Ok. Confession time – my veg garden is in an absolute state. The once clean woodchip paths are now totally weed-ridden, the no dig beds are weed-ridden, I’ve left clutter lying around all over the shop and I’ve allowed a lot of plants to self seed without any intervention from me. The result of all this, as you can see from this photo, is an overwhelmingly weed-ridden, messy plot.
I remember being faced with this kind of not-so-blank canvas when I took on this veg garden. Back then, I was fairly new to growing vegetables and I didn’t really know where to begin. This year, though, with more experience under my belt, I don’t feel too bad about it and I’m confident that I can get things ship-shape again fairly swiftly once the weather is a little more in my favour.
Here are a few key things that I’ll be doing to restore order to my plot. I hope it helps for anyone who is in a similar situation this year, whether that’s because you’ve taken over a new plot that was somewhat neglected, not had time or energy to keep on top of things the last year or so, or starting from scratch.
Scraping up and replacing woodchip
This is an easy fix for me, although quite laborious. I’ve had a delivery of woodchip from a local tree surgeon (this is usually quite easy to arrange, just get in touch with a few and ask if you can make a small donation next time they have a job in your area) and, as soon as weather allows I will begin the task of scraping up the existing woodchip, weeds and all, and piling it into its own compost pile. The combination of woodchip (brown matter that already breaking down) and weeds (green matter) should be quite good, and I can add grass clippings to it soon too.
Underneath the woodchip, I have some weed membrane stuff. I’m not too keen on it as it is plastic, and it does fray. If I had my time again, I wouldn’t use it, but it is there, and since there was a lot of japanese knotweed when I took on the plot, it has actually really helped. I’ll be peeling it up to see how the roots below are looking. It might be that I can remove it now without risk of the knotweed returning, but I’m not sure yet. If you’re starting from scratch with woodchip paths, I’d recommend using something else, like the biodegradable weed supressant that you can get covered with a layer of cardboard, and then woodchip on top of that.
Once things are all set, I can bring in the new woodchip and lay it on the pathways one wheelbarrow load at a time. All in all, I reckon it’ll be a couple of weekends to get all this done, but it’ll make a huge difference. Getting the pathways weed free again will mean fewer weed seeds in the actual beds later on in the year.
Pulling up weeds from beds
Since I am growing using the no-dig method, the top 10-15cm of the raised beds is basically quite loose compost (I top it up each season rather than digging over the soil – more on that in the article linked below.) This means that weeds are actually quite easy to pull up without needing to dig them up to get the roots out. It should only take a few hours to clear the beds of all the softer rooted weeds, and then I can go over with a small fork to get any new brambles or docks pulled up.
Covering beds with cardboard & compost
Once beds are more or less weed-free, I’ll lay down a sheet of cardboard and top it with a good layer of compost. It’ll be a little costly this time, as I’ll need to buy in some compost, but that’s my comeuppance for letting things get out of hand. The cardboard is easy as I save it from deliveries etc, and once all tape, staples etc are removed, I can trust that it will break down over time without causing damage. The cardboard acts as a good block against sunlight, so will help prevent weeds breaking through again. In the meantime, the mulch of compost on the top will weigh the cardboard down, and I can plant straight into it. By the time the roots reach it, the cardboard will be mushy enough that they can grow straight on through.
Cutting back woody growth
This is the next step, and mostly involves herb beds where plants like marjoram, chives, and oregano have old, woody growth from last year that should have been sorted at the end of autumn. This is a nice quick job, and once it is done will make things look a lot better as well as making space for new growth as shoots begin to appear.
Clearing up
I can’t tell you how much of my messy plot is down to my own idleness at putting things away. It’s almost embarrassing, but it’s the truth. Sometimes, it just seems such an effort to walk a couple of metres to put the rake away 😉 But, I can tell you that keeping the plot tidier a) looks a lot nicer and b) keeps slugs down. Slugs and snails hide under anything and everything, and by leaving empty pots or half used bags of compost lying around, I am very much making a rod for my own back. If you’re a little neglectful like me when it comes to tidying up and putting things away, please join me in a concerted effort to be less messy as your veg plants will thank you for it when their leaves are less holey!
Planting & mulching
Obviously, I won’t be doing this until spring, but when I do come to plant this year I will be aiming to mulch. My preferred mulch is a brand called Strulch – google it – because it helps to keep slugs down. I have found it effective in the past, and it also helps to keep weeds under control as well as keeping moisture in. Funnily enough, I didn’t use it last year, and I think that’s partly why my beds got so out of control. (I am not affiliated with the brand in any way, I just really like the product and think it is a good investment if you can afford it.)
And this is what I hope it will look like again this summer:
In theory, this will all have my veg garden looking a lot better quite quickly, but most importantly it should give the veggies a better chance as they won’t have to fight so many weeds for nutrients etc, and all the compost mulch will help to enrich the soil. Having the old woodchip breaking down into usable compost for the future will also be good for the bank balance!