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Organic Garden Soil

A good garden soil should 1) soak up water readily, yet


drain fairly rapidly; 2) hold enough moisture for plants to
grow; 3) remain loose and crumbly even in dry weather;
4) have ample space for air to circulate and roots to grow
freely; 5) be easy to work; and 6) produce good crops
with only occasional applications of fertilizer. These kinds
of soil usually have a pleasant smell and are full of
earthworms.

Most good garden soils aren’t formed naturally; they are


man-made. The way to make the best garden soil is to
use ample amounts of organic amendments. Because
these materials are constantly being broken down and
used in the soil, you should replenish them each time you
prepare the soil for planting. Compost and many
commercial products are good organic amendments. (You
can also replenish the soil by a process called green
manuring.) When you add organic amendments, put
them down in a 3 to 6-inch-deep layer on top of the soil
and work them in to a depth of 9 to 12 inches.
1.Homemade compost
The purpose of composting is to turn the waste materials
from your garden and kitchen into a rich, organic, soil-
conditioning material. A compost pile does this efficiently
by accelerating the natural processes that occur when
dead leaves, grasses, and other materials decompose.
Piling organic materials up while they decay is better
than digging them into the ground because; when piled
up, they don’t temporarily rob growing plants of available
nitrogen while breaking down.
What you put in your compost pile will depend on the
waste material available from your garden and kitchen,
but you should follow a few basic rules so you don’t
create a trash pile.
1) Spread a layer of plant material, such as fallen leaves,
green or dry weeds, and grass clippings, on a flat piece of
cleared ground. Add layers of manure (or a few handfuls
of a nitrogen-rich fertilizer), topsoil, and kitchen scraps
(except meat, fat, and bones). Keep adding more layers
until you’ve used up all the debris. Don’t put too much of
one material in the same layer or it will tend to pack
together, slowing the breakdown and causing odor.
2) Chop or grind materials into small pieces before you
add them to the pile. Smaller particles offer more
surfaces for decay organisms to work on. Materials such
as grass clippings that are too fine, however, should be
mixed with coarser pieces so they don’t turn into a slimy
mass.
3) Heat build-up is essential to make compost. Too
shallow a pile won’t hold enough heat in, and breakdown
will be slower. A compost pile 4 to 6 feet high will hold
heat well and let air circulate. Some kind of a bin will
make it easier to stack compost to this height. Steam
rising from the pile is a sign that heat is being genera ted.
4) Keep the pile moist, but not soggy. Too much water
limits the air supply. A pile with a slightly concave shape
will catch and hold the moisture better. During prolonged
periods of heavy rainfall, cover the pile with a plastic
sheet or tarp to keep it from becoming soggy. If it does
get too wet, frequent turning will restore it to a healthy
condition.
5) Turn the pile every few weeks. Good air circulation
discourages odor and flies and speeds decay. Turning
also moves the outer, unrecompensed material into the
center so it can break down. Plenty of succulent material,
such as lawn clippings and soft green weeds, should be
well mixed with dry or woody materials.
6) Nitrogen is needed by the decay-producing bacteria.
Sources of nitrogen are fresh manure, blood meal,
sewage sludge, and commercial fertilizers.
7) Compost is ready to use when it is crumbly and the
original materials have decomposed beyond recognition
—usually about three months after the heap is built. Sift
the compost before you use it. to eliminate large,
unrecompensed chunks.
2.Green manure
Planting a green manure cover crop is a good way to add
organic matter to your soil in a large garden. It is not, as
its name suggests, a green-colored manure but a crop
that is grown specifically for turning under. Any of the
fast-growing members of the grass family (annual rye
grass, barley, or oats) or the legume family (clover,
vetch, lespedeza, broad beans, or peas) may be planted.
You could also use mustard, kale, or other broad-leafed
plants. Lawn grass seeds, such as bluegrass or fescue,
grow too slowly to be practical.
A green manure crop is usually planted in early fall so
that it will be half-grown by spring. The entire crop is then
tilled into the ground a month or so before planting time.
In regions with sub-zero winter temperatures, it’s best to
seed the crop between standing vegetables in late
summer so plants can root before a heavy frost.
If you must delay turning the crop under because the soil
is too wet, keep the crop down to an easily handled size
by cutting it with a scythe, shears, or rotary mower. The
crop does not have to be mature to be turned under.
Although the top growth may be sparse, the well
developed root system will add a substantial amount of
organic matter as it decays.
3. Purchased organic amendments
If you want to save money, shop around for good,
inexpensive, weed-free amendments or for amendments
that are free for the hauling. Depending on where you
live, you might find free peanut, rice, or almond hulls;
pecan shells; cannery waste; cider mill pomace; or well-
aged sludge from sewage treatment plants. (Cotton-
producing states enforce regulations against the use of
cotton gin wastes to prevent the spread of insects.)
4. Other amendments include the following:
Peat moss. This is a fairly expensive but excellent soil
amendment. Several types are sold. Coarse brown
sphagnum or hyponym peat moss is generally superior to
sedge peats, which are usually black and extremely fine
textured. Most peat moss sold in bales is air-dried. Wet it
thoroughly before you mix it into the soil.
Wood products. Various wood products, mainly saw-
dusts and barks, are inexpensive substitutes for peat
moss. These amendments are sold in bagged, baled, or
bulk form (bulk form is the cheapest). You can get these
products from commercial firms and sometimes directly
from lumber mills or yards.
You can buy wood products either raw or treated. Raw
sawdust’s rob nitrogen from the soil as they break down,
and a few kinds contain materials that can harm some
types of plants. For that reason, most commercial
products have been treated with nitrogen and allowed to
compost to some degree before they are sold. These
commercial wood products are generally safe to use for
all kinds of plants. If you buy raw sawdust, add a nitrogen
fertilizer to it and let it compost for a while before you dig
it into the soil.
5. Manure
All forms of manure make useful soil amendments. They
improve soil structure and act as mild fertilizers. Besides
the manures mentioned below, other kinds, such as
rabbit and sheep manure, may be available in some
areas. These should be composted before using. In some
arid regions where salt buildup in the soil is a problem,
it’s probably best to use soil conditioners other than
manure.
Steer manure. Processed manures usually come from
cattle feed lots. They’ve been treated to kill weed seeds.
Use them sparingly (add no more than 8 cubic feet per
100 cubic feet of soil) as soil conditioners. Some kinds
have high contents of soluble salts. Water heavily after
sowing seeds pr transplanting plants to wash away
excess salts.
Fresh manure or stable litter. Fresh manure needs to be
aged before it is used as a soil amendment or it will burn
plants. Composting is a good way to age it. If the
temperature remains high enough, many weed seeds
that are usually present will be killed.
Fresh horse manure can also be dug into the soil to heat
old-fashioned hotbeds.
Poultry manure. Full of nutrients and virtually free of
weed seeds, chicken or turkey manure has long been a
favored soil amendment. It must be aged or composted
before you mix it into the soil. Fresh poultry manure will
quickly burn a newly-planted crop. Some gardeners use
fresh chicken manure when they plant a green manure
crop in the fall. The growing crop absorbs nutrients from
the manure. After being spaded under the following
spring, the decomposing material gradually and safely
dispenses nutrients to the growing vegetables.

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