How to Prepare Perfect Soil for the Garden

As someone who enjoys gardening a little too much, it's more than just a mere "hobby". Gardening helps you to feel calm, and it establishes a kind of connection between you and nature. There is no better feeling than leaving the world behind and connecting with the earth. As most gardening lovers have a small backyard, front yard or a balcony/terrace garden, they often know most of the things about it. However, sometimes a tiny detail is overlooked by the most experienced gardeners, and that results in slow growth and issues later; that small thing is soil preparation!

Yes, for those who are not aware, not every soil is suitable for plants, and even the most fertile soils need to be adequately prepared before planting. So, to add some info to the knowledge stack of the experienced ones and to give some helpful tips to the newbie gardeners, here are some points on how to properly prep soil for the Garden; read on!

Manure :-

For someone who loves planting, manure is a term that needs no introduction. However, for the new ones, allow us to tell you that manuring is the act of adding food waste from animals to the soil to make it more fertile. The most commonly available manure in India is cow dung, and it's pretty cheap, too, as compared to other ones. We do suggest that you go for organic and decomposed manure as they provide the plants with the much-needed micronutrients. Now, just any manure can work, but nitrogen-rich manure works more favourably for your plants. To add more nitrogen, you have to add some leguminous/green manure leaves.

Composting :-

People often confuse manuring with composting; let us clear it for ones and all! Composting is basically recycling any decomposed plant waste, while manure, as explained before, is decomposed animal waste that has been heated enough to remove all the toxins. Composting can be very beneficial for your plants as it is believed to be a slow nutrient releaser that is great for the health of the soil in the long run.

Mulch with Care :-

Mulching is a technique that allows you to add organic soil benefiting elements without disturbing the plant; therefore, it is like making a layer on top of the soil that eventually gets into it. Mulching has tons of benefits; it restrains the moisture of the earth, stops the growth of unwanted and harmful weeds, keeps the temperature down during summer etc. However, mulching has some backdrops as well, mainly if you use the wrong techniques or material. Mulching can change the chemical equations of the soil and harm the plant; keeping the condition cool can lead to a permanently moist environment that can cause the root to rot. Therefore, before trying the mulching, read about it and then take your decision carefully.

Say no to Tilling :-

Tilling has always been a very controversial subject among plant enthusiasts; some believe that this is a wonderful technique that can help your plant, while others, including us, think of it as something that is a waste of resources and can do more harm than good. Tilling is breaking the soil and turning it over, which in our opinion, has many drawbacks. First of all, it can promote the unhealthy growth of harmful weeds; then it can disturb the free work you are getting from the earthworm, who often help in making soil better and also, tilling can disrupt the work of microorganisms of the soil, which can lead to degradation of the same. Still, if you wish to go for this, we suggest that you do your comprehensive research according to the plants that you want to grow.

Gardening is a fantastic experience, whether you grow a beautiful plant from seed or you go for online plant delivery to get your grown plant. We agree that planting is a lot of effort and time, but the result is always worth it!