GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

14-09-2003, 11:35 PM

In article ,
(Frankhartx) wrote:

From: Grandpa

Is there any advantage to adding fertilizer, like steer manure or ???,
not the commercial pellet stuff, when I pull out all the dead/dying
flowers & veggies etc & turn the soil this fall or is it best to wait
until spring?

First you do NOT pull out the old plants unless they were diseased--you till
them in. You also may put a bit of manure out, it will help what you do next.
Next you plant a cover crop of rye and vetch which you will till under in the
spring. Have you ever gone out in the countryside in the winter and noticed
that the farmer's fields are not raw dirt but are green? Thats called cover
cropping and is the way to go for farmers and gardeners alike.

Unless you're in the Frozen North(tm) like Alaska. Our soils are so cold that
cover crops won't rot when tilled in.

I pile compost onto the beds, when putting the garden up for the winter, then
till it in the next spring.

Jan