WEEDLESS Gardening

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Rocky Beginnings Where bedrock comes to the surface, construct enclosures a foot or more high, then fill the beds almost to the top with well-drained soil. Do not use a soil too rich in organic matter, or the level will sink as the organic matter oxidizes to produce carbon dioxide and water. Spread six cups per 100 square feet of fertilizer containing 5 percent nitrogen on top of the soil. Finally, add organic matter, such as compost, wood chips or straw, on the surface. A one- to two-inch layer will do.

Slurpy Soil Overly wet soil is a condition to avoid or correct unless the plan is to grow plants that enjoy it . Abundant clay is one cause for a soil that is too wet. Many clay soils need no special treatment, but there are those so goopy when wet and so rock hard when dry that an initial digging is needed. One way to loosen up a clay soil is to mix in abundant organic matter, such as compost, leaves, sawdust or peat. (Add extra fertilizer with nitrogen-poor materials such as sawdust.) In the West, clay soils sometimes drain poorly because of excess sodium. If a soil test indicates this is the case, thoroughly mix the recommended amounts of gypsum, sulfur or iron sulfate into the top half-foot of soil, then follow with a heavy application of water to leach out the sodium. A soil that stays consistently wet could also be the result of a shallow water table. Remedy this situation by either lowering the water table with ditches or buried, perforated drain pipes or by building raised beds or mounds to bring the roots above water.

Hardpan A dense layer within the soil through which roots and water penetrate slowly results from traffic, repeated plowing or tillage to the same depth, or may develop naturally in soils where certain minerals or clay particles accumulate. Slow drainage and poor root growth are the main symptoms. Time, night crawlers and deep-rooted plants may eventually break up a hardpan, but a long-bladed spade works, too. Turning the soil over is not as important as just breaking through the hard layer. Once you have broken up the pan, the new environment you create - organic soil amendments, the crops grow and keeping traffic off the surface- should eliminate any need to ever again disrupt the soil.

Read More About It!
For more details on this labor-saving, soil-building technique, see Lee Reich's new book WeedlessGardening, featured in MOTHER's Bookshelf , or call 800-888-9098.

What about Plastic?

Black plastic sheeting, sold as mulch, appears at first to be a cure-all for weeds, but problems can quickly arise. An impermeable sheet of plastic over the ground can leave plant roots and soil microorganisms gasping for air. Roots of plants set in the openings made in plastic might develop even greater breathing problems when water falling on the plastic is channeled into those openings.

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