A Spring Start

By James Middleton - Added 1st of May 2008

Off to a late start

Well, OK, the end of April isn't really the best time to 'start' developing an allotment plot. My plot, 102 ft by 26ft, has undergone a radical makeover as part of an effort to rectify the severe drainage problems we experienced last year (2007) on the Arley and Gun Hill allotments, 10 miles north of Coventry.

Many member lost heart over the 6 dreadful weeks of rain last summer and rarely visited their plots leaving many sites to return to boggy, reed infested marshland. Well, now the drainage has been sorted out, new sub-soil laid down and the top soil has been replaced. Only half of the site has been completed to date; the other half has been delayed by the April showers.

The heavy work on my plot has now been completed and staked and over the next year or so, I'll be keeping you all update to date on my progress as I convert this empty plot into a viable vegetable garden.

A blank canvas

With not a weed in sight, I started to clear my plot of any roots, bricks and plastics and spent an afternoon rotivating the soil into a workable tilth.

It was a great feeling - looking over the levelled site, sketching possible layouts in my mind and just enjoying being back on the land.

This year, I will steer clear of the traditional 'one path down the middle' layout and break my plot up into three main beds running from top to bottom with regular breaks for easy access to all area of soil.

This week I have been building a number of raised borders and digging out paths and using the excess soil to top up the levels of each border. This should help with drainage as well as allow for the soil to increase in temperature.

I have found that in areas, the soil is only a matter of inches thick, so I will have to dig in plenty of manure and avoid planting deep root vegetable such as carrots and parsnips on such patches.

Credits & Links

Article written by James Middleton - www.theallotmentgarden.co.uk.

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