BARE earth is simply an invitation to weeds to come and invade at this time of year. As I clear the garlic and onions, having tied them up to dry out in the shed, I have created some empty spaces in the plot.

Annual weeds are incredibly invasive during the summer months and this week’s rain will just accelerate their progress.

As long as they are quite small and have yet to go to seed, they can be dug in. Or, you can buy black plastic membrane to cover them, which is not perfect.There is the cost element and it has a high carbon footprint. Thick cardboard is free and plentiful, though needs weighting down and in time does rot down.

Make sure you take out any staples and peel off any plastic tape if you want it to rot down.

Cardboard is good for small patches, or in between pumpkin plants.

Sowing a green manure is my favoured method of earth smothering. Green manure is a crop grown not only to add nutrients and organic matter to the soil, but also acts as a weed deterrent by smothering the patch sown. My favourite is Phacelia, which grows really quickly and can be simply raked into the ground. It produces the prettiest blue flowers, which provide a good source of food for honeybees, or you can dig it in before flowering to add bulk to the structure of the soil.

I also use Buckwheat and red clover, also good at smothering weeds.

One word of warning though, Italian ryegrass while easy to sow and can be left in the soil for up to a year, is not so easy to dig in if left for a long time.