Planting a garden

Planting a garden
(Under construction)
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Essential materials:

Trowel
Watering can
Seeds
Chicken wire
Manure/compost
Gardening rake/spade​

1. Find a plot

To find a good place for a garden, you’ll want to look for a few of these characteristics.

- Exposure to sunlight (it shouldn’t be blocked from sun for large amounts of time during the day)
- Proximity to buildings and trees (don’t plant a garden where its growth will be hindered by inability to spread its roots)
- Soil (try to find sandy loam that isn’t wet or scratchy to the touch)*
- Water accessibility (you’ll need to water your garden, so make it as easy on yourself as possible)
- Resistance to weeds (find an area with as few weeds as possible)

* Identification of good soil…

- Pour water on it. If the water remains on top of the soil, or if the soil remains wet for a long time, this isn’t a good place to plant.
- Look for decaying plant/animal life. This is great for your garden, and provides the toughest element crucial to plant life to find in an urban setting. (A few of these elements are minerals, air, water, and decaying life.)​

2. Preparing your plot

- Pull weeds (a)
- Add conditioner (b)
- Protect your plot (c)

a. To prepare your plot for planting, you’ll want to first pull all of the weeds out of both your garden and a two yard area around it. Don’t just cut them down, as weeds will just come right back up from their roots.
b. A few conditioners that help soil and are easy to find are manure*, compost, and leaves**. To add manure or compost, pour it on (more than an inch, but less than three and a half) and rake/spade it in. You may also want to consider adding sphagnum (more commonly known as peat moss).
c. To protect your plot from scavengers like deer, you’ll want to make a good fence. This could be a simple picket fence, but I use a combination of strong chicken wire and barbed wire at the top.

* Finding good manure…

- Manure from animals like cows and horses is best.
- Look for manure that is over 6 months old.

** To treat leaves for your garden, shred them up with a lawnmower; this will speed rotting​

3. Planting and care

Now that you’re ready, it’s time to plant.
The first step is to get the seeds that you want to use. If you’re using old seeds from your house, you’ll want to try a germination test. (http://www.ehow.com/how_2254357_do-germination-test-old-seeds.html)

Planting of seeds varies depending on the type of seed and, less variably, upon your region. In general, you’ll want to…

- push your finger half an inch into the soil: the bigger the seed the deeper the hole
- drop the seed in
- sprinkle gently with water
- cover the hole and sprinkle again

…but you’ll want to follow the directions on your seed packet very closely.​

Any questions?​

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