Finally, we had a massive delivery of compost last week while we had a digger and a dumper for the hardstanding. It was by far the largest delivery we’ve ever taken. It was more than a series of trucks full of the black stuff – this is the whole basis of the market garden, and it’s a massive milestone.
I got rid of the rotorvator a couple of years ago after experimenting with “no-dig” growing, and although the up front cost is rather substantial, the pay-off is worth it. Most of all, this method is better for the soil, as it is left intact and doesn’t expose the soil life to harmful UV rays, or let it wash away in rain. It should help with retaining water, and we should have less weeding to do, so we’ll see how this goes.
Another milestone that keeps creeping in and out of focus, is the water situation! I blogged about the borehole pump, getting it stuck and then freed again. Well, after successfully lowering the pump for what I’d hoped was the last time, it appears that the well is dry! After a few minutes at least. This is not sustainable so we are having some more dowsing done to see if it is worth having another go, or if we spend on connecting to mains instead. What a palaver!
So for now, things are a little up in the air.
There is no doubt that we will be growing veg, but our greenhouse full of seedlings can’t be planted out yet, because we haven’t got enough water to nurture them properly. This is rather frustrating, but we’re relieved that it happened now, after a drought, so that we know how limited the borehole supply is and can make changes before we had huge crop failures.
We’re praying for rain. We have thousands of litres of rainwater storage, but this recent gorgeous weather has a price.
Jez will be dowsing tomorrow, so fingers crossed he finds something and we can get this market garden growing!
