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Old 27-02-2006, 08:38 PM posted to rec.gardens
Thornhill
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil

I have a 10x15' raised bed in a community garden. Every spring I add
compost and fertilizer, and then both in lesser quantities throughout
the season. Never letting the plot sit dormant for a season has finally
caught up with me (and that's really not an option because there are
rules about not planting your garden). Last June the soil became
completely spent, turning to grey dust. I dumped compost, peat moss and
grossly exceeded the amount of fertilizer you're supposed to use per
square foot. That got me through the summer and fall without incident.
So for this coming season, which for me starts early May in
Philadelphia, what can I do to avoid this problem from reoccurring? I
was thinking of buying cow manure -- how much should I buy, and after I
mix it in, how many days until I can plant? Any other suggestions?
Thanks.

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Old 27-02-2006, 10:15 PM posted to rec.gardens
simy1
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil

It is difficult to diagnose from a distance. Is your soil clay or sand?
If it did not look like rich black dirt, your compost applications
might be too little. I put in two inches most years.
If you put in too little compost, you may have some micronutrient
deficiency, a condition that will not be helped by synthetic
fertilizer, but will be helped by large amounts of compost.
I try to prevent that by also giving some wood ash to the garden. In
Philly, you will probably have acid soil as well, so you might try a
couple of pounds on your plot.

And if you grossly overdid the fertilization you might have an excess
of one or more macronutrients, specially if the soil is clay and
retains them. That, in turn, might chemically prevent the absorption of
other nutrients.

If you don't want to test the soil, two inches of manure will alleviate
whatever you may have. Even if it is a chemical imbalance, it will
buffer it some. It certainly has enough nutrients to get you through a
season without other fertilization. Many vegetables can be planted
through manure after a single good rainfall. Most greens, squashes and
melons, garlic, tomatoes and potatoes, will happily grow in manure that
was laid a month before. Just lay it on top, clear a little space when
you plant, to avoid direct contact with the young plant, and let the
worms pull it in for you.

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Old 27-02-2006, 10:58 PM posted to rec.gardens
David E. Ross
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil

Thornhill wrote:
simy1 wrote:
It is difficult to diagnose from a distance. Is your soil clay or sand?


Clay

If you don't want to test the soil, two inches of manure will alleviate
whatever you may have. Even if it is a chemical imbalance, it will
buffer it some. It certainly has enough nutrients to get you through a
season without other fertilization. Many vegetables can be planted
through manure after a single good rainfall. Most greens, squashes and
melons, garlic, tomatoes and potatoes, will happily grow in manure that
was laid a month before. Just lay it on top, clear a little space when
you plant, to avoid direct contact with the young plant, and let the
worms pull it in for you.


So it sounds like manure is a good plan. So I just lay it on top of the
soil, I don't work it in?

Thanks.


Top with the manure and also enough gypsum almost to hide the manure.
This will help break up the clay. Then, top with enough bone meal
almost to hide the gypsum. The bone meal supplies phosphorus, which
must be present in the root zone ahead of time because it does not
dissolve and leach through the soil.

Water the gypsum to rinse it into the soil. Then, after the soil is
almost dry (moist but not wet enough to form a sticky clod), rototill to
a depth of at least a foot into the native soil (i.e., with 6 inches of
manure, till down 18 inches -- 6 + 12). In a community garden near my
house, several gardeners will get together to rent a rototiller for a
day, sharing it for all their parcels.

The manure is more for organic matter than for nutrients. If you don't
over-feed, a 6-inch layer tilled into the soil should be good for 2-3
years. You won't have to do any serious tilling until the manure has to
be replaced. Excess nitrogen speeds the decomposition of the manure.
Over-feeding means it might have to be replaced yearly.

Also, over-feeding with nitrogen promotes leaf growth at the expense of
roots, flowers, and fruits. This is okay for lettuce, spinach, cabbage,
basil, and other leaf vegetables. But excess nitrogen inhibits the
production of carrots, raddishes, and other root vegetables; tomatoes,
peppers, beans, peas, and other fruit vegetables; and artichokes,
cauliflower, and other edible flowers.

The gypsum, however, leaches away and needs to be replaced each growing
season. The bone meal does not leach at all; a generous application
before tilling will be good for as long as 5 years. (You can substitute
super-phosphate for the bone meal, but use only half as much. It might
last 10 years in the soil before the plants have exhausted the supply of
phosphorus.)

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/
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Old 28-02-2006, 01:46 AM posted to rec.gardens
cat daddy
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil


"David E. Ross" wrote in message
...
Thornhill wrote:
simy1 wrote:
It is difficult to diagnose from a distance. Is your soil clay or sand?


Clay

If you don't want to test the soil, two inches of manure will alleviate
whatever you may have. Even if it is a chemical imbalance, it will
buffer it some. It certainly has enough nutrients to get you through a
season without other fertilization. Many vegetables can be planted
through manure after a single good rainfall. Most greens, squashes and
melons, garlic, tomatoes and potatoes, will happily grow in manure that
was laid a month before. Just lay it on top, clear a little space when
you plant, to avoid direct contact with the young plant, and let the
worms pull it in for you.


So it sounds like manure is a good plan. So I just lay it on top of the
soil, I don't work it in?

Thanks.


Top with the manure and also enough gypsum almost to hide the manure.
This will help break up the clay. Then, top with enough bone meal
almost to hide the gypsum. The bone meal supplies phosphorus, which
must be present in the root zone ahead of time because it does not
dissolve and leach through the soil.

Water the gypsum to rinse it into the soil. Then, after the soil is
almost dry (moist but not wet enough to form a sticky clod), rototill to
a depth of at least a foot into the native soil (i.e., with 6 inches of
manure, till down 18 inches -- 6 + 12). In a community garden near my
house, several gardeners will get together to rent a rototiller for a
day, sharing it for all their parcels.


Doesn't that destroy the balance of all the existing soil biology, the
worms and their tunnels, and mycorizzal fungus?

The manure is more for organic matter than for nutrients. If you don't
over-feed, a 6-inch layer tilled into the soil should be good for 2-3
years. You won't have to do any serious tilling until the manure has to
be replaced. Excess nitrogen speeds the decomposition of the manure.
Over-feeding means it might have to be replaced yearly.

Also, over-feeding with nitrogen promotes leaf growth at the expense of
roots, flowers, and fruits. This is okay for lettuce, spinach, cabbage,
basil, and other leaf vegetables. But excess nitrogen inhibits the
production of carrots, raddishes, and other root vegetables; tomatoes,
peppers, beans, peas, and other fruit vegetables; and artichokes,
cauliflower, and other edible flowers.

The gypsum, however, leaches away and needs to be replaced each growing
season. The bone meal does not leach at all; a generous application
before tilling will be good for as long as 5 years. (You can substitute
super-phosphate for the bone meal, but use only half as much. It might
last 10 years in the soil before the plants have exhausted the supply of
phosphorus.)

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/



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Old 28-02-2006, 04:49 AM posted to rec.gardens
Thornhill
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil


David E. Ross wrote:

Top with the manure and also enough gypsum almost to hide the manure.
This will help break up the clay. Then, top with enough bone meal
almost to hide the gypsum. The bone meal supplies phosphorus, which
must be present in the root zone ahead of time because it does not
dissolve and leach through the soil.


The clay is under control, so should I skip this step?

Thanks for the detailed directions.



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Old 28-02-2006, 05:31 AM posted to rec.gardens
David E. Ross
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil

Thornhill wrote:
David E. Ross wrote:

Top with the manure and also enough gypsum almost to hide the manure.
This will help break up the clay. Then, top with enough bone meal
almost to hide the gypsum. The bone meal supplies phosphorus, which
must be present in the root zone ahead of time because it does not
dissolve and leach through the soil.


The clay is under control, so should I skip this step?

Thanks for the detailed directions.


If the clay is not impossible, you might omit the gypsum but not the
bone meal. Both gypsum and bone meal supply calcium, which is required
for root growth.

My clay is adobe, so sticky you spend more time getting it off the spade
than digging. They ruined a good source of bricks when they built this
tract. I use a 50-pound sack of gypsum in my standard residential (R1)
lot in less than a year. It allows me to grow plants that cannot
tolerate heavy, soggy soil.

--

David E. Ross
http://www.rossde.com/

Concerned about someone (e.g., Pres. Bush) snooping
into your E-mail? Use PGP.
See my http://www.rossde.com/PGP/
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Old 28-02-2006, 03:59 PM posted to rec.gardens
simy1
 
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Default Rehabilitating Soil

The manure has substantial amounts of nutrients. It is 2-1-2 by dry
weight. The OP needs something like half a ton. That is 10 lbs of
nitrogen right there. And of course there is plenty of calcium. Imagine
drying and burning all that manure. The leftover ash (several pounds)
is 50% calcium.

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