The Scoop on Garden Soil

Let's face it; your garden is only as good as the soil it grows in. You can spend weeks deciding on what plants you want, where you want them and what decorative items you'd like to nestle between your beautiful plants. All that planning and thought is wasted if you don't take care of the basics first. The soil is possibly the most important consideration in any garden, next to light.

So, how do you prep the soil? What goes into ensuring you have good soil? It's both easier and more complex than you might think. I know a lot of people that feel dirt is dirt. Wrong answer; many plants grow better in different types of soil, different pH levels, different drainage or moisture retention abilities.

Before you start picking plants and flowers for your garden, you need to prep the area you intend to plant them in. New garden areas will require more prep, obviously. If you're just starting out with your garden, remove any debris from the area. Sticks, rocks, roots-it all has to go. You'll need to break up the soil to a depth of about 6 inches to get everything; rocks and roots have a bad habit of hiding, popping up only when you start digging down to plant something.

Layout your garden with string or marking paint-it's basically spray paint, but it's designed to be sprayed straight down. Laying out your garden before you start digging will help you keep the dimensions of the garden in mind while working. It's easy to get carried away and clear more than you actually need.

The next step in soil prep is to determine the particular qualities of your soil. Test the pH level of your soil first; you can find home testers that will tell you what the levels are in your soil and if you'll need to add nitrogen or sulfur to the soil before planting to make your garden robust and beautiful.

Soil amendments like mulch and fertilizer go a long way towards making soil better for growing things. Compost will release nutrients into the soil as the organic matter in it decays; more nutrients equals bigger and more beautiful plants. Mulch will help with moisture retention and other soil amendments help increase drainage.

The three main nutrients needed for healthy plants are nitrogen, phosphorous and lime. You can find bags of this stuff at your local do-it-yourself store with the amounts of each nutrient listed on the bag. It'll look something like this 10-10-10 or something similar. Choose a well balanced fertilizer.

Proper soil prep is the starting point to a great garden. The rest is up to you.