overgrown allotment

At the weekend I will be taking over a really overgrown allotment. It has not been used for a couple of years and the weeds are 5-6foot tall.

The main weeds are- grass, brambles, bind weed, nettles, mares tail, docks/dandelions etc.

I am wondering what the best plan of attack for clearing it is?

I was going to hire a petrol strimmer at the weekend and start with that but don't know whether to rotavate it next (farmer will come and do it for �£20) or to try and dig by hand?

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!!

Lisa

 

Haven't had to tackle an overgrown allotment, but just have to say I'm sure you'll get lots of enjoyment from it not to mention all the lovely fresh veg. and I know the folk on this forum will have lots of advice.

[ 19. July 2005, 09:18 AM: Message edited by: jjordie ]

 

I would get the Farmer to do it,worth every penny, then get rid of all the root turned up...just let dry up, then burn if you can...Any new weeds coming up, spot treat just to roots with SBK...I once had a Farmer doing an acre of it....was a veggie patchlong before also 4-5 ft weeds ...then he seeded with slow growing grass and since then was grazing / browsing for my Animals...
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Ladybird

[ 19. July 2005, 09:49 AM: Message edited by: Ladybird ]

 

I think I will get him to di it. I just was not sure if it would cause more weeds with the roots being chopped up.

I think it would take us so long to dig it all from scratch though that it would be easier to pull out new weeds as they appear.

Would it be worth doing it in stages and covering the rest with weed membrane after it is rotavated?

I hope the weather is good at the weekend- we will be very busy!

 

When I moved to this house the garden hadn't been dug for 20 years and there was every weed imaginable in a heck of a tangled mess. I used a rotavator but the bindweed came back as thick as ever. It was so deep rooted that I had to double dig the entire 200 x 30ft and filled about 2 dozen bags with it. The damn stuff still appears and Roundup is on constant standby.
Good luck fothers,hope the end result is good

 

Mares tails and the ubiquitous field bindweed if it is field bindweed, will be very difficult to get on top of whatever method you use. Brambles and nettles, docks, and dandelions less so.

Me I would dig up as much as I could, then round up the lot, for month every two weeks before rotavating. But your best bet is seeking the advise of nearby allotment holders -

 

Had success with round up on bindweed in my allotment...even where it has climbed up the hedge, I found that the bindweed mostly yellowed off and died and the privet was unaffected by any slight overspray

 

Hi Fothers

I work for my local council and part of my job involves inspecting allotments. My personsl hate is people puting down old carpets etc to keep weeds down. In my experience folk never lift the damned carpets and give up after about two years leaving me withe the problem of what to do with the mouldy old carpet. If you are serious about this it is going to take a lot of work. As others have suggested you should get the local farmer to cultivate for you after strimming. I would also suggest that you remove as many roots as possible then get the farmer to come back in a month and do the same again (possibly even three times depending on the amount of weeds). Do not try to start planting before you sort out the weeds or it will be much harder to weed. I know that it will be tempting to start sowing seeds but it isnt worth it before the weeds are sorted out. You dont say if you want to be organic or not but if you are prepared to spray with roundup (Glyphosate) i would also advise that you get a pro to do the job for you as they will be able to addapt the strength of chemical for the weeds present. Mares tail is particularly difficult. I have heard that trampling it down before sprayin aids uptake. Sorry i dont mean to be negative but i think that it is best to be aware.

If you get it right i am sure you will get great satisfaction from growing your own food and we will be here to offer advice if you need it.

Cloudy

 

thanks guys. I am not sure of the rules yet on weedkillers but would consider them if allowed. We may try and be organic later but I wouldn't object to using them to start with.

We have hired a strimmer for the weekend- wish me luck- I might try and post before and after photos!

 

Good luck - whilst it may be daunting the amount of work required to get things under control - the work now, will pay off if you get rid of as much of the thugs as possible before you begin the enjoyment of planting and then enjoying your produce.