Gardening Central OnlineInformation & Resources For Gardening!
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Preparing Healthy Soil
If you’re getting ready to go on a new garden venture, you need to prepare your soil to ideally house your plants. The best thing you can do in the soil preparation process is to reach the perfect mixture of sand, silt, and clay. Preferably there would be 40 percent sand, 40 percent silt, and 20 percent clay. There are several tests used by experienced gardeners to tell whether the soil has a good composition. First you can compress it in your hand. If it doesn’t hold its shape and crumbles without any outside force, your sand ratio is probably a little high. If you poke the compressed ball with your finger and it doesn’t fall apart easily, your soil contains too much clay.
If you’re still not sure about the content of your soil, you can separate each ingredient by using this simple method. Put a cup or two of dirt into a jar of water. Shake the water up until the soil is suspended, then let it set until you see it separate into 3 separate layers. The top layer is clay, the next is silt, and on the bottom is sand. You should be able to judge the presence of each component within your dirt, and act accordingly.
After you’ve analyzed the content of your soil, if you decide that it is low on a certain ingredient then you should definitely do something to fix it. If dealing with too much silt or sand, it’s best to add some peat moss or compost. If you’ve got too much clay, add a mixture of peat moss and sand. The peat moss, when moistens, helps for the new ingredient to infiltrate the mixture better. If you can’t seem to manage to attain a proper mixture, just head down to your local gardening store. You should be able to find some kind of product to aid you.
The water content of the soil is another important thing to consider when preparing for your garden. If your garden is at the bottom of an incline, it is most likely going to absorb too much water and drown out the plants. If this is the case, you should probably elevate your garden a few inches (4 or 5) over the rest of the ground. This will allow for more drainage and less saturation.
Adding nutrients to your soil is also a vital part of the process, as most urban soils have little to no nutrients already in them naturally. One to two weeks prior to planting, you should add a good amount of fertilizer to your garden. Mix it in really well and let it sit for a while. Once you have done this, your soil will be completely ready for whatever seeds you may plant in it.
Once your seeds are planted, you still want to pay attention to the soil. The first few weeks, the seeds are desperately using up all the nutrients around them to sprout into a real plant. If they run out of food, how are they supposed to grow? About a week after planting, you should add the same amount of fertilizer that you added before. After this you should continue to use fertilizer, but not as often. If you add a tiny bit every couple of weeks, that should be plenty to keep your garden thriving.
Basically, the entire process of soil care can be compressed into just several steps… ensure the makeup of the soil is satisfactory, make sure you have proper drainage in your garden, add fertilizer before and after planting, then add fertilizer regularly after that. Follow these simple steps, and you’ll have a plethora of healthy plants in no time. And if you need any more details on an individual step, just go to your local nursery and enquire there. Most of the employees will be more than happy to give you advice.
Dealing With Garden Pests
While tending to my own garden, I have found that one of the mostfrustrating things that ca...
dealing-with-garden-pests.php
Mulching For Free
I’m sure that if you are reading this, you have used ...
mulching-for-free.php
Tgold
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tgold.php
Installing A Drip Irrigation System
If you’re looking for ways to keep your garden watered without wasting toomuch time and money, you’ve probably ...
installing-a-drip-irrigation-system.php
Growing Your Own Herbs
If you’re not the type of person that wants t...
growing-your-own-herbs.php
Optimizing Your Garden For Drought Or Water Conservation
Living in Colorado and being a gardener has been rather stressful in the...
optimizing-your-garden-for-drought-or-water-conservation.php
Picking A Healthy Plant
When it comes to getting started with your garden, you have two choices; planting seeds, or bu...
picking-a-healthy-plant.php
The Psychology Behind Gardening
I don’t know what it is about a garden that has always drawn humans t...
the-psychology-behind-gardening.php
Choosing A Garden That Is Perfect For You
If you're thinking about starting a garden, the first thing you ...
choosing-a-garden-that-is-perfect-for-you.php
Other Factors In Garden Creation
So now you've picked out what type of garden you will have, what thelocation will be,...
other-factors-in-garden-creation.php
Creating A Raised Bed
If your current planting goals involve plants t...
creating-a-raised-bed.php
Choosing And Planting Perennials
If you’ve been growing a vegetable garden for a while, you might be feeling slightly ...
choosing-and-planting-perennials.php
Preparing Your Garden Fo The Winter
Some people believe that when the weather starts gettin...
preparing-your-garden-fo-the-winter.php
The Horrors Of Hail
One of the most hazardous things that can happen to your plants isweather. Many a garden has been de...
the-horrors-of-hail.php
Picking The Right Gardening Tools
If you’re thinking about taking your gardening seriously and getting outthere every da...
picking-the-right-gardening-tools.php
Using Vines To Decorate Your Garden
A great way to decorate your garden is the use of vines. They are very low maintenanc...
using-vines-to-decorate-your-garden.php
Improving Your Garden By Adding A Fountain
A great way to spice up your garden is to add a water feature. These canbe both soothing and a...
improving-your-garden-by-adding-a-fountain.php
Using Xeriscaping To Save Time And Water
While having a full fledged garden is rewarding and enjoyable, lots ofpeople simply d...
using-xeriscaping-to-save-time-and-water.php
Picking The Ideal Location For Your Garden
Once you have picked what garden you want...
picking-the-ideal-location-for-your-garden.php
Getting Started In Container Gardening
Sometimes, the urge to garden might be sto...
getting-started-in-container-gardening.php
Using Rain Barrels To Survive Droughts
If you’re a gardener that has an unlimited supply of water, consideryourself lucky. There ar...
using-rain-barrels-to-survive-droughts.php
Using Gardening To Get In Shape
While gardening is usually thought of as a productive way to grow beautiful plants and obt...
using-gardening-to-get-in-shape.php
My First Gardening Experience
Ah, to this day I still remember my first gardening experience. It wassuch a disaster that I didn’t think I...
my-first-gardening-experience.php
Creating Microclimates To Facilitate Growth
Many gardeners live in areas where almost anything can grow effortlessly.Just plan...
creating-microclimates-to-facilitate-growth.php
Maintaining A Compost Heap
Many people who maintain gardens have a large amount of organic waste, from grass clippings to leav...
maintaining-a-compost-heap.php