11th November 2018 - 3 tons of topsoil

This week I have had 3 tons of topsoil delivered for 86a, I enlisted the help of Mr L to get it all moved up to the plot.  We filled the last of the beds that have been made and then ended up with 2 bags filled and waiting for the next set of beds to be made.  The soil was delivered at 8.15am, Mr L arrived around 9.30am (after I'd already prepared the bed and carried 2 wheelbarrow loads) and by 12.15pm we had moved it all up the hill.

As a reminder, I completely covered the whole plot with membrane and then as I was ready to fill each bed I cut it out and stapled the overlap to the inside of the bed.  This has created a barrier against the wood, which I hope will go some way to preserving it, and means that I don't have to worry about making the ground even because the membrane creates an extra side to the bed.  I was also able to fit the cardboard right up under the sides of the bed.  Again, I'm hoping this will help to suppress the weeds that will try to make their way through.  I have ended up with a good layer of cardboard and about 8" of soil so this should suppress a lot of the weeds as well.  

I mentioned last week that I was working on my plan for 86a.  I decided to go ahead and put both plots onto one plan.  I haven't included the path between them so it does look like they're back to back when in fact there is a 4' gap between them.  The 3 big beds at the right of the shed are already in place and filled.  The 5 smaller beds opposite those beds are next on my plan.  My friend has offered me some wood so I'm going to use that to build the 3 compost bins (scrapping the temporary one I've got next to the shed at the moment).  I want to use the same matting and gravel as a base for the greenhouse and put it to the left of the shed.  It will be against the hedge on it's left side but otherwise it should get a good amount of sunshine.

The bed immediately in front of the shed, (that is perpendicular to the rest of the beds) is the one that I'm not sure of yet.  The space in front of the shed is quite big and I don't want to waste the space but I'm not sure that putting a bed there is the best option.  I would like to have a fire pit and seating area so this is potentially where it could go.  Having said that it's a waste of growing space and perhaps it would make more sense to have the bed or maybe a fruit tree.  I'd be happy to hear any thoughts you might have about this space.

Until next time...

Happy Gardening x

4th November 2018 - Another bed in 86a

Here we are at the end of the season but there's still loads to do for me, particularly in 86a.  This week it was littlest L's birthday and so I didn't get up to the plot at all yesterday, which was a shame because we had the Bonfire Night party and from what I hear it was a brilliant night with around 100 people coming along.  We have a second bonfire in December for the Winter Solstice, so I'll be hoping to go along to that one.

Up at the plot today I wanted to get my second bed finished because I had planted all of my onions into the bed on 85a and the extra ones I'd put into individual cells.  Some of them had started to sprout and so I really wanted to get them into a bed before they got too big for the cells.  I hadn't counted them but I actually had 112 onions the needed to be transplanted.  I also had 3 garlic bulbs that I wanted to get planted, I didn't count them but I did manage to get them all in.  This year I decided to try soft neck garlic because while my bulbs grew well last year I struggled to keep them and I read that soft neck keep better than hard neck - I have no idea why (if anyone does please feel free to let me know).


I also had some leeks that I was hoping to fit into this bed but they wouldn't fit and so I've put them into root trainers.  I have no idea if they will be OK but they were unhappy and getting root-bound in the pot they were in.  I'm hoping that they'll be OK in the root trainers because they'll have more room to grow and because they're now planted individually when I do have room to plant them they'll be easier to put into the right place without disturbing them too much.  I'm also going to add toilet roll to help blanch the stems, it's not something I've done before but I'm hoping it will work.

I now have 2 beds actually growing things in 86a.  I'm getting 2 more bags of topsoil delivered (hopefully) next weekend to fill my last large bed and then the leftover will have to wait until the other beds are made.  I'm hoping to get 10 more scaffold boards for Christmas and 5 more bags of topsoil.  My plan is to have all of the beds in place and ready to go for next spring. 

I have used the Grow Veg garden planner for 3 years for 85a and I am going to set up a plan for 86a.  I haven't decided yet whether to do it as 2 different plans or to put both of them together on one plan.  I think it will be easier to do it as one plan but I don't know if I can extend current plan.  If you don't use it, I would very much recommend it.  You can get it as a free trial to start with but it's worth the £19 per year subscription.  As part of the planner you can get a list of plants/seeds that you need to make the beds but it also tells you where you can plant things, based on your previous planting to help you with your crop rotation.  You also get regular news and offers.  

I will share my plan once it's done but until next time...
Happy Gardening x