10 Ways to Take Good Care of Your Soil

Though gardening might seem as simple as sticking some seeds or a seedling in a hole in the ground (and to be fair, sometimes it is), there is usually a little more to it than that.

Just as a healthy body is a result of what we feed it, a healthy plant is only as healthy as the soil it is growing in. Compacted, spent, poisoned, eroded, diseased, drowned and parched soil will all impact what you can grow and what thrives.

There are a lot of things you can do for your soil that involve little to no cost, and even sometimes, little to no effort. In the end, your garden will thank you for it. Check out these OGP tips for making your soil as healthy as can be.

1. Leaves for the Soil

This time of year, if you have a yard with trees, it can feel like no matter how often you rake, there is always a layer of leaves covering your lawn within a blink of an eye.  The leaves can look stunning and give you a sense of nostalgia and coziness, but still, the one-going chore of raking them up becomes a reality. Then comes the question of what to do with all of these leaves.  Well, there are several ways you can make the most of this wonderful resource. Check out these 5 Ways to Make All Those Autumn Leaves Work for Your Garden.

2. Kitchen Scraps

By keeping food scraps out of the trash can, we can not only help to save the planet a little bit, but we can also use those scraps in healthy ways to benefit the garden. Even if you don’t have a garden with space to compost, there are still ways for you to do your part in reusing kitchen scraps.  Check out this list of waste foodstuff that can be used simply and cleanly in your garden without owning a compost pile! Here are 4 Kitchen Scraps That Work Wonders in Your Garden.

3. Ground Covers

A ground cover is a plant that grows low to the ground and spreads easily, creating a carpet. This living carpet is great for choking out weeds, keeping the soil cool and moist, and even helping with soil erosion by holding loose soil intact. What’s more, if this ground cover is edible and/or medicinal, too, then you are on to a double winner! Check out these 4 Edible Ground Covers for Your Garden that you can easily add to your garden spaces, provide a little greenery, a little more beauty, and something to nibble.

4. Compacted Soil

One of the more often encountered problems when first constructing a garden is compacted soil. Usually, this is a result of heavy traffic, hopefully, foot traffic but sometimes it’s a spot where a car used to be parked or a shed once stood. The common response to this issue is to till the area, a task that more than likely will involve either a lot of shovel work or renting a tiller. Often, it’s a combination of both tiller and shovel. Read on to learn How to Deal With Compacted Soil in Your Garden.

5. No-Till

Spring is the time for gardening, more particularly, getting the garden started. For many, that means tuning the roto-tiller up or heading to the rental store to cart a machine home. The more laborious amongst us might choose to grab a shovel and get psyched for turning the soil over manually. But, for those who are hip with what’s in these days, the idea of tilling the garden is mostly a thing of the past. Here are 7 Reasons Not to Till Your Garden Soil.

6. Super-Powered soil

There are some really easy and inexpensive ways to add nutrients and encourage beneficial bacteria and other microorganisms to keep the soil in tip-top shape. Living soil is essential for plants as organic matter is broken down more readily and nutrients are made available to the plants that you want to grow. Check out these 3 Easy Ways to Add Super Powers to Your Soil This Spring.

7. Mulch

Mulch has long been an essential element for healthy soil growth. It plays a large role in creating a sustainable ecosystem, and it’s fairly simple to see why: When we look at natural systems, the most self-sustaining of all like forests, the floors are always littered with organic material. Trees drop their leaves, limbs dot the ground, and plants grow and die. In life’s little cycles, it all goes back to the soil. Read about these 7 Reasons to Mulch Your Garden As Soon As Possible.

8. Building Soil

When growing a garden, success begins with the soil. If the soil can’t provide what the plants need to be healthy, the vegetables will either be lacking or nonexistent. Plants get their vitamins and minerals from the earth, so growing vegetables in soil that lacks these things is similar to feeding our bodies with mostly something low in nutrients, say corn. Imagine that! Luckily, we have the power to build fertile soils right at home and grow our healthy veggies without any chemical inputs. Have a look at these 6 Methods for Building Fertile Soil.

9. No-Dig Beds

No-dig beds are a drastically different approach to that of contemporary tilled farming. Rather than removing anything from the soil, or, digging the soil at all, no-dig beds are built atop what is there. Instead of uprooting and disturbing everything, the idea is to preserve, encourage, and enhance what nature has established. By harmonizing with nature rather than competing with it, no-dig beds are a low-impact, long-term means of establishing a productive garden. Learn more about Why No-Dig Beds Are So Popular and How to Make Your Own.

10. Test Your Soil

In general, soils have a few different components to be found: sand, silt, clay, organic matter, and rocks that we readily see. There are other things, such as animals, bacteria, and fungi, that live in the soil. Knowing the soil type can help with understanding draining in the garden, mineral content, growing and construction potential, and any downfalls that might need to be addressed. Here is An Easy Home Test Kit to Find Out What Kind of Soil You Have.

Related Content:

• How to Create a Seed Bomb for Guerilla Gardening
• 5 Fun and Educational Things To Do With Kids In The Garden
• 8 DIY Projects for Your Garden and Yard Using Upcycled and Recycled Materials
• 10 Kids’ Crafts Celebrating Pumpkins
• 6 Ways to Make Gardening More Fun

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