Clearing area for planting?
 

Location Wellington NZ, so climate very similar to Cornwall. Hope you
don't mind me invading your neck of the woods, but ours is a bit quiet
;)

We've got quite a few areas of our section that have become overgrown
due to neglect, so with an Antipodean winter looming, I'm keen to get
stuck in and start tidying up some of it.

First up is a sloping bit that the previous owners had as lawn - I have
no idea why. It's not a large area, but it's the first bit you see as
you come down our path (and steps) to the house.

Anyway, I want to get rid of the invasive agapanthus that lines the path
(have started that... hard work!), clear the "lawn" (now 2 foot high
with weeds aplenty) by strimming and mowing, throw on a bit of Roundup
to kill off the weeds, then prepare the (clay) soil for planting (bit of
digging and addition of compost?). I plan to plant NZ natives to keep
it fairly low maintenance. So I thought I'd do all this in preparation
for planting in spring, but now I've read that I shouldn't till a
sloping site in autumn, I guess due to erosion.

What's my best course of action? I wanted to have the area cleared by
spring (or earlier) for planting, and with a young baby, don't have huge
amounts of time, so hoped to spend a few hours each weekend working away
on it, but do it properly. I'm keen, but very much a novice, so all and
any suggestions most welcome!

--
Maggie

dont believe everything you read. I would do rough digging / deweeding
now and finish off in spring. You can cover the soil with fabric if
erosion is a real problem but i think it is unlikely unless it is Very
Sloping or Very Rainy where you are.

I would rather like an *invasion* of agapanthus in my garden.
sarah


Maggie wrote:
Location Wellington NZ, so climate very similar to Cornwall. Hope you
don't mind me invading your neck of the woods, but ours is a bit quiet
;)

We've got quite a few areas of our section that have become overgrown
due to neglect, so with an Antipodean winter looming, I'm keen to get
stuck in and start tidying up some of it.

First up is a sloping bit that the previous owners had as lawn - I have
no idea why. It's not a large area, but it's the first bit you see as
you come down our path (and steps) to the house.

Anyway, I want to get rid of the invasive agapanthus that lines the path
(have started that... hard work!), clear the "lawn" (now 2 foot high
with weeds aplenty) by strimming and mowing, throw on a bit of Roundup
to kill off the weeds, then prepare the (clay) soil for planting (bit of
digging and addition of compost?). I plan to plant NZ natives to keep
it fairly low maintenance. So I thought I'd do all this in preparation
for planting in spring, but now I've read that I shouldn't till a
sloping site in autumn, I guess due to erosion.

What's my best course of action? I wanted to have the area cleared by
spring (or earlier) for planting, and with a young baby, don't have huge
amounts of time, so hoped to spend a few hours each weekend working away
on it, but do it properly. I'm keen, but very much a novice, so all and
any suggestions most welcome!

--
Maggie

Maggie wrote in news:wYOh
:

. I plan to plant NZ natives to keep
it fairly low maintenance. So I thought I'd do all this in preparation
for planting in spring, but now I've read that I shouldn't till a
sloping site in autumn, I guess due to erosion.

What's my best course of action? I wanted to have the area cleared by
spring (or earlier) for planting, and with a young baby, don't have huge
amounts of time, so hoped to spend a few hours each weekend working away
on it, but do it properly. I'm keen, but very much a novice, so all and
any suggestions most welcome!


You should be fine if you are only going to have it bare for one season,
I'd have thought. If you were going to prepare the earth every year you'd
be more likely to have problems, and would probably need to do things in
terraces. My garden is steep, and I do find I sometimes have to heap soil
back onto the beds, but it's not a huge problem - a little spadework is all
that is needed.

Sarah's suggestion of covering the soil with plastic or black garden fabric
till you are ready to plant is a good idea - not only will this prevent the
soil washing downhill, but it will also suppress any weed seedlings that
come popping up in mild periods, and leave cleaner soil for planting in in
spring.

Having said that, I don't know what NZ natives you are planning to plant -
round here it's usually recommended to plant trees and shrubs in autumn, or
winter for bare root plants - that way they get plenty of damp weather to
settle in before the summer arrives and the ground starts to dry out.

If you are planting seeds, you might want to check if they need a colder
period to get them germinating, as many UK wildflowers do - in that case,
they might also need planting in the autumn.

Victoria

--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

In article ,
Maggie writes:
|
| Anyway, I want to get rid of the invasive agapanthus that lines the path
| (have started that... hard work!), clear the "lawn" (now 2 foot high
| with weeds aplenty) by strimming and mowing, throw on a bit of Roundup
| to kill off the weeds, then prepare the (clay) soil for planting (bit of
| digging and addition of compost?). ...

What you need for the Agapanthus is a grub-axe (pick-mattock, or
whatever). Like a pickaxe, but with one blade 4" wide at right
angled to the handle. It will cut through the roots easily, and
Agapanthus will not regrow from them as I understand it.

The critical thing for clay is to loosen it as deeply as you
have the strength for. Compost or (coarse) sand are useful, but
less important.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

The message
from Maggie contains these words:

Location Wellington NZ, so climate very similar to Cornwall. Hope you
don't mind me invading your neck of the woods, but ours is a bit quiet
;)

We've got quite a few areas of our section that have become overgrown
due to neglect, so with an Antipodean winter looming, I'm keen to get
stuck in and start tidying up some of it.

First up is a sloping bit that the previous owners had as lawn - I have
no idea why.

Were they Scots? It suggsts to me that they might have been
sportspeople, and indulged in the winter sport of Haggis Howking [1] or
Cairngorm Croquet. [2]

It's not a large area, but it's the first bit you see as
you come down our path (and steps) to the house.

I take it you're not into Highland sports?

You could replace it with some low ground cover. If the ground is
suitable, heathers and the crrepier sort of blaeberries and cranberries
might be fun.

Anyway, I want to get rid of the invasive agapanthus that lines the path
(have started that... hard work!), clear the "lawn" (now 2 foot high
with weeds aplenty) by strimming and mowing, throw on a bit of Roundup
to kill off the weeds, then prepare the (clay) soil for planting (bit of
digging and addition of compost?). I plan to plant NZ natives to keep
it fairly low maintenance. So I thought I'd do all this in preparation
for planting in spring, but now I've read that I shouldn't till a
sloping site in autumn, I guess due to erosion.

Ah. Bang goes any thoughts of heathers and the berries.

What's my best course of action? I wanted to have the area cleared by
spring (or earlier) for planting, and with a young baby, don't have huge
amounts of time, so hoped to spend a few hours each weekend working away
on it, but do it properly. I'm keen, but very much a novice, so all and
any suggestions most welcome!

Babies can be admirably destructive, you know. Have you thought of
tethering him/her in a different spot each day?

Really, it's a bit late for Roundup, as it's at its best when the target
is growing vigorously. I know someone with a flame-thrower and an
enthusiastic seven-year-old, but it's a bit far, even for them.

It's like the old bloke asked for directions: "Ar, well, if Oi were
gooing there, Oi wuddn't staart from here, see?"

I think you might have to continue as you are and be patient about
deploying the WMD.

[1] Haggis Howking: where the object of the sport is to sweep down a
slope on skis, and extract the haggis from its burrow in a single
movement with a Howkin' Pole, en passant.

[2] Played on a slope with the usual equipment, the only difference
being that the balls are cuboid. This is said to be because it's a long
way down Cairn Gorm, and spherical balls tend to go the distance.

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

The message
from (Nick Maclaren) contains these words:

What you need for the Agapanthus is a grub-axe (pick-mattock, or
whatever). Like a pickaxe, but with one blade 4" wide at right
angled to the handle. It will cut through the roots easily, and
Agapanthus will not regrow from them as I understand it.

Me sir! Me-me-me! I've got two of those. Now, would one of them go as an
attachment, I wonder?

The critical thing for clay is to loosen it as deeply as you
have the strength for. Compost or (coarse) sand are useful, but
less important.

Well, if you loosen it and give it a dose of compost/sand, a lot of that
will get down amongst the lumps and the worms will get it mixing
earlier.

thinks

You *HAVE* got earthwormy type-of-things, haven't you? I have a sort of
feeling that the nasty flatworms which eat our earthworms originated
Down Under, somewhere...

/thinks

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

Victoria Clare spake thusly
Maggie wrote in news:wYOh
:

. I plan to plant NZ natives to keep
it fairly low maintenance. So I thought I'd do all this in preparation
for planting in spring, but now I've read that I shouldn't till a
sloping site in autumn, I guess due to erosion.

I don't know what NZ natives you are planning to plant -
round here it's usually recommended to plant trees and shrubs in autumn, or
winter for bare root plants - that way they get plenty of damp weather to
settle in before the summer arrives and the ground starts to dry out.


Hmmm.. good point, and something I had completely overlooked.
--
Maggie

Nick Maclaren spake thusly

What you need for the Agapanthus is a grub-axe (pick-mattock, or
whatever). Like a pickaxe, but with one blade 4" wide at right
angled to the handle. It will cut through the roots easily, and
Agapanthus will not regrow from them as I understand it.

I think I know of the implement you mean. Is it important to get all
the roots out of soil? They're so matted in places, I'd need to remove
half the bank!


The critical thing for clay is to loosen it as deeply as you
have the strength for. Compost or (coarse) sand are useful, but
less important.

Having looked at the site again, there seems to be a lot of... rock, or
at least, extremely hard clay, that just breaks off... not a lot of
"soil" at all.
--
Maggie

Jaques d'Alltrades spake thusly

thinks

You *HAVE* got earthwormy type-of-things, haven't you?

Yup!

I have a sort of
feeling that the nasty flatworms which eat our earthworms originated
Down Under, somewhere...


Don't think I've eer come across one, though I once found a huge
gigantic earthworm... is that a flat worm? (Looked a bit round to me)
--
Maggie

Jaques d'Alltrades spake thusly
The message
from Maggie contains these words:


First up is a sloping bit that the previous owners had as lawn - I have
no idea why.

Were they Scots?

With a name like Angus MacDonald, more than likely.


It's not a large area, but it's the first bit you see as
you come down our path (and steps) to the house.

I take it you're not into Highland sports?


Not at present. :)


Ah. Bang goes any thoughts of heathers and the berries.

It's not that large an area, and bordered by mountain (?) flax.. so need
plants with a little height I think. There is a spot where I thought I
could plant berries, but currently overgrown with broom and bracken and
hidden by flax, so for now in the "too hard" basket.
--
Maggie

In article ,
Maggie wrote:
Nick Maclaren spake thusly

What you need for the Agapanthus is a grub-axe (pick-mattock, or
whatever). Like a pickaxe, but with one blade 4" wide at right
angled to the handle. It will cut through the roots easily, and
Agapanthus will not regrow from them as I understand it.

I think I know of the implement you mean. Is it important to get all
the roots out of soil? They're so matted in places, I'd need to remove
half the bank!

No. I am pretty certain it will not regrow from them.

The critical thing for clay is to loosen it as deeply as you
have the strength for. Compost or (coarse) sand are useful, but
less important.

Having looked at the site again, there seems to be a lot of... rock, or
at least, extremely hard clay, that just breaks off... not a lot of
"soil" at all.

When that is broken up, and some humus added, it will turn into soil.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Nick Maclaren spake thusly
In article ,
Maggie wrote:

I think I know of the implement you mean. Is it important to get all
the roots out of soil? They're so matted in places, I'd need to remove
half the bank!

No. I am pretty certain it will not regrow from them.

Yay!


Having looked at the site again, there seems to be a lot of... rock, or
at least, extremely hard clay, that just breaks off... not a lot of
"soil" at all.

When that is broken up, and some humus added, it will turn into soil.


Thanks for that :)
--
Maggie