In message , ken cohen
writes
Having cleared a lot of the undergrowth from my new allotment, I
discover that the ground is quite stony with small pebbles, pieces of
rock etc. I've started raking them up and removing them, but I'm
thinking it could be an endless task, and how important is it anyway,
given that stones do not deprive plants of nutrients, and eventually
will become part of the soil?

Partly it depends on what you intend to grow and how.

It's hard to produce a good fine seed bed with very stony soil unless
you remove some of the stones as you rake. If you grow in pots/modules
and plant out his isn't an issue.

For roots crops like carrots getting good roots in stony soil might be a
problem.

I would suggested removing what you can as you prepare and rake the soil
etc, but as you say it's an endless task, I wouldn't make it a job in
itself. Also add plenty of organic matte to the soil so as to improve
the top 6 inches in particular, this will help to lessen the stoniness
over time.
--
Chris French and Helen Johnson, Leeds
urg Suppliers and References FAQ:
http://www.familyfrench.co.uk/garden/urgfaq/index.html