I think it is safe to say spring has officially sprung in Minnesota. We got that last (hopefully) spring blizzard out of the way and now are enjoying the greening up of grass and trees. It is time to think about yard work and gardening.
Do you have a garden? I do. It is one of those non-negotiable things in my life. Every house where I have lived, I have had a garden, even if it was just a few tomato plants around the deck. Gardening is one of those things that I need to do to enjoy the warm seasons of the year fully. I feel joy spending time outside tending plants, getting dirt under my finger nails and exercising. It also helps me put more organic food on our table. If you don't have a garden, you need to create one. It doesn't have to be big and it doesn't have to be hard. You can create a garden in a day without any heavy equipment or even using a shovel. After creating many gardens, I have found this method to be the best and easiest way to create a fertile organic garden. The first thing you need is to gather materials. All the organic matter (things that decompose) you can get your hands on. My favorites are cardboard, newspaper, leaves, pine needles, grass clippings, compost and wood chips. Secondly, select the location of your garden. You can build a raised bed or simply lay it on the ground and edge it later. Lay the cardboard or newspaper in a thick layer on the ground. If there is grass where you are building your garden, make sure to overlap the material so the grass will be efficiently smothered. Then layer on the materials one at a time. Don't mix the layers, just rake them evenly across the surface. The best practice for this is to alternate with green and brown layers of organic matter but mine are usually heavy on the brown layers. The green layers get added on as the summer progresses and I have grass clippings from the lawn. Finish the garden with a layer of soil on the top. It doesn't have to be thick. An inch or two is plenty to get you started. You can plant seeds or seedlings into it right away and water thoroughly. You want the water to soak all the way to the bottom and get the cardboard or newspaper saturated. This garden is an amazing way to attract earthworms which are nature's plows and fertilizers. They will come and enjoy a buffet of organic matter and poop out for you the best fertilizer you can buy. As the summer progresses, mulch your garden with your grass clippings. This adds more nitrogen to your garden and helps keep moisture in the soil so you won't have to water as often. This method works so well because you are mimicking the natural process of how soil is created in an ecosystem. That is the best way to do anything, work with nature and not against it! I hope you are inspired to create a garden for yourself this year, or improve on your existing one. The benefits you will reap from gardening stretch into all aspects of life! You will be surprised how gardening can change your life. If you are serious about changing your life and improving your health, schedule a Best Health Strategy Session with me and discover how easy getting healthy can be!
1 Comment
Patty
4/16/2019 01:22:42 pm
I am excited to get gardening! Thanks for the inspiration!!
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AuthorJessica Mutunga is passionate about good simple living that focuses on relationships, food and creating a supportive healthy environment. She is The Light Way Coach. Archives
May 2022
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