General Soil Amendments
We’ve all heard of the importance of amending the soil properly for gardening and landscaping, but the number of soil amendments sold in garden centers often confuses gardeners. Which is which, and which will work best for your soil conditioning needs?
Types of Soil Amendments
Soil amendments fall into two basic categories: inorganic and organic. Inorganic amendments come from non-living materials such as sand, perlite, vermiculite, and crushed stone. With the exception of limestone and gypsum, which are used to increase soil calcium, these are not commonly used in the garden.
However, organic amendments are the opposite. They come from previously living materials such as peat, manures, and composts. When leaves, bark, peat, animals, and animal wastes are mixed together to decompose, compost or “humus” is the final product. Very commonly used, these materials enrich the soil by increasing the air space, adding extra nutrients to the soil, improving the absorption of those nutrients, and increasing overall soil fertility.
Why You Need Soil Amendments
Excellent soil is not common around most homes. Even if it was initially, house construction and roadwork often remove the good soil, and construction equipment compacts the remaining soil. Furthermore, heavy use of the remaining turf — children and pets playing, for example — continues to compact the soil. Chemical treatments, runoff from gutters and downspouts, removal of existing plants, changes in local wildlife— all of these factors can wreak havoc on soil.
Adding organics loosens compacted soil and results in better gardens. Incorporate organics into the beds throughout the year by working evergreen needles, leaves, and lawn clippings into the soil. Amendments such as peat or lime can improve a pH problem if one exists. Calcium and magnesium deficiencies can be corrected using organic materials such as bone meal or wood ashes or inorganic materials such as limestone, gypsum, or soft rock phosphate.
Mulching is another simple way to add biodegradable materials to the soil. Simply place mulch around the plant, leaving several inches bare closest to the stem to discourage insect invasions and rot. In addition to slowly providing nutrients as it decomposes, mulching is attractive, reduces weeds and erosion, maintains soil temperature, and prevents “crusting” that occurs when soil becomes too dry.
Another advantage of adding organics is the attraction of worms. They further assist in the decomposition, increase aeration, and leave worm castings, a valuable organic material, behind. A healthy garden is home to many worms, and it all starts with adding organic soil amendments.
Whether you opt for organic or inorganic soil amendments, if you use them properly, your soil will improve, and your landscaping, flowerbeds, and garden will look better than ever.
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Spring Lawn Renovation
Spring is the ideal time to spruce up your lawn. After a long winter, you can easily see where any bald, bare or thin patches exist, as well as where weeds or fungus may be taking over the lawn. Fortunately, there are easy ways to set your lawn to rights!
Seeding
If you are planning to seed a new lawn or overseed an existing lawn, it is best to seed as early as possible. It is important to get seed germinated and growing before trees begin to leaf out, when the trees will be usurping more of the soil’s moisture and nutrition and new leaves will block sunlight from the grass seed. This is especially true in more heavily shaded areas. Keep the area moist at all times until the roots of grass seed become established, then you can gradually decrease the frequency of watering. The new grass can be mowed when it reaches a height of about three inches.
Rejuvenating a Weak Lawn
Your lawn cannot live without air, water and nutrients, but decaying material matted down between grass blades can smother even the healthiest-looking lawn. This decaying material is called thatch, and when a thick layer of thatch builds up, water and fertilizer may run off instead of penetrating the soil. Aerating and dethatching can help rejuvenate a lawn by restoring passageways to the soil. Late spring is an excellent time to dethatch cool-season grasses. Thatching rakes can be used, or you can use a metal rake to remove thatch by hand.
Adusting pH
The pH of your soil has a direct impact on the health of your lawn. Test your soil to determine the pH (simple kits are available to do this). We recommend a small handful of soil taken from a depth of 3 inches to get the most accurate reading. At a pH of 6.8-7.0 nutrients are most readily available to turf grasses, and beneficial microorganisms are more active to decompose thatch and keep the soil structure healthy. If your pH is too low or too high, consider amending the soil as needed to help bring it to a more desirable level.
Crabgrass Control
On established lawns that you are not overseeding, apply a fertilizer with crabgrass control in early to mid-April. Straight Team products can be applied with separate fertilizers like Espoma Organic 18-8-6 or similar fertilizers. Reapply Team in early to mid-June for the second germination of crabgrass. Remember, crabgrass seeds start to germinate when the soil temperature reaches 50-58 degrees. Use corn gluten as an organic alternative for crabgrass control on an established lawn.
On newly seeded lawns and those seeded in late fall or during the winter months, use a starter fertilizer with crabgrass control. You will need to reapply in four weeks or however the manufacturer’s instructions indicate. Proper applications will keep your new lawn crabgrass-free.
Maintaining your lawn at a higher level, 4 inches, throughout the growing season will allow you to control crabgrass without the use of chemicals. Taller grass will shade out the crabgrass seed preventing it from germinating.
Insect Controls
An early season application of Merit or a similar insecticide will provide effective white grub control for the growing season. This preventative method tends to give better results than applying insecticides when you notice damage as it then may be too late. If you have routinely had problems with other insects, opt for products specifically targeted for those pests to ensure effective control.
A lot goes into having a lush, healthy lawn, but if you take the appropriate steps to rejuvenate your lawn in spring, you’ll be rewarded with thick, healthy, resilient turf to enjoy from early spring until snow flies again.
