Whether to dig or not can be a subject of much heated debate, and that's not just the spade work! Whatever the opinion it does start with digging of some sort and there are good reasons why preperation is everything.
On Ranmore I have found just about everything you can expect from a site used for fly tipping for seven years. Asbestos, glass of all sorts (auto, plate, bottle), plastic and metal (car parts, electrical fittings, tin cans). You name it and I have found it, and this was after the site was cleared and ploughed. No dougt as time goes by more will come to the surface, but by digging I think I've got the worst of it out and will be more confident about sticking my hands in without worrying if my tetanus jab is up to date.
The next hurdle are those perennial weeds with the ridculously long roots that insist on colonising waste ground, such as nettle, thistle, and that horror, creeping cinquefoil that snaps in two to grow again. If they were a crop my five rods would prductive indeed. Dig them out! and even if they do'nt stay out at least they know they are not welcome.
The two tools for digging are the spade and fork (the latter suprisingly only coming into use in the 1860's). They both have offset handles and are pushed into the soil with the blade/tines vertical, leaving the handle leaning away from you. This gives tremendous leverage as you pull back, and with minimum effort, turn and throw the sod forward. Or if it's wet - a lot of effort! One tip old time gardeners used when the soil stuck to the spade was a wooden scrapper they called a 'minute killer' as it gave them a chance for a breather. I use an old paint scapper.
Double Digging This is pretty heavy stuff and done a bit at a time on part of the plot each year won't be too painful - on the back! Dig a trench one spit (length of blade) deep and two feet wide, moving the soil to end of the area to be dug. Now use the digging fork to loosen the subsoil (again to a spit) but do not bring it up or mix it with the topsoil. This will break up the pan that tends to form in compacted soil and allow the to get in and water to drain more easily. Throw into the trench a layer of organic matter and then start another trench two feet wide throwing the soil into the first. You continue like this - slowly - until the last trench is filled with the soil moved from the first trench. Once done you should never have to do it again, hurray.
Single Digging With this you dig one spit down but only one foot wide and as before place the soil at the end of the digging area. Leave the subsoil as it is but again add organic material to the trench turning the next trench over it. If you have enough material throw some on top and continue in this fashion till the task is done. I feel it is important to stress that you should not over do any digging to the point of exhaustion. A steady rhythm with plenty of stops for a chats, or just to stand and stare, can be quite satisfying. 'What a gardener needs is an iron back with a hinge in it'
No Digging Now of course, if you do not want to dig then don't. It is a perfectly valid method of cultivation, and popular if you are going organic. You can let the worms do the work for you providing they have enough material to work with. Five centimeters, or two inches, will do the trick, spred evenly over the plot. On five rods that equates to seven cubic meters! Plant through it and sit back, easy.
Raised Beds This could well be the happy medium that we are looking for. I use them at home for the crops the kitchen needs most, and I have to say I'm rather fond of them.They have been around for a very long time, the Romans brought them to Britain, and as long as you never walk on the bed it needs no digging other to plant or lift your crops. For this reason the bed is never wider than 1.2m and no longer than is convenient to walk round with sides, usually timber, about 20cm high. The growing area therefore is compact so compost goes where it's needed, as does the water. Beds can be covered for protection from pests or warmed in spring to get an early start. before you start it is usual to double dig it (those pesky perennials) and add lots of compost. Even then it seems to take a lot to fill, so why not rob the paths os topsoil, after all you'r not going to grow anything on them, and replace with woodchips. Simple.
Deep Beds Rather like raised this one only without sides but dug deep. Again the idea is never to walk on them so the dimensions are the same as the raised beds but when you double dig the compost is mixed right down to the bottom. It should give you a good 50-60cm growing depth and perfect for those parsnips, but it's a kind of obscure method now days and hardly worth it. Before I leave I'd just like to mention something that was practiced in the kitchen gardens of old, trench digging. It was a three man job where they dug a trench three feet wide and three spits deep, and they did this every seven years! Was labour cheap then or what.
Lazy Beds Another ancient method of cultivation anywhere the topsoil is thin and impoverished. In our green and pleasant land this usually ment the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There it was typical for the crofter to collect seaweed from the shore and pile it in ribbons in his rocky field. Then using a Cas Chrom (or foot plough in English) turn what soil he had over the top grass side down. Into this was planted whatever crop was going to feed the family through the long winter. This simple and clever adaptation to harsh local conditions has spontaiously happened throughout the world and across the millenia. Clever little devils arn.t we! On a more serious note this technique could work quite well with a plot that is overgrown with little effort. Forget the seaweed and go down the stables!
Stale Beds So you've done the digging bit, raked it to a fine tilth, sown the seeds, and now you can't see the cabbages for the weeds. That's because most weeds are annuals and survive by producing truly vast amounts of seed each year. They will out compete our veggies every time, so prepare the beds a couple of weeks before and cover with clear plastic or fleece. A nice cosy bed is just what the weeds are waiting for, and off they grow. When you are ready to sow the cabbages remove the plastic and hoe the weeds off. Not too deep mind or your likely to bring up there friends.
And Finally I came across a lovely description in a book by Harry Dodson about the way old country men planted thier spuds in years gone by. In those days of sixty hour weeks and working under the parish lantern, the traditional planting day was Good Friday as it was the only day off they had at the right time of year. They would dig a trench and put in manure then go back pulling soil down from the dug side to form a ledge where each potato was to grow. Next was to mark a point two feet back and dig to it covering the potatoes and repeat the process again. Of course the spacings varied according to the varieties, early or main crop, but you can see how quicly they could cultivate and plant in one go.
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