hi all new to growing things and just have a question..

if made my first vegetable patch 7ft x 5ft. Not sure what to do, I skimmed
the top of the grass off(composted) and then dug it over. I added some
brought compost, also a bit of stuff id made from last year and raked.
planted some potato's and onions sets at the beginning of April. The
question is I'm getting lots and lots of small shoots no more than a couple
inches apart and it covers the patch(2 x leaves, 5mm high with a single long
root). Is this normal? I expected to weed but there's loads! I've started
raking around my shoots to disrupt them is this enough?

thanks jase

soulman wrote:
hi all new to growing things and just have a question..

if made my first vegetable patch 7ft x 5ft. Not sure what to do, I skimmed
the top of the grass off(composted) and then dug it over. I added some
brought compost, also a bit of stuff id made from last year and raked.
planted some potato's and onions sets at the beginning of April. The
question is I'm getting lots and lots of small shoots no more than a couple
inches apart and it covers the patch(2 x leaves, 5mm high with a single long
root). Is this normal? I expected to weed but there's loads! I've started
raking around my shoots to disrupt them is this enough?

thanks jase



Weeds, the bane of gardeners life. Just keep hoeing them out or pulling
them up. There could be lots of weeds in there so just keep at it.
Eventually there will be no weeds left. Never let them grow and run to
seed. There is an old saying "One years seeds, seven years weeds".
It should not take you long to weed such a small area. My vegetable plot
is about 100 feet long by 50 feet wide and can keep me very busy
weeding. The important thing is to keep on top of the situation. It
takes only moments to hoe tiny weeds but larger weeds require stooping
and pulling up by the roots - and if they have tap roots like docks or
dandelions you have to get every bit of the long root out or they are
back again.

--
David in Normandy.
To e-mail you must include the password FROG on the
subject line, or it will be automatically deleted
by a filter and not reach my inbox.

soulman writes
hi all new to growing things and just have a question..

if made my first vegetable patch 7ft x 5ft. Not sure what to do, I skimmed
the top of the grass off(composted) and then dug it over. I added some
brought compost, also a bit of stuff id made from last year and raked.
planted some potato's and onions sets at the beginning of April. The
question is I'm getting lots and lots of small shoots no more than a couple
inches apart and it covers the patch(2 x leaves, 5mm high with a single long
root). Is this normal?

Quite normal!

I expected to weed but there's loads! I've started
raking around my shoots to disrupt them is this enough?

If you can get the roots of the seedlings above ground, and especially
if you do it on a dry day so they dry out quickly, it will kill them.
But you'll have to repeat it regularly as successive waves of seedlings
appear.

Once your potatoes start growing it'll be less of a problem as the
foliage will overshadow the weed seedlings. The onions will continue to
be a bother.

--
Kay

"soulman" wrote in message
...
hi all new to growing things and just have a question..

if made my first vegetable patch 7ft x 5ft. Not sure what to do, I skimmed
the top of the grass off(composted) and then dug it over. I added some
brought compost, also a bit of stuff id made from last year and raked.
planted some potato's and onions sets at the beginning of April. The
question is I'm getting lots and lots of small shoots no more than a
couple inches apart and it covers the patch(2 x leaves, 5mm high with a
single long root). Is this normal? I expected to weed but there's loads!
I've started raking around my shoots to disrupt them is this enough?

thanks jase



thanks for the replys, i better get hoeing!!

jase.