"Little Weed" wrote ...
Hi all
i have just taken on an allotment, surrounded by books, magazines,
offers of "good advice". trouble is - how do I start? I have the option
of a strimmer, a chainsaw or a flame thrower Definately a case of
can't see the soil for the undergrowth! I'm really up for making a good
job of this but don't need to make heavy work of it unnecessarily - any
ideas?

If it's a plot that hasn't been used for some years, laid fallow, it's
probably quite fertile.

There is not much you can plant now so you have time to set it up properly.
Presumably it's covered in weeds, so strim off all you can asap and tidy it
up, then wait a few weeks for things to start to grow again and hit them
with a spray of Glyphosate weedkiller. That will kill off most weeds
including most perennials within a few weeks. If you have time before winter
you could do this process again to be certain.
Once the green has died away I would hit it with the flame thrower to burn
off all the weed seeds that are lying there.

Now you have a clean plot you can dig it, just a few feet a day, and you
will soon have it fully dug. Keep a bucket by your side for all the rubbish
and large stones you find so you can really clean up you soil. Build a
compost bin or two.

If you intend to use a 4 year rotation (1. Manure/Spuds. 2.Lime/Brassicas.
3. Beans/Peas etc. 4. Onion family and roots.) mark out your plot into 4
equal sections and obtain some well rotted horse manure or similar and
spread a good layer, 4 inches think, over the quarter you intend to put to
spuds next year and dig it in before you plant. The brassica plot will
probably need a good limeing to raise the pH but find out the soil pH first.
(test kit or meter)

You could plant some Garlic in the onion plot at the end of next month,
Sept/Oct. if you have it ready by then.

--
Regards
Bob H
17mls W. of London.UK