Reply To: Just starting my no-dig veg garden

Community Community No dig gardening Preparing the ground Just starting my no-dig veg garden Reply To: Just starting my no-dig veg garden

#33457
charles
Moderator

Hello Tara, it sounds good.

You could read around a bit here to answer most of this e.g. in No dig growing, Preparation I say

Sowing small seeds into large lumps of compost and manure is unlikely to succeed, so when mulching soil keep the most crumbly and fine organic matter for your surface layer. An excellent time to spread compost is in autumn, as soon as the previous crops finish. Then there is time for frost to break up any lumps and for worms to start taking it down, leaving a fair tilth by spring. It also helps, when the surface organic matter is lumpy, if you knock it around in February or March with a fork, just on the surface, to smooth out the lumpy bits.

Whenever you are spreading an inch or two of compost as surface mulch, break up any larger lumps, aim for golf-ball size as the largest, then weather can do the rest. I find that carrot and parsnip seeds germinate readily when sown into reasonably fine compost, then make straight roots down into the undisturbed soil below.”

No Dig is normal gardening in terms of making a reasonably fine tilth for sowing. Yes rake!

Pull compost to earth up potatoes – incidentally your ‘manure’ is now compost….

I recommend digging out docks first, I hope they do not grow through, have a spade/trowel handy.

Brassicas, your question is too general – tall ones like especially firm soil e.g. Brussels, kale but they will root into the firm, undug soil below. Radish & cabbage are fine in softer surfaces but your compost is not be too soft.

Happy growing.

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