How to prepare a new site:
Dig over the ground as usual taking out as many perennial weeds as possible or cut down the vegetation and then cover with a light excluding mulch which will kill the weeds.
Suitable mulches include:
· black polythene
· cardboard boxes opened out
· newspaper, at least eight sheets thick
· carpet
Using a mulch may take some time, depending on the weeds present.
Fertilising the plot
All fertilisers and manures should be applied at the usual rate (manure—one wheelbarrow per 10 square metres). Rock minerals and other powdered materials such as lime, seaweed etc can be lightly hoed in. If plants need to be spaced widely, for example courgettes and potatoes, put the compost directly around the plants. Remember on a no dig garden it is the worms that take the material down into the soil, so it will take longer for the material to be mixed into the soil than if you were digging it in.
Growing on the no dig system
If you are clearing the site using the mulching system you can still grow some vegetables through the mulch. If you are going to do this then don’t put the mulch on in winter. At this time the soil is cold and dry so mulching will keep the cold in, and the warmth and water out. The vegetables that you can grow will depend on the thickness of the mulch. Vegetables you can grow include pumpkins, marrows, tomatoes and potatoes. Once the land has been cleared —which may take over a year - keep it weed free by hoeing and/or mulching. Mulching is a good idea if you can find the materials, but it is not essential.
Sowing
Seeds are sown in the normal way. Hoe and rake the soil surface to make a seed bed. If the surface of the soil is poor then a shallow drill can be made with a hoe and the seeds covered with a mixture of damp sand and sieved compost or soil.
Planting
Transplant seedlings by taking out a small hole to plant them into. Compost or manure can be placed around the seedling at planting time.
Growing potatoes
When using the no dig system potatoes are the only crop that are grown in a different way The
method is as follows:
• Cut down any weeds and water if ground is dry.
• Spread manure on the surface at the normal rate (one wheelbarrow per 10 square metres)
Plant your potato seed tubers by laying them on top of the manure 60cm apart. In a cold spring it might be better to do this later as covering cold soil will keep it cold.
• Cover each row of seed tubers with a few inches of hay or old straw. Mark the rows and leave a bare path between each row.
• Check regularly for shoots coming through the mulch of hay/straw and help
any that are pushing the mulch up, rather than growing through it.
• Keep adding to the mulch as the shoots grow.
• When the mulch is 6” thick and the plants are growing well, top up the mulch with grass mowings. This will form a mat which will keep the mulch in place and keep light out from the potatoes.
• Add more grass as needed.
• To harvest the crop, pull back the mulch and remove as many potatoes as you need. If you only take a few and leave the plant to grow you must replace the mulch to keep out the light.
• If you want to harvest the whole crop remove the whole mulch, harvest and then replace the mulch.
. Slugs do not seem to be more of a problem with the no-dig method. The mulch is a nice damp place for frogs or toads who will eat slugs. Mice can be a problem as the tubers are easy to get to. To stop this happening don’t leave the tubers in the ground for too long in the autumn.
Green Manures
A green manure is a plant grown to improve the soil. Green manures are normally dug back into the soil. However, you can’t do this in a no dig system. Annual green manures can be cut down with a hoe or lawn mower and the plants can either be left where they are or put on the
compost heap. Grazing rye is the best over-wintering green manure but it does not work well on a no-dig system as it will grow again if hoed when young, and is rather tough to cope with when
older. In a no dig system grazing rye should only be sown where potatoes will be grown the following spring. The rye is cut down with a mower or shears and the potatoes planted on top. The covering mulch prevents the re-growth of the grazing rye. The advantages and disadvantages of no dig gardening:
Advantages
· Better for your back.
· Protects the soil structure, especially on light soils.
· Makes a good, stable soil structure.
· Makes a friable topsoil through which seedlings can easily emerge. Soil is less likely to cap.
· Keeps fertile topsoil in its right place.
· Reduces moisture loss.
· Does not bring weed seeds to the surface to germinate.
· Worms like no-dig systems.
Disadvantages
· Some people like digging.
· Does not expose soil pests to predators.
· Takes longer to improve poor soils.
· Does not deal with compaction and hard pans.
