In an ideal world, our soils don’t end up hungry and tired. We take care of them in a little and often way so they stay juicy + wormy in order to sustain the demands of production.
But – hey, it happens…. life happens! And when it does, here’s some simple solutions to get you back into easy production.
First, Test + Hydrate
Start with your mini DIY soil test. Make this your default go to before planting, sowing or restoring, and let it be your new best habit when things go awry. Don’t ask google – test your soil!
During your soil check in, if you discover any dry soil, rehydrate it before continuing. Hydration is an essential building block and is your go to kick starter for soil restoration.
3 Soil Revivers
1. Sow a greencrop or a lightfeeder crop
Covering soil with plants is the best way to jazz it up and bring it back to life. Honour your tired soil by sowing with nourishing greencrops or light feeding rootcrops or seasonally apt legumes like peas, broadbeans or beans. You could, of course, do a mix of all three.
Spread a fine layer of compost, slightly thicker if soils have been really dry or wet. Vermicastings are a fabulous addition – either alone or mixed in to bulk up your compost.
- Sow a life giving, mixed greencrop. Its so reassuring having greencrops on the grow. They are the foundation for the next round of crops = steady fertility, and so easy to plant your next crop into!
- If you are short on cropping space and need to use the bed, choose from root crops, saladings or legumes, as all are light feeders and don’t demand much of the soil. Check my monthly diary to see what best suits.
Shadecloth or hessian pegged on top of the seed protects from birds and improves germination no end.
2. Plant a crop
Get another round of seedlings in the soil – right away! Fertility goes backwards fast when soil is naked.
Either
- spread a fine layer of home made compost over the bed entire, or
- create little mounds of compost + some vermicastings, if you have them, for each seedling. Spread mulch between each mound to contain the compost. Mounds are an awesome way to lift above wet soil, and perfect if compost supply is thin on the ground.
Plant a mixture of light feeding crops close together so as to completely cover the soil when grown and provide a diversity of root systems – such resilience!
Mulch generously with slashed down, crunched up crop debris.
3. Build a compost
This is the choice for those of you who cannot rehydrate your dry soil because you have no water to spare. It’s also the way to go if soil is sodden.
Build an easy peasy compost pile direct, on top of the soil that needs reviving – a most brilliant restoration move.
Shout out to trees + perennials
We cannot possibly discuss, restoring knackered soils, without a shout out to trees and perennials. They are the heroes of garden stability. Plant lots. Their roots are hubs of below ground networks, and like meals on wheels – get water and minerals to whom ever needs aide. Make trees your new besties.
Little by little + over time, build your soil and work away at creating an awesome garden environment, so that even when it doesn’t rain for months (or it doesn’t stop raining for months), soil stays in good heart.
Expect it to be a little tired by Autumn for sure, but not completely knackered. Be constant – that’s what makes the difference.