Greetings Rural Sprout Readers,
I have to say it’s a little tough hitting the keys this morning. I am definitely feeling yesterday’s adventure. (That just means I can hang about in my pajamas longer today.)
But despite my sore arms, I couldn’t wait to share my news with some fellow friends who enjoy playing in the dirt.
Yesterday was a typical early spring Pennsylvania day. It was cloudy, and then the sun came out. And then it snowed, and then the sun came out. Then it sleeted, then snowed a bit more and then the sun came out again…
This was the weekend my sweetheart and I decided to work on expanding the garden at his place. We did our first no-dig garden last year, and I have to say, it was the best garden I’ve ever grown. Not to mention the easiest to maintain. So, we decided to double it in size and stock up the pantry this year.
If you’ve never heard of a no-dig garden, check out Cheryl’s article. It’s what convinced us to give it a try, and there’s no way we’re going back to tilling up the garden each year. We get to be lazy under the guise of doing something good for the land.
Yesterday we grabbed another trailer-load of mushroom compost and made the big expansion.
We all got in on the action, measuring and driving posts and shoveling and raking. Even my boys managed to get a few posts in the ground. And my youngest was the captain of the wheelbarrow. I expect their arms are a bit jello-y this morning too.
I decided to rake the leaves off of the two smaller beds from last year during all of this. Some of you already know about my $35 soil amendment discovery from last year. (If not, you can read about it here.) But I couldn’t believe it; underneath the leaves was the most dark, crumbly and beautiful soil I have ever seen.
(See? This is why only other gardeners can appreciate my story.)
The worms I had put in the garden last year spent the entire winter doing their worm magic, and they made lots of new worms too. The soil is incredible. We don’t have to do a thing to it to get it ready to plant.
It's so light and fluffy I won't even need a trowel to plant my seedlings.
So, will we be deploying another worm army in the new portion of the garden? You betcha.
If you do one thing this spring to improve your garden, I highly suggest going to the local bait shop to add some wriggling composters.
7 Ways to Get Rid of Silverfish Once and For All
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10 Handy Ways To Reuse Old Clothes in Your Garden
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9 Cucumber Pests You Need To Watch Out For
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5 Early Signs of Aphids & 10 Ways To Get Rid Of Them
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That's all for this week, Rural Sprout Readers.
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