At some point, scientists got together and determined that nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were the only nutrients the average gardener should feed to their soil. Use these tips to make smarter fertilizing decisions.
That means a pH of 5 is ten times more acidic than 6.0, showing just how important the proper pH really is. When adjusting your soil's pH, add only the recommended amount of any product as indicated by a soil test to make an effective pH change without...
This is the measurement of how acid or alkaline a soil may be, and it can affect everything from disease and pests to nutrient uptake and yield. If these numbers are off in your soil test, it's time to take action to improve your garden's soil.
Generally, lime is applied once every three years, and you may already know how much lime to apply to your land. I think I'll drink a beer while I sketch out this project. And because, on average, wood ash may be a third as strong as lime, you can ballpark...
Amend Naturally There is a chemical amendment for practically every soil need, but these synthesized solutions can lead to other problems. Getting a soil test is the only way to know for certain where your garden stands on its pH, percent of organic matter...
This leaves plenty of biomass still standing that can be tilled in for the benefit of the soil. Before red clover can begin to do its work, it requires rhizobia, a specific strain of soil bacteria, to be present.
But the remaining part, a mere 4 percent, consists of essential macronutrients (N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S) and micronutrients (B, Cl, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, Mo, and Ni) which are essential to plant growth and nutrition.
Smaller quantities can be made in a wheelbarrow or large bucket. To make your own potting soil, tailor the ingredients you use in your mix to how you will be using it. General Potting Soil Mix 6 gallons sphagnum peat moss 1/4 cup limestone 4¼ gallons...
This is why most well water can be drunk safely just as it comes from the ground, without any further treatment. Soil Provides Temperature Moderation Soil does not warm up as quickly as does the air when it's hot, nor does it cool down as quickly when...
Finally, clay soil in boggy areas can keep plant roots from receiving the oxygen they need. Wood chips are best left to the moisture and earthworms to slowly break down, enriching the soil over time, and being replenished as needed.
If you're a beginning farmer in need of soil balance, here are some techniques for replenishing the nutrient load. There's no one way to balance soil fertility. Or you can skip the leaching altogether and move to suggestion No. 2.
But I'm always looking for other ways to use my spent potting soil. Here are some ways to put it to good use. I'm careful to ensure my compost pile has a good mixture of ingredients to help it decompose at a good clip and create a balanced compost.
But once the plane landed in Italy I immediately felt strangely comfortable, even in this strange world that is so different from California. I got a special hard-to-get visa because of my computer game development skills, moved to Italy the following...
One of the biggest benefits, especially to farmers strapped for time, is that you can add a variety and quantity of fertility amendments at once. Feeding the soil is the most efficient way to get great results in the garden.
Top Read More Livestock & Pets This article first appeared in the May/June 2008 issue of Hobby Farms magazine. Screw the wall pieces onto the support braces. Again with a helper, carry the finished bed to its intended location.
To do this, start with a clean, non-reactive metal or plastic bucket and a clean trowel. Nothing is more critical to the success of a garden than its soil. Spread the soil onto a newspaper for 24 to 48 hours.
The Magnesium levels were on the very high side of the scale.I contacted the owner of one of the better rose nurseries in the area. One thing that you can never get too much of is compost.
Luckily, there are a whole lot of bottles available to collect, and my neighbors continue to bring me their empty bottles for recycling. The resultant walls are pretty strong even though the concrete is really only about 8 to 10 inches thick in most places.
By the next year, the tree was thriving. They're obviously not based on hard science, but they often come from observations that have been passed through generations. It is often especially prevalent in acidic soils or soils with an excess of copper,...
“The net difference of 10 to 27 degrees F … will impact all things vegetation: lawns, crops , trees , et cetera,” he says. Corn is projected to be the crop most affected by this phenomenon, mainly because the 50-degree soil temperatures it requires...
In low-pH areas, you can still grow many acidic-soil-loving crops, including radishes, sweet potatoes , potatoes , blueberries, cranberries, raspberries and apples . Apply elemental sulfur and iron sulfate at rates dependent on your soil type—your soil-testing...
Few soils start out neutral, but that's where you ultimately want to arrive. Nematodes and protozoa eat bacteria and fungi. And although there is often a lot of dizzying science involved when people talk about healthy soil, for the most part, it's not...
During decomposition, the areas surrounding may experience a dip in nitrogen, as fungal activity increases and uses it up. Wood will decompose at variable rates, depending on factors like exposed surface area, moisture, temperature, fungal colonization,...
I have found that well-composted plots don't dry faster, per se, but they do distribute their moisture well and become workable at a faster rate. Well, it is always possible to irrigate soil that is too dry, but it's never a good idea to work soil that...
While soil blocks are typically used in the spring to get a head start on planting, you can make them any time of year to start seeds for transplanting into the garden. Repeat steps 1 through 3, lining up each set of soil blocks snugly with those already...
They've also got great water holding capacity. Horse and cow manures are more mild, while chicken and sheep are highly concentrated. It's a great amendment for acid-loving evergreens.
The seeds, called “groats,” can be eaten as a hot cereal or ground for flour, which is commonly served as buckwheat pancakes, soba noodles or galettes. But let's talk about buckwheat as a cover crop: It's a great one.
