Last year we cleared out some land to the side of the house to use as a vegetable patch.  It was hard work – the top soil was thin and full of large stones.  We had a go at clearing it and topped up the top soil from a left over pile of soil in the top field.  We had some success with it (the onions were very good, the cabbages were a disaster), but it was a really pain to keep on top of the weeds.

With the wall along the top field now being clear, we thought we might put some raised beds along this wall.  However, we thought it might be worth giving our original vegetable patch one last go.  This stretch of field is also under the trees that seem to stuck the water out of the ground – while they do provide some shelter, they take most of the water.  We had planted some onions in the original vegetable patch earlier the season, but then lost heart as the weeds took over.

We have been at home for the last week and decided to clear the vegetable patch up.  We had used a JCB earlier in the year to dig it over when we had a machine on site to fill in the ruts, so much of the soil was quite loose.  It still took Jo a lot of effort this week, but it does look good.

Jo has been digging over the vegetable plot over the last couple of days. Much of it had been turned over previously with a digger, but some of it had never been dug before.

Jo has been digging over the vegetable plot over the last couple of days. Much of it had been turned over previously with a digger, but some of it had never been dug before.

This is the view from the other end and it is a big plot - 3m x 15m. The potatoes that you can see in the middle distance were left over from last year - we have dug up some of the other left over plants and the potatoes are surprisingly ok.

This is the view from the other end and it is a big plot – 3m x 15m. The potatoes that you can see in the middle distance were left over from last year – we have dug up some of the other left over plants and the potatoes are surprisingly ok.

All Jo's efforts this week have made a huge difference to the vegetable patch. We have had 2 or 3 dumper fulls of stone out of here in the last few days, not to mention the undergrowth and weeds.

All Jo’s efforts this week have made a huge difference to the vegetable patch. We have had 2 or 3 dumper fulls of stone out of here in the last few days, not to mention the undergrowth and weeds.

We managed to purchase some cheap patio slabs from a local supplier and have used these to make pathways between the beds. If we decide to reconfigure the beds the slabs can be picked up and moved. We aren't quite sure what to do with the one end of the patch so we have covered it with geotextile to keep the weeds down.

We managed to purchase some cheap patio slabs from a local supplier and have used these to make pathways between the beds. If we decide to reconfigure the beds the slabs can be picked up and moved. We aren’t quite sure what to do with the one end of the patch so we have covered it with geotextile to keep the weeds down.