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stephanie

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Raised bed depth

Posted: 15/12/2011 at 14:09

Sprouts do need space but it is firmness of the soil which is most important and brassicas are susceptible to so many pests they can be more work than they are worth, don't forget to incorporate some flowering edible plants. Your onions and garlic will probably be best left till the spring now as far as planting is concerned as most varieties are either Autumn or spring planting bulbs.Happy planting!

hi all, got some bugs i'm stuck with.

Posted: 15/12/2011 at 13:56

Looks like Potato Cyst Eelworm, a nasty nematode, best to look them up as a lot is written about them, too much to write here, however they are difficult to get rid of so you might need to look for somewhere else to grow your potatoes.

Talkback: The no-dig method

Posted: 15/12/2011 at 13:47

It is debateable, some say digging destroys the soils structure and others say it is necesarry to avoid creating a hard pan in the soil.Each situation is different depending on the history of your plot. I try not to dig my soil and simply mulch in the Autumn with well rotted compost or well rotted manure then cover these vacant areas with cardboard until the spring. The covering will protect the soil from erosion during the winter months and the worms will pull the mulch into the soil during this time. No weed seeds will germinate and no air born seeds can penetrate the covering. Come the spring I can remove the cardboard as necesarry and reveal lovely soil.

Raised bed depth

Posted: 15/12/2011 at 13:38

I would vary the depth of your beds, the minimum depth needed for raised beds is 12 inches however some root vegetables for example need 18- 24 inches. Itwould be more pleasing to the eye if the ends of the beds, for example, were much deeper and separate, maybe filled with ericaceous soil, it would also give you the opportunity of growing trailing plants aswell.

Ericaceous soil

Posted: 15/12/2011 at 13:30

I think it would be a good idea to test your soil as clay soil is often by nature acidic, there may be another reason your plants haven't survived very long.

Too chilly to plant now?

Posted: 14/12/2011 at 13:35

as long as the ground is not frozen and workable all pot grown plants shrubs, fruit bushes, trees available in your local garden centre can be planted now, bare root plants have to be planted during the cooler months as the soil is warm stil and the roots have a chance to establish themselves before next spring. Consider though what you want form this area, do you want to fill it with perennials or could it be filled with a mix of annuals also. how about growing some of your own food here mixed in with the shrubs, standard fruit bushes can make good focal points and allow planting beneath them also.

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