Open Ground
Crops grow in long rows across plot, seeds sown with correct spacing
Pro:
- potential for all ground space to be used
- access for larger cultivation machinery
Con:
- difficult to thin, water, maintain without reading and compaction
- plants near areas trodden on are less vigorous due to compaction
- more cultivation required for larger area
- larger area for W R O M
- difficult to record where crops have been, for rotation
Bed System
Ground broken up into permanent beds.
Aprrox 1.2m wide and up to 4m long, spirited by paths roughly 45cm- 90cm wide (barrow access, mobility restrictions)
Ideal oriantated North-South for maximum exposure to the sun
Pro:
- cultivation from paths, so minimum compaction
- smaller area to cultivate
- Bulky OM is concentrated on small area (less)
- Bulky OM eventually increases depth of topsoil for planting
- plants per square m can be increased as no need to access between rows
- efficient use of fertilisers/irigation
- weed control reduced
- crop rotation is easier to manage
- crops requiring similar management can be grown together
Cons:
- May not be suitable large scale
- edging can be costly to construct and time consuming to maintain
- plot layout is less adaptable
- pathing/edging materials may harbour P&D (slugs)
Raised Beds
Sides built up to 30cm or more (minimum soil depth for veg) using timber, bricks, blocks anything suitable.
1.2m wide for ease of cultivation, up to 3m long.
Paths 45cm-90cm wide, wheelbarrow/wheelchair etc
Raised Bed benefits over bed system:
- Drainage is improved
- Warms faster in spring
- can give greater depth of soil for root crops
- possible to garden on site unsuitable eg. concreted over
- Higher bed allow access for users with mobility restrictions
- easier to implement no-dig system
Soil Cultivation
Primary: (autumn)
- remove large stones, roots, perennial weeds
- single/double digging
- forking over, rotary cultivator
- incorporate Well Rotted Organic Matter
Secondary: (Spring)
- breaking down soil clods
- raking level
- consolidating
- final leveling
- tilth production
No-Dig
minimum disturbance of the soil, fertility and structure is improved up by regularly adding Well Rotted Organic Matter to the surface.
Cardboard added over ground with WROM pilled on-top.
Crops harvested by pulling or cutting off rusher than digging. Green manures keep ground covered when not in use, protects from erosion and capping.
Pro:
- Encourage soil organisms
- erosion, capping, pans are avoided
- weed seeds not brought to surface
- moisture loss reduced by mulching
- less work, time required (no soil cultivation)
Cons:
- pests and perennial weeds eg. slugs, may build up over time
- some initial digging may be required to remove perennial weeds, rocks
- soil structure takes a long time to develop and improve, if soil is not already suitable
- not suitable for large scale production
Cultivation timing
dependant on
Soil Texture:
Clay in autumn before too wet and unworkable also to break down clods with freeze/thaw over winter
Soil structure:
Poor structure such as sandy soils only if necessary, but when not too dry is acceptable.
Cultivating silt, or sandy loams in dry weather can lead to loss of surface structure and increase chance of capping.
Extending season
- Black Polythene covers warm the ground, can be planted through
- Horticultural Fleece protects plants form frost and wind-damge (also Enviromesh)
- Low tunnels, protect from frost and wind, warm the ground
- Cloches, portent from frost and wind, warm the gounf
- Cold Frames, protects against weather and acts as sheltered seed bed
Benefits:
- can produce earlier or later crops (spring/autumn)
- avoiding some P&D (carrot fly not problem before march)
- can bring on tender veg (harden off) for planting out
- allows successional planting for longer crop production
Planting for Continuity
Successional sowing:
- planting rows at staggered times so plants mature at different times, reducing glut/famine
Intercropping:
- Sowing fast growing crop inbetween two slower crops. Lettuce between Brassicas. Radish between Parsnip.
Catch Cropping:
- Planting quick maturing crop in beds that will later be used for main crop. Lettuce/Raddish followed by Brassicas.
Green Manure as Catch crop
Used between crops to:
- Protect soil surface from erosion and weeds
- improve fertility/soil structure
- encourage pollinators
Grown from broadcast seed, cut down before flowering and setting seed. Cut material can be composted or dug into soil
Sinapsis alba - white mustard
Direct Sowing
Seed sown in ground where it is to harvest. Ideal fro crops that don’t like disturbance eg. Carrots
- V shaped drills drawn with Hoe to a depth 13mm for fine and medium seeds - Carrot, lettuce
- Station sowing for individual larger seeds such as beans, courgettes
- broadcasting, not common for vegetables but green manures
Raising Plants in a Seedbed (Nursery)
Long term crops that transplant well such as Brassicas and leeks.
Grown close together until they are large enough to be transplanted to the final cropping position and correct spacings.
Frees space in main bed for catch cropping.
Container grown plants under protection
Suitable for tender crops such as Courgettes, runner beans.
Sown in Spring in consenters, modules, blocks under protection until frosts have passed, then planted out.
Spacing
Optimum spacing for a particular crop will
increase yield, reduced required management (less weeds).
Spacing is dictated by:
- Bed system used
- soil quality
- Control of P&D
- mature size of crop
- available management (eg. close spacing of carrots, but harvesting/thinning baby carrots and allowing rest of crop to mature
Crop Aftercare
- appropriate level of watering (particularly seedlings, transplants, fruiting/flowering plants.
- regular watering for root and leafy crops
- appropriate feeding
- weed control
- P&D control
Successional Cropping named Crop
Carrot
- Staggered/Sucessional sowing for later/earlier maturing crops
- Cultivars (early/maincrops)
- Protection to extend the season (fleece, frames, cloches)
- soil warming (mulches, polythene sheeting)
Early Carrots - Nantes Express, Flyaway F1
Maincrop - Autumn King, Senior F1 (late maincrop)
Carrots sowing/cropping
soil cultivations, tilth, warming, enviromesh etc…
- Sow seeds in rows 13mm deep, 15cm apart
- V shaped drills
- thin to 5cm for early, 7cm for maincrop
- bury thinnings in compost to avoid carrot fly
- work in evenings to avoid C.fly
- cover with environmesh at high points late spring/ early autumn.
February: Sow early seeds in frames/tunnels for forcing, protect until danger of frost has passed March-April: Sow early crops April-June: Sow maincrop
Cropping.
May - forced crop
June-August - Early crop
September-November - Maincrop
Cut & Come Again salads
Only Some Leaf Crops, plants eventually loose vigour
Some lettuce type, loose leaf
Basil, beetroot, coriander, parsley, spinach
Lettuce - Lollo Rosso, Round Lettuce, Frisee, Oak Leaf
