently either. We have a soakaway at the bottom of our garden which works. The plot holders I mentioned mostly use pipes & ditches to direct the water lower down the site where we have a tree lined boundary with the Northern line!! You can get perforated drainage pipe quite cheaply on the net but I think the minimum length is about 25 Metres. If I can finally work out how to upload pictures I may be able to show you what I mean.
Did further irrigating today, started a second trench opposite the first but didn't really get into the clay layer due to it filling with water.
I'm not sure when a good time to do this would be if not July so I started a channel to drain the first into another trench...
I might have an experimental dig elsewhere in the area (downstream) and see if all the ground is waterlogged behind trench 1, otherwise it is going to be a messy job dredging out the clay with a scoop.
Posts
Beaus Mum did you make that? it looks fab
I wish Garden girl but don't tell Victoria
I'm thinking maybe a greenhouse Gardengirl, I'll need somewhere to harvest some water also this site is quite sheltered. I will leave the decision until the end of the year so I don't get carried away.
Sowed/planted the onion sets I was given today, the ones I nearly burned on the oven hob
Then did a bit of weeding and pulled up the left over veg, leeks and sprouts.
Started work on the area at the bottom that floods, I can't understand why it would, but it is clear that it has.
Doesn't really look like I've done anything...
This is the other side which I will clear in due course
Having problems posting - will finish post forthwith
Last edited: 14 April 2017 18:01:56
Spent a few hours up 'lotment today, dug a trial trench to investigate the flooding that apparently occurs over winter. Found this:
About 8" down I hit clay
No wonder it floods
, also found a leech living in between the layers?
My plot neighbour thinks I am digging in the wrong direction and I should be digging a trench down the slope and making a drainage channel. I'm not sure how this would work as the ground only slopes in one direction, I.e not to the side as well. Also, even if this did work wouldn't it just channel the water further down the slope? This would send it into the garden behind my plot.
My thoughts are, dig deeper into the clay, break up where possible and back fill with non-clay, contents of the compost heap, turves (?) etc and cover back up with the good topsoil. My reasoning is (after digging a hole at the high end of the plot) that the clay is everywhere as a base, but the soil has been worked and added to elsewhere. I'm unclear on whether the clay is on a slope or just the added soil but I don't see why the bottom of the plot would act as a sump either as the slope continues after the plot.?
Here's a photo of my lovely tree stick - it's Broadholme Beauty and I already think it's wonderful without having tried an apple
Hi VS,
Only just caught up with all your adventures- (was away on hols then busy catching up after). Big move to upsticks after all the hard work on old plot but new one/ site sounds much nicer. Difficult to say much about drainage/ flooding without more info on site-situation. Lots of us have clay at that sort of depth on our plots. On our site we have some flooding issues & people have either dug drainage channels and or soakaways . (A soakaway is simply a rubble filled pit at the lowest point to act as a sump where water can collect and drain slowly away). A leech would have lived in a pond or permanently wet area.! You never quite know what has been on a site in the past.
Apologies Victoria I've been AWOL
how are you getting on? Did you sort the flooded area? Love your apple stick 
Sorry Beaus Mum - been neglecting this thread (and the allotment
)
I lost the joy over it to be honest, because of what had happened at my previous plot and then having to hurry everything into the ground before it dried out.
Been back up today for the first time in a few weeks, I'd best post a shame photo:
Everything was looking fine apart from my Glen Coe rasps, but that is shooting up from the base and I think it will be okay. It had a rough start to the year, being moved with all its canes on (summer fruiting).
Currants are kind of mediocre, think I might cut them all down and let them start again. There are loads of red and blacks on the plot already, in my opinion too closely planted so I will keep a few of each.
Got one apple on my stick! I should probably pick it off but I might not
Weeded the pot patch first:
Hope there are some potatoes underneath...I read on another thread to treat as maincrop if not yet flowering so I'll do that. The best bit of today was being able to break up the huge clods of soil that I had dug up when planting the pots - they compacted into rocks.
Onions are all still alive, doesn't seem to be any gaps anyway. Some are quite large at the lowest end of the slope, so I guess they got the most water. I'll bear it in mind for next year's crop.
The trench is completely full, even has a water beetle in
however it isn't supposed to be a ditch...will carry on with my original plan of digging trenches, backfilling with organic matter (my weed heap) and raising the soil level and hoping for the best I think...
Its like being a navvy, if I'm allowed to say that?
The clay I excavated is breaking down nicely.
Did more weeding, left the opium poppies, they are all red and my garden ones are all lilac this year, will keep them for seed.
Still very weedy, probably need to start trenching again but back is a bit bockety at the mo.
Iain, just re-read your post above - have the soakaways worked on the flood-prone plots you mention?
I wonder if in conjunction with my trench plan I could dig a soakaway along the lowest part of my plot, deeper than the above trench.
I think I'll have to improve the soil and drainage for a few metres in front anyway as the trench has filled with water from the past week so with winter rainfall I think would be completely under water as other plot holders have advised me...
Victoria I have not been on (this) site much recently either. We have a soakaway at the bottom of our garden which works. The plot holders I mentioned mostly use pipes & ditches to direct the water lower down the site where we have a tree lined boundary with the Northern line!! You can get perforated drainage pipe quite cheaply on the net but I think the minimum length is about 25 Metres. If I can finally work out how to upload pictures I may be able to show you what I mean.
Thanks Iain
Did further irrigating today, started a second trench opposite the first but didn't really get into the clay layer due to it filling with water.
I'm not sure when a good time to do this would be if not July so I started a channel to drain the first into another trench...
I might have an experimental dig elsewhere in the area (downstream) and see if all the ground is waterlogged behind trench 1, otherwise it is going to be a messy job dredging out the clay with a scoop.