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Preparing for the next planting season


mint

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This year, we arrived in France in April.  Loads to do but nonetheless managed to bung some seeds into the ground.  No preparation, nothing.  Still, we have had a wonderful crop of beans, beetroot, lettuce, radishes, etc.

Now all the crops are more or less up and the ground has been raked over.  So, what next?  What is the best thing to do as regards fertilising the soil and generally preparing it for the planting season?

Our soil is rubbishy stuff, used to be a vineyard, lots of calcaire and not much else.

All advice gratefully received.

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This is what I do about now to be ready for next year on my veg beds :

Dig them over and weed, pile on as much compost and grass cuttings as I can then cover with a good membrane hold down with stones over winter, just before I want to use them in the late spring I uncover dig in the remaining compost that the worms havnt taken down. recover as the black membrane helps to warm up the soil. then they are ready to plant and seed as and when the the plants are ready to go in . 

Are you making your own compost ? I find this is the most important part of my garden     

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Not sure about compost.  Certainly, I have a large pile of cuttings (mainly shrubs and branches from trees) that I am just waiting to set fire to when it is allowed to have a bonfire.

I know where to get large amounts of black plastic (from the agricole cooperative) and I would enjoy a good old dig.  The soil is so poor that I hardly ever see an earthworm.

I am thinking about some horse manure but I do have a very active cocker spaniel that LOVES digging and I don't relish the smell of manure all round the house!

I think I could get into compost in a big way and will ask my neighbour about this.  I'd love to be greenfingered but, at the moment, I am just green!

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Compost is easy, pile on all your uncooked food waste , grasscuttings , newspaper, any bunny, chicken cage waste, ect . not shrubs or branches as these are genrally to thick to compost down , instead burn it and add the ash to your compost, if you have a wood burner add that ash to, but not coal ash. plus any dug up weeds that arnt full of seeds or roots like dandilions as the seeds roots will only spread.

Once you start to add this to your soil the worms will come, untill then you will have to dig it all in. Horse manure is good but it should be well rotted first dont add it until its well rotted or you wont be able to grow much for that year. Once you have the membrane down the dog should not be atrackted to it (make sure its well held down with big stone from wind and dogs.)

You can also grow your own compost in a late crop there should still be time , once grown put down your membrane on top of it and let it rot down. google compost green crops and it will tell you many different ones you can use.

shout if you need more help     

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Thank you so much for the good advice.  You have truly inspired me to get cracking.  Will find a nice corner and start tomorrow re collecting uncooked food waste, etc.

Just waiting to dig up the maize crop and then will be able to treat the veg plot as you have suggested.  Next year is going to be soooooooooo exciting in the garden!

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Your as bad as me I get so excitied about growing things my seed catalogue is more exciting than any clothes one .

If you have a warm green house or consevatory you can get started early on tom, pepper, corn, salad ,crops and have them ready to transplant when its warm enough out side

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you can borrow a shredder, shred all your shrubs and hedge clippings, layer with other waste, if too dry water it, and better than my advice, watch Gardener's World on Friday, that man! is going to talk about it.  I shred all my shrub and tree prunings, it is also great for mulching borders in the Autumn.  If you have a lot of trees, now is the time to gather up your fallen leaves, put them in a black bag pour water into it, poke holes in the bag and throw them into a corner for a couple of years, you can then use if for planting.  I love the stuff it is like black gold.  To fertilise your soil and keep it working in the Autumn and Winter, you can plant broadbeans now, when they are over, cut them down, leave the roots in the soil and dig in.  May I also suggest that you long into the Kitchen Garden website, they give lots of good information, just adjust the dates according to your area.

j

 

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Oh how I wish I was, I read everything I need to do and what needs to be done from the RHS site and the folk at the Kitchen Garden site have been ever so helpful.  Good luck with your gardening. I read an article by Dan Pearson and he said spend £5.00 on your soil and 5p on your plant and you will never go wrong.  I am afraid I spend an awful lot more than that on plants, but believe very strongly that the soil needs looking after first.

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If you can, get some fumier (foomeeay) from a local farmer - the more the better to start with, given that you have poor soil - dig it well in and it's unlikely your dawg will bother too much with it [Www]. Even if you have to pay  a few euros for it  it will be worth it.

By the way, a nice little Christmas present is a gardening by the moon guide http://tinyurl.com/2kay97 - usually available in your local garden/agricole shop. It will help you plan ahead and give you something to look at on boring wet winter days, even if you don't actually ever do things when they recommend :D - also it will be very good for your French.

Have fun [:)]

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If you want garden compost in bulk, speak to the folks at your local dechetterie - round here you are allowed to take a huge amount every year for your garden from the p[rocessing plant, the place where the garden waste goes, apparently there's a call for it despite having to transport it away.  Now I've got access to a trailer, think that's where I'll be going when I want a lot of the stuff for the raised beds.

That's on top of the 9 bins I've got scattered round the garden in groups of three - one for general waste, one for the more woody stuff (shredded or not) and one for the leaves.

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

I am thinking about some horse manure but I do have a very active cocker spaniel that LOVES digging and I don't relish the smell of manure all round the house!

[/quote]

Me too and now that the farmer has just enriched his soil in the neighbouring field with of about 5 hecaters with it we have a welcome smell and a waggy happy expression everytime one of them (we now have two cockers) turn up with a pile of the stuff!  Nice, soon have enough to enrich my garden.

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  • 1 month later...

Well, folks, here I am again.  I have dug my trench into which I have put my veg peelings.  Foxy, as of tomorrow, I am gathering leaves and giving them the black bag treatment that you have suggested.

We have had 2 huge bonfires and a third large one to do as soon as the stuff has dried off a bit more, so there will be plenty of ash to spread around.

I have had a wonderful time, clearing the grounds, pruning trees, cutting down superfluous ones, digging up bulbs, cutting back the dahlias and having a good old go at brambles and so on.  In fact, I have exposed a whole fence that was buried in brambles and weeds and it looks so nice (wooden posts with chicken wire type infill) that I have decided to extend it all down one side of the plot.

I have transplanted several oak trees (baby ones) and will eventually have an oak-lined walk.

The veg patch has parsley and some shallots and I am planning on what to plant this year.  On another thread, I have had lots of advice on planting fruit trees and will be sourcing them in the next week or two.

So, guys, do post and share your ideas for your garden.  It is just so much fun, it's a shame to keep it all to yourselves!

 

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That can't be entirely true.  I've seen your garden, remember?  And it looks perfectly enchanting.  Despite everything you try to say to the contrary and all the devil signs you put on your postings, I believe you are really a nice, gentle, sweet person with a touchy-feely side you hide behind your gruff exterior.[;-)]  What with adopting stray dogs and the rest of it, I mean, who are you kidding, Wooly?

Now, give us the benefit of your gardening expertise, please! 

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[quote user="powerdesal"]Has anyone had any success with growing comfrey, the comfrey water is magic for veggies. Tried it from root stock here in the Middle East but I guess it was too hot.
[/quote]

PdS - I used to have loads of Russian comfrey on the allotment in England, as it is such a wonderful plant.

I keep trying to grow a patch of it here in Southern France, but sadly it always dies in the summer however much I water it,  heat never quite kills it but almost - bravely, the plants try again the following spring, and then dry up and collapse again, but the roots have not died so far. Even in the darkest corner it just won't grow, too hot and too dry. I can't imagine that it could grow at all in the Middle East.

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Comfrey grows wild here in the woods in late spring, at the side of the paths, near the stream. Some is yellow, some purpley pink. It seems to need a damp place sheltered from the sun and lots of leaf compost. Sweet 17 - We are starting a new garden too, as we've only been in this house a year and it has only grass. Last year I couldn't garden (health) so I'm really looking forward to starting on a small scale. So far we have one long narrow bed along the drivein for roses and a few other flowers. We've bought sacks of cheap compost for that. And Eddie has rotovated a small patch for veg and we're going to add the contents of the compost heap which is veg remains and dirty straw from the chicken house. Will probably start with some white onions and some broad beans. Just waiting for some rain to finish digging.
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I think the comfrey you have seen, Patf, might be the normal everyday sort. I think the comfrey that's so good for the compost heap & making liquid fertiliser is russian comfrey, with the name 'Bocking 17; I've been growing it for years & years - got it from the organic gardening place at Ryton in Dunsmore. It's great stuff; my OH has just been putting the last lof this year's leaves into the compost bins after turning the compost out on to the veggie patch. This type has not quite such a spreading habit as some. I could pass on some to anyone in the Berkshire area, and maybe in the Gard when we are there next year, if anyone is keen to have some.

Happy gardening Sweet 17; did you get my pm? Happy gardening to everyone else, too; you all sound so keen; can't do much just now, following a fall a few weeks ago, but managing a little now. 

Jo  

Thought I'd just managed my 1st smiley - oh well!

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