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Down the Garden Path: How to prepare a vegetable garden bed · Kendall County News - Shaw Local

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  Speaker 1: Down the garden path. How to prepare a vegetable garden
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  Speaker 1: bed written by Alexis R. Barnes, University of Illinois Extension.
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  Speaker 1: This article is being read by an automated voice brought
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  Speaker 1: to you by Everlet. Spring has officially sprung in northern Illinois,
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  Speaker 1: and with it comes the excitement and opportunity of a
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  Speaker 1: new gardening season. Before seeds and transplants make their way
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  Speaker 1: into the ground, taking time to properly prepare your garden
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  Speaker 1: bed can set the stage for healthier plants, higher yields,
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  Speaker 1: and fewer headaches later in the season. Think of garden
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  Speaker 1: bed preparation as spring training for your vegetables. Preparing the
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  Speaker 1: soil bed. Healthy gardens begin with healthy soil. Soil is
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  Speaker 1: a complex mixture of mineral particles such as sand, silk, clay,
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  Speaker 1: organic matter, and beneficial organisms working together beneath the surface
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  Speaker 1: Thinner in twenty sixteen. Before or digging or tilling, it's
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  Speaker 1: important to make informed fertility decisions that will support plant
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  Speaker 1: growth throughout the season. The best place to start is
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  Speaker 1: a soil test. Testing your soil helps determine nutrient levels
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  Speaker 1: in pH ensuring you apply the right amendments and avoid
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  Speaker 1: unnecessary ones. A soil test saves time, money, and prevents
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  Speaker 1: nutrient runoff that can harm the environment. The University of
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  Speaker 1: Illinois Extension provides step by step guidance on when and
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  Speaker 1: how to collect and submit soil samples. Once you have
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  Speaker 1: interpreted your soil test results, it's time to choose fertilizer.
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  Speaker 1: Garden fertilizers come in many forms, including bone meal, blood meal,
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  Speaker 1: plant based products, and synthetic options. Most garden fertilizers have
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  Speaker 1: nutrient ratios such as five ten, five, ten, ten ten,
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  Speaker 1: or twelve twelve twelve. Organic OMRI approved options typically have
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  Speaker 1: lower nutrient concentrations such as five three three or three
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  Speaker 1: four four. Always follow label instructions and soil test recommendations
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  Speaker 1: when applying fertilizer to avoid overfeeding your plants. Tillage usually
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  Speaker 1: occurs right before planting vegetables. Home gardeners may use a
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  Speaker 1: walk behind rototiller or a broad fork to loosen the
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  Speaker 1: top layer of soil, improving aeration and allowing roots to
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  Speaker 1: grow more freely. If you're interested in a gentler approach,
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  Speaker 1: no till gardening is another option. Over time, no till
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  Speaker 1: methods can improve soil structure and increase organic matter while
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  Speaker 1: reducing compaction finnerin twenty sixteen. Weed barriers and soil amendments.
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  Speaker 1: Amending your garden bed improves soil health and helps manage
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  Speaker 1: weeds throughout the season. Several easy to use materials can
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  Speaker 1: serve both purposes. Compost mushroom, manure based plant or worm
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  Speaker 1: compost all work well. Applying a one to two inch
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  Speaker 1: layer annually can boost fertility and may provide the nutrients
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  Speaker 1: plants need for the season. Finnerin twenty sixteen. Leaf mold
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  Speaker 1: remove old leaves from beds to ensure good drain and
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  Speaker 1: root development. Once plants are established, leaf mold can be
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  Speaker 1: used on the soil surface near plant stems as a
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  Speaker 1: weed barrier. Straw mulch, a thick layer of straw, suppresses
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  Speaker 1: weeds and retains moisture. Straw can be applied before or
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  Speaker 1: after planting vegetables for effective coverage. Newspaper. When starting a
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  Speaker 1: new garden bed, Layering newspaper over grass can help smother
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  Speaker 1: existing vegetation and jumpstart your growing space. Once amendments, tillage
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  Speaker 1: and weed barriers are in place, your garden is ready
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  Speaker 1: for planting. Will you experiment with a new method this year.
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  Speaker 1: Either way, thoughtful preparation now will pay off all season long.
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  Speaker 1: For more information, check out the University of Illinois Extensions
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  Speaker 1: Local Food and Small Farms YouTube channel for growing tips
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  Speaker 1: and other horticultural advice. For helpful hints on what to
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  Speaker 1: include in your email, visit go dot Illinois dot edu
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  Speaker 1: help Desk MGDK Alexis Rbarns is the University of Illinois
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  Speaker 1: Extension Local Food Systems Law Farms educators serving DuPage, Cane,
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  Speaker 1: and Kendall Counties. Barnes' areas of expertise include fruit and
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  Speaker 1: vegetable production and reduced tillage practices.