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How to prepare your ground |
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The first thing that you need to do when creating your kitchen garden is to consider where it will go.
Choose an area that gets plenty of sun and does not have to compete with the root systems of large trees and shrubs for nutrients. Remember that it is a good idea to only make your veg patch or raised beds twice as wide as the length of your arm so that you can easily reach everything that it contains.
Once you have chosen the area and cleared any persistent weeds, dig the soil over to the depth of a garden spade.
It is always best to carry our your digging when the ground is dry and frost free (as this will make digging hard work) Heavy soil must never be dug when it's wet as this can damage the soil structure and lead to poor aeration and drainage.
Need some gardening equipment to help with the digging?
Dig This
The depth of your topsoil, quality of drainage and whether or not your plot has been previously cultivated, will all determine the digging method required. Single and double digging are the most effective ways to prepare your soil.
Single digging
Use this method on regularly-shaped plots, where it's important that the soil has an even texture. Single digging is also useful when large quantities of organic matter need to be incorporated.
•Dig out trenches to a spade's depth, known as a 'spit', and about 30cm (12in) wide.
•Place the soil from the first trench on the ground in front and work backwards along the plot, turning the soil from each subsequent trench into the one in front.
Double digging
Double digging is useful when drainage needs to be improved, or if the ground has not been previously cultivated. This is a time-consuming process but is worth the hard work and will result in good soil structure.
•The soil is worked to a depth of two spades, rather than one, and it’s essential to keep the two layers of soil (subsoil and topsoil) separate. In order to do this, the lower half of the trench can be dug over in situ.
•Remove the soil from the upper and lower spits of the first trench and from the upper spit of the second, placing it aside on the ground in three separate, clearly marked piles.
•The soil can then be transferred from the lower spit of the second trench to the base of the first trench, and from the upper spit of the third trench to the top of the first. This ensures that the topsoil and subsoil remain separate.
•Continue digging trenches in the same way, until you reach the end of the bed where soil saved from the first trench can be used to fill the appropriate layers in the final trench.
After digging, add compost, organic matter, manure or wormcast fertiliser to ensure that the soil is rich and nutritious for your soon to be planted Rocket Garden. Dig all of this organic matter in well and then using a rake level the ground breaking up any big clumps of earth as you go. The top couple of inches of soil should be loose and friable.
Now that this is all done, you are ready to pop in your plants! For each plant follow the directions provided with your Rocket Garden grow guide and remember to water them in well.
A “No Dig” Vegetable Garden
If you don’t have time to prepare the soil correctly, then a no dig garden may be perfect for you. If your chosen site is over existing lawn, then you will need to mow the grass down as much as possible.
To start your no dig garden, you should lay down a layer of newspaper approximately a quarter of an inch thick. Once you have done this, lay a border around your garden using bricks, wood, rocks or whatever other suitable material you may have to at least a height of eight to ten inches to contain the organic material and discourage weeds (in effect you are creating a raised bed).
After building the border if you have access to it, put down a layer of hay to approximately 4 inches thick. On top of this, layer some good organic fertiliser or manure to a thickness of one inch. A six inch thick layer of loose straw should then be laid followed by another layer of fertilizer and then finished off with a four inch thick layer of compost.
Now that this is done, just water the garden thoroughly – but not to soaking wet. You can then start planting! Just remember to never walk on your no dig garden as you will compact the layers and this can cause problems later on.
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