tina wrote:

But if any of you experts has any advice for me of ways of helping
with the veg patch preperation I would be greatful.

Thanks

Oh Tina, join the club - we are on awful clay, I'm sure I could make a
fortune out of making Limoges a la Lea from my garden.

We have been here 9-10 years and we have made little impact despite
putting in everything that we were advised of. Trailer loads of manure
with hay and straw in it, trailers of wood chips, compost made by
ourselves and loads that was donated by friends; and we even bough a
load of cocoa shell as someone said this would solve the problem. We
took all advice but there is very litte difference, it seem that the
stuff just disappears in after a couple of years but where it goes is a
mystery and the clay is still - well clay.

Another urgler gace me some very good advice about using seaweed and
cardboard and looking at her garden, you can sede that it is a
brialliant solution. I have been up and down the Norfolk coast but I
cannot find any seaweed on the beaches. I am told that in North
Norfolk there is some to be had but it is not possible to get a car
anywhere near to where it is. I intend to place an advert asking for
seaweed and hopefully someone will see a market and sell me a few
trailer loads. I have been saving all my cardboard to place under it.

My clay really takes on a life of its own, to go and walk into the
veggie garden to get sprouts is to take a great risk with my size three
shoes, there are so many slippers and shoes buried in the clay that you
would have thought that this might have made some difference to it - it
hasn't.