Re: organic and air circulation

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Also, I'm planning a new gardn area about 50' x 25 and my husband doesn't
want to use raised beds with actual sides. He just got a new tractor and I
guess wants to be able to get in there and plow it up every year! I know I
can still SQFT garden with raised areas, but it tends to get pretty wet. Do
you think simple raised areas without sides will be enough to keep the roots
from getting too wet? Also, my concern about his tilling the area is the
sharing of diseases (I try to rotate crops to avoid this).



Hi Virginia,
  You may want to consider no till gardening. After experimenting with no
till on several of my garden beds for a couple of years I went to no till for
my whole garden a couple of years ago. There is mounting evidence that
tilling the soil does much more harm than good. (actually, it really doesn't
do ANY good) The importance of mycelium (long strands of fungus that help
collect and distribute nutrients around the soil) are becoming better
understood and any tilling of the soil damages these. Plants grown in no till
beds actually need fewer amendments added to the beds because they are better
able to utilize the nutrients that are there. The soil's pore structure is
also disturbed by tilling. Worm holes etc, which are good for the drainage of
the beds and the finer micropores in the soil which form a moisture holding
sponge are destroyed by tilling. These micropores are held open by Glomelin,
(a fungus derived substance) and can survive the soil being walked on and
still spring back but which won't survive tilling. You can walk lightly on a
no-till bed, but not a tilled one.
  Another advantage I've found is that there is less weeding necessary with
no-till. Weeds seem to do better in freshly turned soil.
  As far as adding amendments to the soil, an inch or so of compost in the
spring will usually provide even heavy feeders with enough nutrients for the
first part of the growing season, with an additional feeding of fish emulsion
later in the season to help the plants along.
  If you're adventurous, you might also start tossing you kitchen scraps in
a blender with some water and blending them into mush. I put this "soup"
directly on the garden beds as a "cold" compost.
  Good luck with your new garden beds.

Jim K
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