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My allotment is in the Ouse valley of Cambridgeshire where it’s been even drier. Until the deluge of Sunday we’d had practically nothing significant for months: even the forecast rain for Saturday last week turned out to be just fine drizzle. To make matters worse the soil there is sandy. Most of the allotmenteers around me seem to have given up for this year complaining about lack of water on site. Due to time constraints I only managed to construct two 120 x 240 cm (4’x 8’) raised beds, the rest is under mypex. I was happy with early growth until the resident mole(s) moved into the beds. Every single plant has been pushed up at least twice, mostly much more, but in spite of this on Saturday I was still able to take away small harvests of golf ball size beetroot, two courgettes, runner beans, and baby carrots. (The mole had pushed up the rest of the carrots – again – but I’ll just keep my fingers crossed). I have been watering the beds with a watering can during the very dry spells.
I will extent the no-dig system to the rest of the plot when I have time. I am a great advocate and love the idea of it, but for me, I never find it to be the unqualified success I want. I have had three different allotment plots on different sites in the last few years and keep finding that raised beds + compost = (presumably) worms = moles. It’s so frustrating, particularly when the people around me with ‘conventional’ plots don’t seem to be troubled by them and just smirk or laugh when they see my precious plants uprooted yet again. Still, I’ll persevere. I fully believe it to be the way to go.
JanWelcome Hempie
A couple of other options:
Take the soil from your paths to the bottom of your raised beds so you need less material. Another possible alternative is to start with lower beds and then increase the height over the years as you make/buy in more compost.I don’t think the entire bed needs to be of compost, just the top few inches, so if you have a cheap nearby source of topsoil you could use that for the lower parts of the beds.
Good luck!
JanHi Vivian,
I second what Don says. By the way your garden looks absolutely beautiful from your photo. Wonderful setting. Got green horns – what me? I’m sure you’re going to grow amazing crops with no dig. A compost mulch tends to protect the soil from erosion and compost ‘locks together’ more than soil, particularly if firm. Also plant roots can travel a fair distance laterally trough the compost which also helps to stabilise the structure. Good luck.
JanHi Jacqui,
I’ll partially answer your question in that Charles usually recommends manure about 18 months old, though as long as it is not ‘fresh’ when you use it (stack it and let it mature)and not too wood chippy or strawy (robs nitrogen and harbours slugs) you could be ok.
I would concentrate on veg you like! But other than that things that taste far better fresh than bought, like peas, or offer large cropping for little space like climbing beans. You should be ok with carrots/beetroot/lettuce/spinach etc because they’re fast growing and don’t take up much space. Even if you grow veg that need more room like brassicas you can always intercrop with something quicker growing like lettuce before they need the space. Remember too that most veg only take up a half season so you can follow one with another.
The plastic boxes you mention are used mushroom boxes and are often freely available from greengrocers, veg wholesalers and probably supermarkets.
Charles has a large cedar greenhouse and polytunnel. He doesn’t heat either.(Except for a hot-bed in the corner of his greenhouse for propagating seedlings). I can’t remember whether his greenhouse had bubble wrap, but probably did.
Hope that answers some of your questions
JanSounds like this could be one for green manure king Pete Budd
Scrunched up paper, egg boxes and non-glossy cardboard are (free) browns as a suggestion. Supermarkets often have boxes.
JanHi David,
I agree with the people above but the difference with properly made no dig beds with compost is that you CAN stand on them or put a supporting foot in the middle if necessary. Hope this doesn’t confuse you more.
JanWonderful Rhys! A real credit to you. I’ve seen your questions and comments on Charles’ forum quite a few times, along with Stringfellow (Tris), Pete Budd and other master no-diggers. I’d love to try biodynamics but barely get enough time to garden at all sadly.
Keep up the brilliant work!
JanMaybe the hot weather is making the flowers slightly wilt so the bees can’t physically get inside??? I know that sometimes they’ll bite the back of the flower to get at the pollen/nectar and thus not actually pollinate it so the bean doesn’t set.
I seem to have a distant memory of some advice from years ago of drenching the plant in slight sugar solution to encourage bees to pollinate. I’ve not tried it, and quite why this would work over and above keeping them well watered I’m not sure. To my mind it might encourage ants, but could be worth a try on one of them.
JanPeople on my allotment site are having the same problem. One even said he’s going to pull his up and start again. I was very late with mine and they haven’t grown yet so I can’t comment. I think it could be the very hot and dry year.