“Prepping our garden area is the first step before we place our seeds or plants in the garden”
Whether you have raised beds, a classic garden or plant in pots, amending your soil is key.
So what is amending? Amending your soil means to improve it with additional materials. While reducing compaction, aerating the soil to allow water through and making it easier for plants to access the nutrients they need. Amendments can also improve the fertility of the soil and alter the acidity.
Adding compost or another organic materials is the easiest way to amend your soil. Both Plant-based composts and Manure are good for improving your soils texture and provide needed nutrients for your plants growing season. Plant based composts are lower in salts than those containing decomposed animal manure.
Great Amending Products to Consider
Homemade Compost (Learn how to Start your own compost)
Mushroom Compost - mushroom compost varies slightly depending on individual growers. Some mushroom growers using organic materials such as hay, straw, corn cobs and hulls, and poultry or horse manure.
Black Cow manure - byproduct from dairy cows
Peat Moss - high quality, horticultural peat product is a renewable resource. It is harvested from peat bogs where organic matter such as dead plant material and sphagnum moss grows into an area with heavy water retention.
Warm Castings - a worm’s manure in its natural form
Top Soil - is going to be a perfect combination of silt, clay, and sand
I like to take two to three of the recommend amending products and mix them together in a wheel barrel before adding them to my garden beds. Plants need this additional food in the spring and summer to get them growing strong. Especially during the beginning stages and peak growing season. Your plants need fertilizing three to four times a month, even if you've added amending materials.
Great organic natural fertilizers I like to use are compost teas, fish emulsions or even worm castings. If you choose to use worm castings or water weekly with a compost tea or fish emulsion is a great alternative than man-made chemical fertilizers.
Happy Prepping ~