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Preparing your Garden for Planting

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Many areas of the United States and Canada, are still covered with copious amounts of snow—or it’s still freezing at night! I’m in one of those cold places, here in the mountains of Northern Arizona, USA. We can, but dream, of hot, summer days and warm, summer nights.

But for those of you living in warmer climates--it’s time to ready your garden for the crops you need to grow to help feed your family. Once you have prepared your garden and got all the hard work out of the way—it’s time for your reward--the fun part--choosing what to plant in your well-prepared earth!

I, for one, have been thumbing through all the various seed catalogs that find their way into my mailbox. I’m sure many of you avid gardeners have been doing the same thing! Wow—they sure have a great selection of vegetables, flowers, herbs, bulbs, trees, heirloom vegetables and plants for sale—and they all look so beautiful! It makes me wish I owned at least 80 acres, a tractor and a well—ok--irrigation! The more work you do now—the better it will be for your vegetables and flowers later.

If you have a woodstove you can clean and fertilize your soil with the cold ashes. Just make sure the ashes are only wood ashes, and each day, mix them well into the soil, with your garden fork or spade. It’s at this time, that I add horse manure—remember, it stops the deer eating your precious crops, steer manure (pooooweeeee!), woodchips, sawdust or the like. This is to lighten my soil, as it’s rather on the clay side! You know you have clay soil, when you come in five inches taller after a rainstorm! It dries, rock hard, if you don’t remove it immediately from your boots! Not everybody can have black earth, though, and if any of you are lucky enough to have that, rich, beautiful soil—think yourself extremely fortunate!

Your next step is to check the pH balance of your soil. These kits are widely available at almost any store that stocks gardening equipment and seeds etc. Once your garden soil is at peak perfection, and the time is right to plant in your area, then have a ball—plant all your seeds and starts. I can’t wait for that day to come here. Unfortunately, we have a short growing season here, so time is of the essence! Once you see your seeds begin to sprout, your heart will swell with pride! These are the rewards of growing your own food. Just make sure you grow enough—you can always can or freeze or dry your excess food for storage. If you have a root cellar, you can store some of your food down there. A little investment of time and energy goes a long way with gardening—and you will truly be amazed at your bountiful harvest!

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