Down to the nitty gritty..
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Image borrowed from www.ourgardengate.com
Building amazing growing soil is an affair of a few years…. Be patient! And in the meantime, you may want to use seed starter soil. Almost any type of soil can be turned into garden soil. The key is to know about it’s composition, pH and structure. This knowledge will guide your next actions.
Ideally, garden soil structure should be composed of about half pore space per volume, which will contain water and air, and half solids, a mineral portion that contains at least 5% organic matter. The water retaining capacity of soil is key if you want to reduce the amount of work you do. Additions of composts, perlite, and/or vermiculite are various ways to improve soil structure and water retaining ability. pH is essential as it helps determine how available to plants nutrients are. Visit us at the Budding Farmers table this summer to know more about nutrient availability and understanding this chart that will help you diagnose what might be wrong with your soil.
If you want to be a serious gardener, be ready to invest some money to get your soil tested. Contact us at the Farmer’s market to get oriented.
