Hi

A quick question. I am in my first year of owning an allotment and i am currently planting out my first plants....

I have read about the benefits of mulching (weed suppresent, moisture retainer etc). I was wondering which plants should i apply mulch around and what should this mulch consist of? I live in the UK and i hope to grow all types of different veg this year including beans, brassicas, root veg, various salad leaves. Most of the plot is open but i also have two large raised beds

It might sound daft but if i apply mulch won't this restrict what i can plant or can i just plant through it?

Thanks

On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:56:39 +0100, mw80
wrote:


Hi

A quick question. I am in my first year of owning an allotment and i am
currently planting out my first plants....

I have read about the benefits of mulching (weed suppresent, moisture
retainer etc). I was wondering which plants should i apply mulch around
and what should this mulch consist of? I live in the UK and i hope to
grow all types of different veg this year including beans, brassicas,
root veg, various salad leaves. Most of the plot is open but i also
have two large raised beds

It might sound daft but if i apply mulch won't this restrict what i can
plant or can i just plant through it?

Thanks

I just finished putting grass clippings around my Swiss chard, cabbage
and broccoli. I always put grass clippings around also everything. If
you put some mulch down now and want to plant later, just push the
mulch aside and put plants in or clear a row and seed. After the
seeds get started good, put the mulch back over.
--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

"mw80" wrote in message

A quick question. I am in my first year of owning an allotment and i am
currently planting out my first plants....

I have read about the benefits of mulching (weed suppresent, moisture
retainer etc). I was wondering which plants should i apply mulch around
and what should this mulch consist of? I live in the UK and i hope to
grow all types of different veg this year including beans, brassicas,
root veg, various salad leaves. Most of the plot is open but i also
have two large raised beds

It might sound daft but if i apply mulch won't this restrict what i can
plant or can i just plant through it?

You can mulch around everything, but there are a few things to consider.
For very tiny seedlings, I use rice hulls which is the husk of the rice
grain so is very tiny and I scatter it thinly until the seedlings get to a
decent size and can take a more robust mulch. For things like corn (do you
call that maize in the UK? - anyway, the plant that gets over 2 metres and
grows cobs of corn) I use very robust mulch (hay/straw/old leaves - whatever
is to hand and sometimes have it as thick as 30 cm. Some plants don't like
mulch right up to their stems but things like tomatoes and corn thrive on it
and actually grow more roots out into the mulch if conditions are right.

Also mulch any fallow beds to prevent weeds and to feed your worm population
and then when you need to plant, just scrape the mulch back with your hand
and you'll probalby find that the soil is so friable you won't need to do
anything other than to loosen the soil with a hand fork.

"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote in message
...
"mw80" wrote in message

A quick question. I am in my first year of owning an allotment and i am
currently planting out my first plants....

I have read about the benefits of mulching (weed suppresent, moisture
retainer etc). I was wondering which plants should i apply mulch around
and what should this mulch consist of? I live in the UK and i hope to
grow all types of different veg this year including beans, brassicas,
root veg, various salad leaves. Most of the plot is open but i also
have two large raised beds

It might sound daft but if i apply mulch won't this restrict what i can
plant or can i just plant through it?

You can mulch around everything, but there are a few things to consider.
For very tiny seedlings, I use rice hulls which is the husk of the rice
grain so is very tiny and I scatter it thinly until the seedlings get to a
decent size and can take a more robust mulch. For things like corn (do
you call that maize in the UK? - anyway, the plant that gets over 2 metres
and grows cobs of corn) I use very robust mulch (hay/straw/old leaves -
whatever is to hand and sometimes have it as thick as 30 cm. Some plants
don't like mulch right up to their stems but things like tomatoes and corn
thrive on it and actually grow more roots out into the mulch if conditions
are right.

Also mulch any fallow beds to prevent weeds and to feed your worm
population and then when you need to plant, just scrape the mulch back
with your hand and you'll probalby find that the soil is so friable you
won't need to do anything other than to loosen the soil with a hand fork.

for fallow gardens I use plant residue. Example, corn stalks once harvested
or sweet potato or broccoli. Harvest and then spread rest of plant across
the garden. I also use old coffee grounds several inchs thick on beds lying
fallow over winter. You can mulch a garden bed and put transplants direct
through the mulch or with larger seeds (eg corn0 I have seen people plant
them into a handful of fine compost nestled into the mulch (hay/straw).

rob