Best garden decorating tips


3 Steps to a Healthier Garden

Your  Guide  to  Soil  Preparationsoil type, the addition of organic material
will greatly improve your garden's
What follows are general rules or guidelinesperformance.
for  preparing  any  garden  for  planting.
Organic material can be peat moss, shredded
Preparing a garden bed before you plant willbark, composted or decomposed plant material,
greatly improve your gardens performance, andsome form of manure (generally cow manure),
promote healthy vigorous growth from anyor even worm casings or rice hulls to name a
plant  you  choose.few.
Most often preparing for planting is done inPotting soil is usually some combination of
the spring, and involves tilling or turningthe above list and may have little or no
the ground, and at the same time addingactual "dirt" in it. Organic material helps
generous amounts of organic material and someto maintain moisture content levels,
type  of  fertilizer.increases biological activity, and helps to
prevent  soil  compaction.
The goal is to break up and loosen earth that
has become compacted over time, and toGardening Tip: When adding organic matter to
replenish  vital  minerals  and  nutrients.planting beds or gardens, add at least 2
inches on top of the bed and work in evenly
Conditioning, or reconditioning the soil asto  a  depth  of  4  to  6  inches.
it is sometimes called, is best done after
the winter rains or frost have passed, butIf adding 2 or more inches of organic
before the summer growing season has started.material would raise your beds higher than
you'd prefer, you'll need to remove some of
However, soil prep can be performed at anythe existing soil first. Don't worry, your
time that the ground is not too wet or frozengarden  will  love  you  for  it.
to  till.
Gardening Tip: When preparing for planting
Clay  Soilalways till (loosen) the earth before you add
organic matter or fertilizer. Till no less
A clay or heavy clay soil, will greatlythan 4 inches and no more than 12 inches
benefit from the addition of organicdeep.
material, and it's almost impossible to add
too  much.3  Steps  to  a  Healthier  Garden
Clay, because of its particles size and1. Break up and loosen the soil (using a
shape, tends to become compacted, and so willshovel or spading fork), to a depth of
drain slowly or not at all. Also, the heavybetween  6  to  12  inches  deep.
compact nature of clay tends to prevent air
from reaching the roots, which will slow2. Level the bed a little, and add 2 or more
plant  growth.inches of organic material, then work in
evenly (mix) to a depth of about 4 to 6
Gardening Tip: As water passes down throughinches.
the earth it draws air (oxygen) behind it.
Soils with little or no air tend to become3. Again, level the bed a little, then
"sour" as oxygen is a necessary ingredientsprinkle or add a granulated-slow release
for  biological  activity.fertilizer of your choice on top and "scratch
in" or lightly till to about 1 to 2 inches
One of the benefits of clay in the garden isdeep.
it's natural moisture retention properties.
By combining a generous amount of organicThis method tends to simplify the process of
material with clay, you can off set it'spreparing a planting bed, and allows you to
tendency towards compaction, improvesave time and energy for other gardening
drainage, and allow the nature of clay toactivities.
help  maintain  moisture  in  your  garden.
Gardening Tip: All depths listed above are
A good ratio of clay soil to organic materialRule of Thumb measurements. In general all
is  roughly  50/50.plants  respond  well  to  the  above system.
Sandy  SoilIf most of the plants you'll be growing tend
to be shorter (1 to 2 feet high), you won't
Sandy soils are the opposite of clay andhave  to  till as deep (about 6 to 8 inches).
generally drain too fast, and so are unable
to hold onto any nutrients long enough for aTaller plants will have deeper root systems,
plant to use them. Organic matter helps toso tilling deeper in that case will be
hold onto water and nutrients, and as withhelpful. In general though, tilling deeper
clay, it's almost impossible to add too much.than 12 inches is an unnecessary use of time
and  energy.
A higher ratio of organic material to sand is
a good option, as the organic matter tends toGardening Tip: Adding organic material around
break down faster due to faster drainageexisting or established plants is not
(more  oxygen).difficult. Till in to about 2 inches deep if
close to a plant, and a little deeper if
Clay and sand are at the opposite end of thefurther  away.
soil type spectrum. Most gardens will be
somewhere in the middle. The organic materialSimply try not to disturb the roots too much,
available to you may depend on what region ofand always water when you're done to settle
the world you live in. However, regardless ofany roots that may have been disturbed.



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