Billy wrote:
....
Towards the end of your season, try planting buckwheat or rye
as a
cover crop. They will lighten your soil considerably by
introducing
large quantities of fine roots into it.

i've, coincidentally, just gotten a few
buckwheat seeds to see what kind of
plant they are, and a much larger amount
of birdsfoot trefoil seeds to spread on
a few areas i've been spading.

we'd planted alfalfa in the general
area to improve the soil and to break
through the hardpacked clay layer but
it didn't get enough color to be left wild
like i would have done. now it is being
mowed. the trefoil eventually will fill in
and improve things on a smaller scale.

the tulib beds i am redoing (the cause
of my initial post in this thread) will be
getting completely new soil and i am
going to try various mixes both
below and above the bulbs and various
toppings to see what does the best
(and taking notes).

my friendly greenhouse guy says
my plans sound good for what i'm
trying to accomplish. but i forgot
to ask him about my other question
that i haven't had answered yet (
about what liquid i can dunk the
existing bulbs in to drench them
before they get air dried and put
into storage). i'll stop in again today
on my way past and see what he says.


songbird