"Mike Lyle" wrote in message
...
gazzy wrote:
i am new to gardening and i want to grow my own vegetables but
don't
know how to start ie preparing the ground after overgrowth with
weeds

You'll need to do some digging! Take it slowly while you're learning
the technique. Maybe it would be a good idea to get a basic book to
start you off, as pictures say a lot of it much better than my words.
There are plenty to choose from, and they all say much the same
things, but you could go to Smith's and have a look at _The Vegetable
Expert_. I've got the house plant book in that series, and it's
pretty good, and well illustrated.

You need to improve your soil f you want really good veg. What kind of soil
do you have?
The book 'The Garden Expert' by Dr. Hessayon has a good set of easy tests
you can
perform to determine whether it's sandy, loam, chalky or clay etc. A ph test
kit might be
in order. Then there's the digging! Double digging if you're really serious,
though I've never
bothered.

You need to get a good soil structure, remove stones if it's a stony soil,
add as much organic
matter as you can ( start a compost heap, but you'll need more than that
really ) compost and
well-rotted horse manure are a good start. You can add lime, or ( better )
gypsum to clay soil
to break up the lumps and improve the 'crumb' structure.

Some of the actions to take depend on the sort of soil you have, and also
what type of veg
you grow. For instance I believe brassicas like limey soil.

Andy.