OK, so like I said, I'm a newbie. I live in NE Kansas. The soil is
nice enough, dark, few rocks but kinda of clay-ey. The soil seems better
now that I worked some bagged soil in with it. I recently dug up two sunny
areas in the yard to plant flowers - one has gladiola bulbs, the other was
various seeds (prairie grasses, sunflower, blue fescue grass, mixed
blooming flowers and some butterfly weed which isn't weed .
I pull weeds when I see them but, for instance, the last few days have
been solid rain. Now that it's stopped raining I find some spots are
positively overrun with weeds. Is the only solution pulling them? Are
there weed killers which won't kill my flowers? (Yeah, I'm a little
lazy...)
Anyhow, my sunflowers (tithonia) just sprouted today and I'm excited!
Little teeny sunflower plants.

* * *
Stacia * * http://world.std.com/~stacia/
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death
your right to say it." - Evelyn Beatrice Hall

Stacia:

OK...one subject at a time. Crank up your printer. :-)

Your heavy soil: Bagged soil is good when the gardening madness has infected
your mind, and you want to get started like...now. Right now. But, think of
where you may have seen the nicest garden soil ever: In the forest. It gets
that way because leaves fall, nobody rakes them, and they decompose. Your
feet sink 6" deep in this great stuff. You can imitate this at home by
returning as much organic matter to the soil as possible. Not only does it
grow better plants, but it makes maintenance much easier. Bagged soil will
not help you achieve this on a long term basis.

1) Peat moss: This is the best way to condition the soil in brand new
gardens. It adds fluff, and helps the soil hold water. In soils with way too
much clay, adding sand helps drainage (the ability of water to pass through,
rather than make mud), so you may need both. But, peat moss must be moist
when applied, and it should be dug in thoroughly, not left on the surface,
or it will suck moisture out of the soil beneath. So, buy the huge bail, lay
it flat, and cut the plastic so it opens like those little cereal boxes you
can eat out of. Remove enough to make a hollow spot for water to sit in. At
least a few days before you want to use it, pour in as much water as
possible. It'll just sit there, but within a few hours, or overnight, it'll
soak in. Do this again. Unless you empty half the bag initially, you won't
be able to fit in enough water to moisten much. Crumble it with your hands
until it's not in chunks. Rubbing it through a screen of hardware cloth with
1/4" holes helps make this job quicker. Then, dig it into your soil at least
6" deep so you have an even mix, no peat moss in large concentrations in any
given spot. But: Peat moss makes the soil more acidic. You should get a test
kit from a garden center, and check the pH in the fall. You can adjust it
using lime now, but you're better off leaving it alone until winter cleanup.
Lime in the wrong place can do nasty things to your little plants. This
sounds like lots of work, and it is, but you only need to do the peat moss
thing once.

Tip: Some stores keep their peat moss in stacks outdoors, and the bags often
have tiny holes. You might find bags that are much heavier than others,
meaning they're already moist, or at least moister than others. This can
help if you want to do the work immediately, rather than fool around waiting
for the stuff to become moist. "Dry" means that when you open the bag and
play with it, it makes dust that makes you sneeze. "Moist"....you'll see.

And: The best test for soil consistency is simple. Water your garden. The
next day, grab fists full of soil from various places and squeeze it into
balls. You should be able to break the ball and crumble the soil as if it
were the consistency of cake. Not too sticky like those gimmicky cakes from
Duncan Hines with "pudding" in them. Just cake. If it's very sticky, add
sand as well as peat moss. If too powdery, add just the peat moss.

2) Compost: For just one week, put a bucket outside your back door. Every
time you chop or peel vegetables & fruits, put those trimmings in the
bucket. Notice how heavy it is after a week. That goes to waste when it goes
in your garbage. It's the beginning of a garden to die for, but most people
throw it all away. (Don't put a top on the bucket - it'll stink, and
discourage you from composting). Next, imagine the box that a washing
machine comes in, but maybe 20% smaller in width, and up to your belly.
Imagine it made of heavy plastic, in a relaxing, deep brown color. Now,
wander around the yard and pick a place for that box. Call some garden
centers and ask if they carry one of those "brown plastic compost things".
Buy one and read the instructions. Rock & roll. If you start now, you'll
have some nice, brown compost by late October. The best way is have two
boxes. This is explained in a book I'll mention at the end of this note.

- Weeds: No weed killer. A thousand times NO. If the gardening disease
spreads throughout your body and mind, you will begin planting herbs,
because next to good sex, there is nothing like fresh herbs from your own
garden. Some herbs look nice among the flowers, rather than mixed in with
your vegetable garden, so you should avoid chemicals everywhere. You just
never know. Vegetables like peppers have nice leaves, and work as a
background for flowers. No chemicals, not anyplace.

Anyone who tells you some weed killers are safe is a liar. Do not speak to
them ever again. Smart people do it like this:

1) Long term: Do not "turn over" your soil each year. Once it's conditioned
nicely, there's no need for it. Many years ago, I read that due to normal
garden activity, some weed seeds end up buried deeply, where they decompose
rather than germinate. Turning the soil over brings them to the surface,
where they come to life. Also: Friendly microorganisms in the soil exist at
various layers. You mess with them when you disturb this order. I stopped
turning my soil over when I read all this, and I do very little weeding.

2) The right tools: For shallow weeding, which you'll do regularly, imagine
holding a knife so the blade is flat on the ground. Now, imagine that blade
gliding 1"-2" beneath the soil's surface. That will snip 90% of the weeds,
especially if you do this before they get huge. It also loosens the top
level of soil, which helps it retain moisture. Here's the link to the tool
for doing this job on your knees:
http://www.smithandhawken.com/jhtml/...?PRODID=13650&
CATID=68&PARENTCATID=16
It's good to weed on your knees sometimes. You'll see interesting things
down there, both good & bad. Handy for spotting bug infestations under the
leaves, so you can deal with it before there *are* no leaves.

There's a version you can use when standing up. It's a light-duty tool, not
for hacking at thick roots:
http://www.smithandhawken.com/jhtml/...?PRODID=3165&C
ATID=68&PARENTCATID=16
You'll want this longer one for times when you don't feel like getting
dirty, but you know that if you wait one more day, the weeds will be too
big.

For murdering deep, heavy weeds, and for all sorts of digging where a
shovel's too big, this is the greatest tool on earth. I've had mine for 20
years and I'd never part with it. It has a million uses. Far better than a
trowel for many garden tasks. The edge is tough, not sharp, so a kid can use
it without fear of cuts.
http://www.smithandhawken.com/jhtml/...?PRODID=13833&
CATID=68

Smith & Hawken sells tools which are sometimes a bit pricy, but always great
quality. Their clothing is silly and overpriced, and everything is called
"heirloom". But their tools are built to last forever.

Finally, look at the picture he
http://www.smithandhawken.com/jhtml/...?PRODID=13649&
CATID=68&PARENTCATID=16
See those colors? Remember them, and try to find the entire Gardena product
line locally. S&H doesn't seem to carry the whole line. The orange handle
fits numerous other tools. That little rake is great for cleaning up debris
around plants. They also make a long handle so you can work standing up.
You're going to want the claw attachment for loosening (not turning over)
the top few inches of soil in early spring. These tools have lasted me over
10 years so far.

3) Mulch: This is the organic stuff you put on top of the soil, making a
fluffy layer that'll hold in moisture, keep many small weeds from ever
seeing the sun. If you don't use chemicals on your lawn, you can use a
bagger every so often, and put a 1-2" layer of grass clippings on top of the
soil. Sprinkle it on like grated cheese, loose, not in clumps. Straw works
too, but not hay (for reasons I don't remember), but it's scratchy to work
around. If the soil varies too much between dry and moist, some crops
suffer. Tomatoes can crack, for instance. Even moisture helps, and mulch is
the best way to achieve this. One thing: Grass clipping heat up quite a bit
when they first begin decomposing. Don't apply them where you've just
planted seeds, or within 6" of brand new sprouts. Wait until the clippings
dry, then move them closer. You can buy shredded bark mulches for parts of
the garden where a nice, brown background is desired. Just watch the pH of
the soil a month or two later. Some plants are finicky, especially
vegetables.


Finally, here are some books you shouldn't live without:

Buy a used copy of "Crockett's Victory Garden". James Crockett was the
founder of the show that's still on public TV. It focuses more on
vegetables, but his advice on soil prep and planting is invaluable. Do
everything he says, but ignore all his chemical recommendations. It may be
what killed him. Here's a link to a used book place that showed two copies
in stock today. Their ordering system is silly sometimes, and may say
something's not in stock, even though you're looking right at it. Call the
company if that happens. This link may break in half when posted - stick it
back together:
http://www.powells.com/search/DTSear...victory+garden
&Search.x=51&Search.y=6&pokey=skeptopotamus

The late Henry Mitchell was the garden writer for the Washington Post. His
books are compilations of his newspaper columns, so each is a very short
chapter. Some of them are rants, but most are useful, and they're all
wonderful. He focuses on shrubs & flowers. This link shows two of his books.
(The book in the middle just came up in the search - obviously not a garden
book). "The Essential Earthman" was Henry's first book. You want it. Believe
me. All his others, too.
http://www.powells.com/search/DTSear...l&pokey=skepto
potamus

Finally, if you've planted seeds other than Burpee, and failed, try again,
using their brand. Some geek may ask me to show my data to prove what I'm
saying, but I never counted each seed and recorded germination rates. I can
only say that in 30 years of gardening, Burpee seeds work better. A lot
better. I suspect it's due to the way they're stored before they ship them
to the stores, or directly to you.

Feel free to email, if you can stand much more of this. :-)

-Doug (the garden preacher from Hell)

By the way, you should have something like this for watering:
http://www.smithandhawken.com/jhtml/...?PRODID=14339&
CATID=71&PARENTCATID=16

This seems pricey. The one I have is made by Dramm, if I recall, and any
decent garden center will stock it. It's like a shower head for watering. It
delivers lots of water, so you don't have to stand there forever, but it
does so gently enough that it won't wash your soil away. Dramm also makes a
brass thing (without wand) that delivers a very fine mist - perfect for not
washing away very fine seeds. But the wand is the most useful thing.