Fixing Compacted Lawns

When the soil under a lawn becomes compacted from foot traffic or heavy equipment, it loses its springy texture and becomes hard as a rock. Water puddles or runs off, lack of air to the roots causes the turf to deteriorate in appearance and vigor; and the lawn often develops thin or bare patches. The best time to correct this condition is early-mid spring or in the fall. Then follow these simple steps: •Mow the lawn, then...

Testing Your Soil

Many people garden successfully without ever testing their soil, but they are probably fortunate in gardening on ground that is not deficient in nutrients, is neither too acidic nor too alkaline, and receives plenty of nutrients anyway as part of normal cultivation. If things don’t seem to be growing well, a soil test is the best starting point for putting things right, and dedicated gardeners test their soil routinely...

Planting with Nature

If your soil presents specific problems to do with its structure, (being wet or very dry, for example) rather than expend great quantities of energy trying to bring it closer to the norm, you can always copy nature and grow those plants that would thrive naturally in such conditions. If you have a very sandy soil (or tend to forget to water) you may want to grow those plants that will do well in desert conditions. Cactus and...

Why Don’t People Use Cow Manure As Much Nowd...

  Why don’t people use cow manure as much nowadays? Answer: Because it’s smelly and no fun to handle! Actually, steer manure has always been considered a good cheap fertilizer, and many old timers still swear by it. The problem is that uncomposted steer and chicken manure are high in salts, which can burn (or even kill) plants while raising the pH of the soil. Uncomposted manure is also offensive to your...