Clearing The Vegetable Plot

At the end of 2005 we decided to start by clearing the vegetable plot. This was to take up the majority of the last 25 metres of the garden. The plot would not extend all the way to the end as we decided to have a wildlife area at the very end. Looking back after this years rain it looks like this was a good idea.

Having decided to clear the end of the garden this left us with two immediate jobs:

• Remove the dead trees and those in poor condition
• Clear the grass from the end of the garden

When we purchased the house we had one apple tree which was fruiting and produces a good crop. The remaining trees were barely alive and did not fruit at all. To me this is a waste of space and these had to go.

So in Late 2005 and early 2006 you found me in the garden with a saw, axe and a good stout spade. The picture below shows the state of the garden part way through this work.

The tree in the foreground is the one tree which fruits well. The rest of the tree stumps are the remains of the unproductive trees. You can also see (to the rear of the photograph) one of the trees which still needed to be taken down.

Taking these trees down when we did also introduced us to one of the less endearing features of the garden and the area we live - water. During the summer the water table is a boon as we do not have to worry about a hosepipe ban or even watering at all. From late autumn to early spring we occasionally get days where the water collects and takes a few days to drain. You can see this in the photograph above. The result was that after cutting down the trees and digging the stumps out the rain created four small ponds which lasted for about three weeks. In fact these holes lasted for about another two months before any attempt at levelling the ground filled them in.

Clearing the grass was a little easier. It is one of the few times we have resorted to chemicals. It was simply a case of waiting for a still weekend and getting out and spaying the grass with weedkiller.

And finally...
After starting this job with hand tools, I would recommend that you buy a large axe and either rent or buy a chainsaw.
Mark