I like to garden for many reasons but mostly I amazed at how plants grow from seed to fruit. I learn something everytime I garden. I have learnt to have faith, by planting a seed I have faith that it will germinate. I have also learnt that for the seeds to grow I need to provide an environment that encourages growth. This is the same for me, for me to grow as a person I need to be in an environment that encourages growth. Even the grossest things in life like worms are important!
There are many things that affect your plants like watering, weather, the actual plants and the soil. I am not trained in this field so this article is based on my experience and this that I have done to improve the quality of soil that I use for my plants.
Tilling
Before planting your garden you need to till the soil, this will loosen it up and allow the plants to form roots and grow. It is important that you form pathways so that people do not walk in your garden.
Raised gardens
If you can not use the soil for any reason, an option is to build a raised garden or a portable garden like the one I have. I know some people whose soil got damaged with concrete when they were building their houses so this would be a great option.
Using food scraps
Add food scraps like egg shells and fruit peels to your soil. Even though they are inedible to us humans, these scraps have loads of nutrients that are beneficial to your soil. In Zimbabwe we used to use tobacco rejects in our gardens and it worked so well, we never needed fertilizer.You can even use it on your lawn, just spread it on your lawn and it works brilliantly.
Manure
My grandparents live on a farm. So every year before tilling the fields the spread cow dung in the fields. When the soil is tilled it is then mixed in with cow manure and these fields often have the best yields. The down part is that they have a relatively small herd that they never have enough cow dung for all the fields. I can usually find cow dung in the hardware shop, you can also use chicken manure as well.
I saw a beef farmer in the US on TV who moves his chickens in the paddocks. The chickens eat whatever they find outdoors and the droppings go in the soil and act as fertilizer for the grass which the cows feed on. I thought that was really cool and sustainable. Would like to be able to do that one day.
Mulch
Add mulch to the soil. It will save you water at the sametime the mulch will rot and improve your soil.
Grass clippings, leaves, and straw are all excellent options for mulching in a garden.
Soil test
I have not done this. It may actually need to be your first step but since I have never done that it is my last piece of advice. If you get your soil tested, you will know whether your soil is acidic or alkaline. This way you will know what kind of plants will actually grow in your garden and or what you need to do to improve it.
