Medwyn Williams advises on preparing a plot for next year and dealing with whitefly
Amy Holder, by email
Medwyn says: It’s like most things in life, if you're building a greenhouse, a shed or even a house, the most important aspect has to be the foundation. If you start off wrong then everything else will be wrong, so my first recommendation is to make sure that the soil is in good heart and has the correct level of nutrients to see you through the season. There's absolutely no point in going out there in a big rush and scattering lime and fertiliser all over the place without finding out what state your soil is in the first place.
My suggestion is that you have your soil analysed properly, not just for the pH and NPK levels, but for the structure of the soil as well as the micro nutrients. A good report can save you a lot of money and once you've treated the soil as recommended by the soil report, you'll have already laid down the foundation for good growing. The soil analyst that I have used on many occasions is Lancrop Laboratories and you can write to them at Manor Place, Wellington Road, The Industrial Estate, Pocklington YO42 1DN. Or give them a call on 01759 305116.
If you're on sandy soil or very light loam then some well-rotted manure may well be recommended and it would be beneficial to source some of this in readiness. I prefer horse manure if I can get it from a local stable. Bear in mind that some of these horses are given the best to eat which means the best can be used as manure as well. Once you have a good heap of manure make sure to cover it over with a well-anchored polythene sheet. Leaving the manure exposed will
result in a lot of the goodness being washed out with the winter rains.