SPRING INTO ORGANIC GARDENING

As bulb, tree and shrub blooms begin to emerge from their winter hibernation, gardeners everywhere begin their quest for another year of gardening bliss.  In order to prepare your gardens for spring, let us begin with soil health.  Healthy plants start with healthy soils.  A yearly application of compost to all garden areas will help to retain fertilizer nutrients more affectively, loosen soil structure and regulate soil moisture.  All one needs is a ½”-1” topdressing of compost a top all landscape and vegetable bed areas.  Make sure that whatever compost you use is well broken down.  Any organic debris that is yet to break down such as fresh wood chips, manure or lawn clippings can injure plants roots, and some times to the plants demise.  Let any compost ingredients sit for at least one year to decompose thoroughly before applying to garden areas.

The next most important thing to consider is weed control.  Early spring is the perfect time to apply natural weed control products such as corn gluten.  Corn gluten has long been known by farmers for its ability to stop emerging weed seed in their tracks.  Corn gluten is a pelletized  product that can be spread with a broadcast style spreader just as fertilizer is spread.  It’s our organic alternative to chemical preemergents, and works well if applied in late winter or early spring to both lawn and garden areas.  Be cautious not to spread corn gluten where perennials may reseed because it will inhibit their growth as well.  Also, mulch all bed areas well.  Mulching and applying corn gluten now will provide us more time to enjoy our garden instead of laboring in them later.

Now is the time for removing all perennial and grass debris from our bed areas as well.  Beneficial insects over winter in perennial and ornamental grass debris in our gardens, so if we wait until spring to cut this debris, we provide our garden plants with instant protection from pest insect invasion.  And speaking of pests, right now we can start applying milky spore on our lawns and gardens to control Japanese beetle grubs.  This naturally occurring bacterium is host specific, so it will not injure other beneficial soil life.  Grubs are a favorite food of moles.  Moles begin to really rough up our lawns and gardens in early spring looking for earthworms and Japanese beetle grubs.  Although eliminating the grubs will help to reduce mole populations, this will not rid you of these carnivorous mammals altogether.  A natural approach to mole control is as easy as applying a small quantity of pelletized coyote urine (Shake Away) over all active mole burrows.  Moles have an acute sense of smells, and abhor predators.  Moles will succumb to paranoia, and eventually flee your yard in search of safer foraging.