Neil and I are super lucky to have Neighbor Kate, a sweet older woman who happens to be a master gardener, and can recognize ANY plant by just looking at it. She has been a wealth of knowledge, and any time I have a question about anything, she comes right over and helps me out! She also is so encouraging, and always loves to see everything that we have done in the garden. I kind of compare it to showing your mom the "A" you got on that test or scoring the winning goal with your parents in the stands cheering you on. She also is SUPER gracious with her plants, and we have taken many of her babies to put in our garden. She always says that she needs us to help thin out her backyard, but I think she just does it to be nice.
Because we have Neighbor Kate, some of my friends have been asking about gardening tips. My friend B and her fiance J just bought a house last winter, and are looking to spruce it up. I sent them the below email imparting my knowledge from Neighbor Kate.
Prepping Flower/Vegetable Bed:
To purchase:
Compost. Probably just one bag. Liquid fertilizer (enough to cover the
bed, probably one bottle, and you will only use half of it). A shovel.
Straw to cover. And, a bucket, or somewhere to put excess dirt. A tarp
on your lawn also works. You can transfer the dirt somewhere else in
your yard after you are done.
Take out some of your old dirt out of the bed, and put it on the
tarp. Dump the compost and fertilizer together into the bed. Take a
shovel, a ton of water, and mix your old dirt with the
compost/fertilizer. Legit you are going to want to make mud, or pretty
darn close to it. Once you have mixed both thoroughly together, make a
flat surface (BUT DO NOT PACK THE MUD/DIRT combo - you need that lose to
get oxygen to the compost/fertilizer mixture). Lay the straw over the
mud, and water every day for a week. When you are ready to plant, pick
up the straw, get rid of it, and plant!
Please note that it is straw, and not hay. Seems like a super weird
distinction, but hay has living organisms in it, and that can get into
your soil. Straw is completely dried out hay, and is perfect for
protecting your soil before you are ready to plant. You can also use
straw on your patches of grass that you planted - this will make sure
that the grass seeds properly, and that dandelions/weeds will not plant
themselves.
When it comes to the plants, purchase that the next weekend. Tell
them about your shade/sun situation, and they can recommend stuff for
you to plant.
Composting 101:
Don't
want to spend money on dirt next year? Learn to compost! It is great for
planting, for being green, and to designate an area for the doggies to
pee (if you want). Pick a place in your garden where you could care less. I am suggesting somewhere out of sight, but still fairly
convenient. I can even come over and give you some suggestions.This will
be where you are choosing to put your old dirt.This compost pile will
work for you for next year, and then you don't even have to buy
anything!!
Put your dirt you removed from the bed there. Just make a pile. Add
any weeds (green side down, root side up), the straw you remove from the
bed, any veggies/fruit (banana peels, corn stalks, whatever), leaves
from when you rake in the fall - it can all go there. Let the dogs pee
on it. It allows for nitrates to get into the compost, and it heats up
and breaks down the soil really nicely. A word of advise - if you
decide to use that area, under NO CIRCUMSTANCES do you let that dirt
touch the side of your house. Remember, composting is about breaking
down things. If this gets against your house, you may be looking at
foundation problems years down the road. However, if you have a
particularly nasty ivy problem, or are looking to kill some wayward
plants, this is a great place to put your pile. It will kill anything
small under it.
Turn your composting pile once every couple of months. No need to do
anything in the winter. Then, next year, you will have great soil to
use!
