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5:03 pm
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Sat 22-Oct-11
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We have just got half an allotment with friends. Jane has said she is going to grow using 'amelia' beds. She is very knowledgeable about organic, innovoative and of the time and the plot we have mutually inherited has been worked organically by an older woman who has grown many herbs and possibly a bit 'witchy' by what we have found in the patch. 'Amelia' is how it sounds but not sure how it's spelt and cannot find anything on google. Does anyone have any experience of these or views as to how successful planting is this way?
living, learning, growing
7:09 pm
Moderators
Tue 22-Sep-09
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No idea what that might mean! Good luck.
I'll try that again!
7:29 pm
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Sat 22-Oct-11
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Thanks, hopefully I will find out more soon
living, learning, growing
8:23 pm
Supreme Being
Mon 21-Sep-09
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For the latest trends in organic gardening using bed systems I would think it would either mean raised beds or no dig beds. There are lots of names for the no dig beds, so that might be what she means. 
8:11 pm
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Sat 22-Oct-11
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Thanks Latvia, from the very little i know so far I think your hunch is right
I hope I am in process of finding some answers. I have been told to check out
You tube - Fukuoka Inspired (This is Japanese rather than swearing)
Permaculture Garden
Emilia Hazelip
I will check this out when i check out of here
DD
living, learning, growing
8:47 pm
Supreme Being
Wed 30-Dec-09
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That is quite interesting video about Masanobu Fukuoka and permaculture. Now we know it was 'Emilia' beds, so Joanna was right about it being raised beds.
3:56 pm
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Sat 22-Oct-11
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Hello Brightspark,
Sorry about using wrong name before Joanne
Now I want to know if I should dig some ashes into beds as am doing some clearing of very overgrown allotment and have to do some burning
Really enjoying some freedom today, should have done this a long time ago really
living, learning, growing
8:41 am
Expert
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Sun 19-Sep-10
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best way is to have a bonfire where you are putting your spuds in next year , then rake in the ashes , it kills all the bugs and spuds love wood ash, best done in the spring however, so it doesnt all wash away
3:10 pm
Supreme Being
Mon 21-Sep-09
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Lol that was funny, never been called Latvia before . The idea with the raised beds is not to do any digging, compost etc goes on the top. Ashes are great for the garden but like Kaye said, in the Spring otherwise you're wasting your time as the components of the ashes are water soluble. Bag it up for the time being. The other way of using it is on plants that will overwinter though.
8:49 pm
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Sat 22-Oct-11
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Thanks to both of you for the advice on ashes.
Many more questions to follow
What would you say are the relative merits of greenhouse or polytunnel and which would you go for?
living, learning, growing
8:16 am
Supreme Being
Mon 21-Sep-09
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We had a polytunnel last year and it fell down under the weight of snow, this year we have a greenhouse shape but still covered in plastic. Much stronger with lots of internal supports. How big are you thinking of? Ours were both 18m by 6m as we used the same foundationsAre you thinking of the relative merits of plastic versus glass? You can see the pictures on my blog thejourneytosomewhere.blogspot.com and just do a search for polytunnel and greenhouse.
11:03 am
Supreme Being
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Sun 2-Oct-11
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I have a large greenhouse frame on a concrete base, waiting for the glass to be put in lol
Trying to enjoy life as it is
8:05 pm
Senior Class
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Sat 22-Oct-11
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I'd prefer to use some sort of plastic whether in a greenhouse or a small polytunnel if poss, I don't like glass but obviously we'd need something good and sturdy. Don't much fancy it caving in if it gets a bit of snow on it. It would be quite a bit smaller than yours Joanna. Btw, I could not find a searchbar on your website but probably because I was looking in wrong place.
As it happens when we were clearing at the weekend, I found a load of pieces of thick glass and took them to the tip, perhaps I should have hung on to them and got over not much liking glass, oh well, c'est la vie
living, learning, growing
8:12 pm
Supreme Being
Mon 21-Sep-09
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Search box is on the top left hand corner - it doesn't say search which is frustrating but is followed by the words follow, share etc
I shouldn't worry about snow so much in Wiltshire, here in Latvia we had around a metre of snow and that had a lot of ice in it. There was a huge snowfall while we were away that thawed a lot then froze - hence the dual problem of not being there to clear it and there being a lot of it. Our most recent construction is much better for growing things up but has a lot of huge beams in it. The plan originally was we would be able to put our tractor in the polytunnel and so we needed the space. Both our constructions are wood which is sourced locally.
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