Preparing Your Soil

Preparing to plant peas

Now is a good time to work on getting your soil in shape for planting. First let me comment on the photo. After several years of experimenting I do not recommend raised beds because they take a great deal of extra water. In the future these beds will have their sides removed and be sunken down level with the path ways.

The one nice thing about having wooden boxes around the garden beds is that it makes it easier to put up a trellis for vine crops and it makes it harder for clutsy non gardeners to step on the growing space.

My preference for growing beds is actually something I've never seen other people do. I mostly garden in beds 3-4 feet wide and whatever length fits the space. I dig a trench across the width of the bed and save that soil in buckets or the wheelbarrow. The trench is as deep as the blade of my shovel. Next I dig down as deep as the shovel will go in the bottom of the trench. Then I throw that dirt out into the pathways. Sometimes I need the pickaxe to pry up the boulders and a hatchet to chop through tree roots.

Next I dig a trench next to the first one, this time the top soil is tossed into the first trench. Again the subsoil is tossed into the pathways. When I get to the end of the bed, the soil that I saved from the first trench is added to the last trench. I only do all this digging once and it makes a big difference in plant growth because it loosens up the soil but doesn't raise it too far up into the air where it is going to dry out easily. I use the soil I threw out in the paths to help make a berm around the bed to keep the water in it when it rains or I have to irrigate.

If there are a lot of rocks in the bed I will screen the top soil through 1/2" hardware cloth before putting it back in if I intend to plant any root crops like beets, carrots or potatoes. Rocky soil means twisted and gnarly roots. Yes it's a huge amount of work, but when you are starting with the poorest soil in the world it can make a huge difference in the plants growth. Once dug I never walk on the bed, so it never packs down as tight as it was before.

When digging your garden you want to work when the soil is just nicely moist. Do not ever dig your soil when it is very wet and sticky. If it is sticking to  your tools then get out of there and go do something else. Working the soil when it is wet and sticky will make big clods and lumps that will take forever to get rid of once they dry out.

Tomorrow I'll tell you about the sorts of things you should add to the soil to grow the best garden ever. In the meantime you might want to read my article on Building Fertile Soil.