Green manure - Claire's allotment part 86

[chouslop15]

Hey, How did you get on with Green manue? I have a really poor soil, (its been weeds for years) would I be better covering the plot in manure for winter? Love the videos, helped me so much

[clairesallotment]

@chouslop15 The green manure was ok, but it was difficult to know what was plant and what was weed. Personally I wouldn't try it again. It also makes the allotment look very messy. What I would suggest for you is to get some well rotten manure, and just cover your soil. Make sure it's at least 3 inches thick. Leave over Winter, and then dig in next Spring. I'm so glad you enjoy the videos, I made some more today, so hopefully they'll be up very soon.

[IFINEVERSING]

I love your videos. I Finally aquired my allotment this year. I am forking it out gradually as it is very overgrown. I have a few plants but am not planting this year as I am going to clear it of weeds and plan over the winter. I now have a shed and a rechargeable strimmer. I am going to have raised beds in rotation, a fruit cage and a pond eventually plus some flowers.

[clairesallotment]

@IFINEVERSING Glad you've finally got an allotment. You've got leads of time to get it ready and sorted for the beginning of the new season. Try and get as much done before the cold weather sets in. Dig beds and cover with a thick layer of manure, then leave over winter for the worms to take down and the cold weather to kill any bugs. I started with a rechargeable strimmer. I think I broke it within a year. I just couldn't cope with what I had to do. Have fun and enjoy.

[davel831]

hi claire did you do a follow up video on how to cut and dig over.

cheers dave

[clairesallotment]

@davel831 Hi Dave, I forgot to do one, we had loads of snow over the winter, and it flattened most of it. I'll plant it again this year, and make a film next year.

[maineguy1963]

great video clair I just turn mine over today had lots of pig manure that I overwintered that was on top hopeing for some great tomatoes this year

[clairesallotment]

@maineguy1963 Sounds like you'll get a bumper crop this year with all that goodness in the soil.

[jihadacadien]

Again thanks for the video....love that you always have your headphones arounf your neck ;)

[clairesallotment]

I have to listen to my music, it makes me work faster.

[yardsnacker]

Great! I've grown buckwheat all summer long for my compost piles.  Now to crimson clover!

[clairesallotment]

They must look wonderful. Do the bees like it?

[yardsnacker]

Yes, but not as much as I was expecting! Surprisingly they went for my sunflowers, coriander, cucumber and others before the buckwheat. :D

[clairesallotment]

Bees love sunflowers, they're all over mine, and the cucumber flowers as well as courgettes, they seem to get lost in them.

[aimeemacdn]

Great Claire! I'm going to try green manure this year. See you later at the site.

[clairesallotment]

Winding down in the next few weeks, so won't be there as much. Hope to see you there.

[sadia102]

Great vid Claire. I have planted some green manure in one area of the yard. It will be interesting to see how they all go. I plan on doing two of my other beds as well in our Southern Winter. Put in a new high raised bed with potatoes and put polytubing frames over the beds. Makes it a lot easier to put the plastic over in Frost and the shade in Summer.

[clairesallotment]

Hope the green manure grows well. The raised beds sound great, they are much easier to maintain. Hope you have a great year.

Claire

[hoverboverer]

I ended up putting leeks in after my early Pots - harvested some already for leek and Potato soup. Yum!

Am putting in spring cabbage in the main crop pot beds (had to harvest early due to blight).

[clairesallotment]

Blight is a pain. If you have a very wet summer and/or clay soil it's a nightmare. Lift them as soon as they are ready, which is as soon as the green starts to fade on the leaves. To break up clay soil you need to put loads or organic matter in, it takes a few years, but will eventually be useable.

[maineguy1963]

LOVE IT CLAIRE keep up the good work love seeing you again take care

[clairesallotment]

There will be a few more before the end of the season, so keep your eyes open.

[powerspade]

Thanks again for a excelent video. You give more infromation on your videos about veg growing and allotments than Gardeners World

[clairesallotment]

Glad you find them useful. Thanks for your continued support.

[wdcantrell]

Claire - Great timing! I will be planting my first crop of green manure in about 2 weeks once my tomatoes are done.  Your videos have been so helpful and inspiring. Thanks!

[clairesallotment]

Thought I'd give it a try this year. It's good to try new things. How have the tomatoes done this year?

[wdcantrell]

Claire, I live on the east side of the San Francisco Bay Area which is much warmer than the city. That said, it has been cooler this summer and my tomatoes are late with a lower yield.

However, this is my first year using heirloom tomatoes (they taste great!). Also, I am trying to use many of the biointensive gardening principles: Double digging, closer plant spacing and using my own compost versus synthetic fertilizers. This change probably affected my yields temporarily. Thanks!

[clairesallotment]

Heirloom tomatoes are a little tricky to grow, not as easy as the usual ones. Home grown tomatoes taste so much better than anything you can buy in the shops. Make sure you don't plant your tomatoes too close, keep them to the distance they recommend on the packet because if they get humid they get blight. Tomato plants need room to breathe, and also don't plant next to potatoes, they cause blight to.

[MadBadVoodo]

Five Stars!!

[clairesallotment]

Thank you very much indeed.