Thankyou both! Yes it's slowly coming along. I will definitely mulch it with manure and compost. I decided to break up some of it today as it was rock solid. Glad I did as found breeze blocks underneath!!! Still got more breaking up to do in the areas I want beds. We haven't had rain here for weeks!
If I mulch the compacted areas with compost and manure will it eventually break down?? I feel like I'm getting nowhere. I've dug a square metre and it's taken me hours, still got lots more to do?. Losing the will!!!!!!
Mulching will certainly help but that stuff is so compacted it will need breaking up first and may well conceal more horrors that need shifting as most terraces and paved area have a layer of hard core beneath the ballast layer of sand and cement.
Can you hire a rotavator - or maybe a sledge hammer - for a day or two?
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Yes, that is the essence of 'no dig' gardening. You need to put a really thick layer of well-rotted manure down the first time (say, 6 inches.) After that add 2-3 inches each year in the autumn and you will eventually have great soil. Until then, when you plant things, you should give each planting hole a bit of extra preparation by mixing in some compost with the soil from the hole before planting. By doing it that way you don't have to break your back by digging in manure and compost over the whole area.
As Ob says, you do need to break it up a bit first and obviously remove bricks etc. A pick axe is a great tool on clay.
Last edited: 14 May 2017 12:55:31
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
Laid the gravel path today using beach pebbles. There are too many cats in our area to have smaller stones. It's an odd shape bed but I'm hoping that once I've got some raised veg planters at the back and and plants in, it'll have smoother edges. Next job on list is to mulch with manure which I'll do next weekend.
It is going to be great ... don't worry about the edge ... once you've got some plants in growing well they'll creep over the edges and soften the shape
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Six bags of manure added today?, weeded the path . Need to start thinking about plants. There's a limited list of plants suitable for clay soil on the RHS website but I'm going to put in some plants of what's already growing ok in my garden. Any more suggestions would be welcome, especially for tall plants to grow in front of the concrete slab. Not sure if my bay tree (in the pot on the right) would like the soil.
Posts
Thankyou both! Yes it's slowly coming along. I will definitely mulch it with manure and compost. I decided to break up some of it today as it was rock solid. Glad I did as found breeze blocks underneath!!! Still got more breaking up to do in the areas I want beds. We haven't had rain here for weeks!
If I mulch the compacted areas with compost and manure will it eventually break down?? I feel like I'm getting nowhere. I've dug a square metre and it's taken me hours, still got lots more to do?. Losing the will!!!!!!
Mulching will certainly help but that stuff is so compacted it will need breaking up first and may well conceal more horrors that need shifting as most terraces and paved area have a layer of hard core beneath the ballast layer of sand and cement.
Can you hire a rotavator - or maybe a sledge hammer - for a day or two?
Yes, that is the essence of 'no dig' gardening. You need to put a really thick layer of well-rotted manure down the first time (say, 6 inches.) After that add 2-3 inches each year in the autumn and you will eventually have great soil. Until then, when you plant things, you should give each planting hole a bit of extra preparation by mixing in some compost with the soil from the hole before planting. By doing it that way you don't have to break your back by digging in manure and compost over the whole area.
As Ob says, you do need to break it up a bit first and obviously remove bricks etc. A pick axe is a great tool on clay.
Last edited: 14 May 2017 12:55:31
It is going to be great ... don't worry about the edge ... once you've got some plants in growing well they'll creep over the edges and soften the shape
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Thankyou Dove.?
You have made excellent progress and will now enjoy sitting out there in the summer.
Wow! That looks amazing . You must be so chuffed