Heavy Plant

Plot seventeen has now had the heavy plant treatment. The middle five rod section, comprising two and a half rod covered in carpet, where last years Squash plot was, a narrow grass path and the everything else section from last year, was given a thorough going over.
Carpet and woven black plastic, gathered up and stacked up above the herb area on top of a couple of pallets. This is the utility area and Dalek Sanctuary and that work took a good couple of hours.
The remaining Bright Lights Swiss chard cut off at ground level by spade and the tops popped on an unused bit of plot eighteen to wilt. I rescued some nicely sprouting Garlic, last years planting, which had not grown due to being overshadowed by the Blackcurrent bushes and popped them in a tub of water prior to re-planting. Said Blackcurrent bushes are now no more, well they are, but elsewhere, nice when someone does the heavy uprooting for you and they get the bushes they wanted. also some Onion Sets from last years sowing had sprouted, must have been the hot dry weather last year, then this spring the dormant bulbs had enough water to burst out.
Then fetched Hacken-Slash and his friend Slicen-Dice out of the shed for their first outing of the year.
Hacken-Slash is a Merry Tiller and quite good company, though inclined to wobble a bit. Anyway he slowly hacked and slashed his way through the five rods leaving a lumpy tilth behind.
Then Slicen-Dice took over and thoroughly minced the clods. Slicen-Dice is a Howard 350 and is a very noisy chap who works very hard, very fast.
A quite noticable difference in the tilth on the dug area, the top half that was exposed is fine and seed beddy, while the bit that was covered in carpet is much lumpier as it was so much damper.
So now ready to re-do in a few days, once the lumps have dried a little bit, if I use the ridger then the spuds can go straight in.
After that lot I was knackered and my back was protesting gently, so I wne thome and had a hot bath.