The big dig begins

To clear the plot completely would be a big job. Its got a lot of grass areas which are filled with dandelions and couch grass, not to mention the brambles which have got out of control. Instead i think the best plan of action is to just clear the existing beds for this season and then clear the plot completely in the autumn. This way i get to still get some homegrown this year! So i started digging...

   ... and it was hard work. Riddled with couch grass and other weeds. The high temperatures this April didn't make the work any easier either. But i eventually got the largest bed dug over and ready for seeds.

A 18 North

   I got the call i had been waiting 2 years for at the start of this month, April 5th. Its a half plot but is still seems pretty big. I can see why people can find a full plot daunting. A 18 North is about 25ft x 83ft. The woman who had it before obviously loved her fruit, as its mainly taken up by gooseberry, currant and bramble bushes. I didnt think it was in too bad a state, but with closer inspection i think it is going to take a lot of work to get it producing.

   A good point is that it's got a shed (although its got a leaky roof and faces away from my plot) but its somewhere to store my tools so i cant complain. There is a large rose bush next to the shed which will need clearing eventually. In front of the shed is yet more gooseberry bushes.

    There are a four beds on the plot, varying in size. These are divided up by fruit bushes and by areas of grass ( i say grass, i mean lawn made up completely of dandelions). So its the start of the hard work, but i cant wait...