This is the first in a series on Gardening starting with
Soil Basics from a guest writer, avid gardener and noted C&W DJ.
If you haven't started a backyard garden yet, it's never too
late! But, the first step is really the
most critical: soil preparation. If you begin with good soil and maintain it
periodically, you will be blessed with a bountiful harvest! If you would like to take time to prepare and
create a fast garden in the interim, consider raised bed gardening. It's easier
on the body than bending over! You would
be surprised how many plants you can fill in a 4' x 4' space, or even in
buckets or troughs or whiskey barrels you've drilled holes into the
bottom. You can add bags of organically
rich soil immediately, but the cost can add up.
Choose something you can use later to plant flowers in so they aren't
useless once your permanent garden is complete.
JR Note: Properly designed planters also serve as
cover
As my Dad always said, "Plant it several times in your
head and once in the ground". Yep,
I hate to admit it, but that ol' farm boy was usually right! Map out an area on your land or in your
backyard that gets at least 6 hours of sunlight daily. Research the minimum requirement of sun for
vegetables you desire to plant. The
ground will need to drain well, but not be on too much of a slope as to cause
the water to run off rather than soak in. Become a designer knowing which tall
plants need to be planted so as to not shade low growing ones depending on
where you choose to plant & sun coverage. Learn which plants make good
companions and grow well together.
You can do a number of things to prep the soil and we will
cover just a few here. You will want the
area loose at least 6 to 8" deep, a foot for root crops such as potatoes
or carrots. Hard, compacted soil takes
too much energy for the roots to break through when they should be focusing on
taking root and shooting up! You can
take a sample of your soil to your County Extension Agency to test, often have
a special tool you can borrow to get a good sample. Follow their recommendations to adjust to the
correct PH for best growth. Each terrain
has special needs, be it rocky, sandy or lovely red clay!
Their suggestions are to be added to already prepared soil
that's somehow loose already and not compact.
Ah, enter the tiller! I had
nightmares while using my Dad's monstrous tiller that it would tilt over on me
while I was on a hill, pin me underneath it while I baked in the Texas sun
until help arrived. I purchased a Mantis
tiller and those worries disappeared!
It's a lightweight workhorse but it still works hard. Keeping your garden tilled for a few months
before planting will help control weeds.
Another excellent way to break the soil down naturally is by
incorporating the practice of wood chip gardening. I stumbled across a man's revelation of using
God's example in the forest of natural decomposition in his garden and I was
ecstatic to say the least! Watch his one
hour documentary as soon as you can at http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/
He is an awesome example of allowing the natural organic
process to work for you so you don't have to work as hard! The only drawback to his method is the
initial wait. I had a huge oak tree cut
down and used the wood chips in my garden about a foot deep and it takes a full
8 months to decompose. But when it does,
you have "black gold"! The
best soil for your garden! You can
contact tree trimming companies and they will usually dump a load at no cost or
just for the cost of the gas to get to you.
Spread it and wait! Yea, I know,
we don't like to wait these days. That's
why you have a smaller raised bed garden in the interim or start the wood chips
in the fall and hope they are ready by spring planting season!
Some old timers swear by cover crops. It enhances soil fertility. Your local feed store can help you decide
which nitrogen rich crops you need in your area. They are typically planted in the fall and
left until spring allowing the soil to recycle and renew. Permitting the ground to remain unplanted for
a season has many benefits and should be done every third year along with
annual crop rotation. Spaghetti gardening takes time and patience too. You place wet newspaper or cardboard, soil,
repeat, water and let it break down. This needs to be very thick and takes time to
decompose. Any soil, even once it's adjusted, ideally needs an addition
of good, organic compost and/or manure, preferably a 50/50 mix or more on the
organic side.
Plants will thrive in loose, fertile, moisture retentive,
rich organic soil. This is the key!!
You will benefit wildly by adding composted materials and
pure manure. But the manure must be
aged, not "hot" or fresh as it will burn your plants. Horse and chicken manure are absolutely the
best addition to your garden. You can
buy bags or get with a friend who has horses, ask them for their manure! Not a fun thought I realize, but boy, oh
boy! Your garden will be the envy of the
town! Aged manure is likely the quickest
and most proficient way to guarantee you will have an abundant crop.
Build a compost bin or tumbler and start filling it with
manure, kitchen scraps, grass clippings and leaves and it will be an excellent
addition to your garden; dare I say, the most important. Over time, this is much more economical than
buying bags of manure. Many cities now
offer free compost from the city recycling program when you show them your
water bill. Take a trailer and load up! It may not be the best compost, but it's the
best free compost! Again, having your
own compost bin ensures you know what items are going into the process.
You can have an "okay" garden or you can have an
"Oh my, what did you do to get your squash to grow 12 feet?"
garden. It's all in the soil prep.
To begin quickly, dig a hole, add a fertilizer such as
Miracle-Gro or Osmo-Cote, sprinkle some granules before placing the plant and
then around the base of the plant. It
will feed the plant up to 3 months. Keep
any weeds or other unwanted growths away by quickly plucking them by the roots. They suck the water away from your precious
vegetables each time you water! You can
always add bags of "good" vegetable soil initially, but to ensure a
productive garden area over the long run, the intermittent addition of rich,
organic material is the key!
Oh, and don't forget
to water! Try to only water the base of the plant, not the leaves. It's easy to decipher the base of certain
plants such as peppers, tomatoes, okra and lettuce but hard to find the base of
trailing plants such as cucumbers, squash, watermelon, peas & beans. The water from municipal sources contains
chlorine and other chemicals not found in water from above, so try to only
water the roots or even better use captured rain water (where legal)! Place a stake or a stick at the base when you
plant initially before the plant takes off.
This will get your garden off to a good start and have your
friends thinking you are a gardening wizard.
Happy gardening!
Diane Day
DJ on 105.7
KYKX & 104.1 - The Ranch, Longview/Tyler Tx and
Realtor @
Summers Real Estate Group
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