Ohio Valley gray can stay away! Outside is singing of Spring. Did the winter blues get to you? The remedy is right outside your door! Take to the woods for some ephemeral wildflower sightings or grab a chair and dream up the possibilities for your own backyard. Either way time spent in nature may be better for you than you realize. A recent collaboration by two fantastic Italian researchers, Megcagli and Nieri, explore natures healing powers in The Secret Therapy of Trees.
They affirm that, “Seeing plants on our terrace grow and bloom is in itself a form of restoration of our direct attention, which for a few satisfying minutes can take us away from our daily worries.” Sounds simple enough. Well, that’s just our visual experience. They go on to show how our presence and activity in nature influences our brain chemistry, fortifies our immunity, relieves stress and anxiety, and can quite literally heal us! In fact, there are anti-depressants underfoot. Mycobacterium vaccae, a component of a healthy living soil, affects humans much like Prozac when absorbed through the body. So, let’s dig in, shall we?
Get Native
In your own outdoor space, whether your objective is flower or food, Spring is time to begin! If you are thinking of altering or adding to your landscape, choose native or adapted native plants and be diverse! Local nurseries are the best, as big box stores tend to have plants that are not meant for our area and are often less healthy. The more native plants the merrier. Diversity in your landscape creates itself, an ecosystem. More birds, butterflies, and bugs bring balance to your little piece of green. Harmony, with a little help from you.
How can you be of service? Start in the ground. A handful of healthy soil contains billions of microorganisms. A single scoop holds more biodiversity than can be found anywhere on Earth. Tiny as they are, these microorganisms are mighty. Each with a specific job to better grow your plants. Employees of your dirt, they prefer their pay isn’t counterfeit. Synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides are not the real thing. A plant is only as healthy as its soil; healthy soil is only sustainable when we treat it with organic care. It is a must to use organic. I consider myself a flexible person; I can even touch my toes, but on this I will not bend. Soil is life, all life depends on soil. Why wouldn’t we treat it with reverence, or at least try to learn what it does and doesn’t like?
Go Natural (when you can)
Synthetic products falsify the relationships taking place between the microorganisms, minerals, nutrients, and the roots. A naturally regenerative relationship occurs when we treat our soil and plants organically. Synthetic lawn and garden treatments bully their way around, often with outrageously unbalanced NPK (nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium) and more than enough yucky stuff. Over time and multiple applications your soil vitality diminishes, resulting in unhealthy plants. Unfortunately, the consequences that result from synthetic usage are much further reaching than your prized hydrangea or golf course green lawn.
Our waterways are super susceptible to synthetics, which can be easily observed in warmer months, when eutrophication takes hold, suffocating aquatic life and drying up creeks and streams all together. Bugs and other wildlife face peril when we choose chemicals. My good neighbor in her first year of beekeeping lost both hives, because as in years past, she had her yard treated by a chemical lawn company. Hours later, hundreds of those little honeys lay dead below the boxes. If it’s not good for the environment, how could it be good for us? Beloved Kentuckian poet, author, agrarian, Wendell Berry professes, “Do unto others downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you.” We are not up the creek without a paddle on this, we have great options for a beautiful bounty, we just must choose them. Nature already made the answers, all we need to do is use them.
Options
Supply will only grow with demand, and so I’ll remain hopeful. I’ll admit organic solutions aren’t as readily available in our area as I would like. Organic options, or lack thereof, is one way Mark Twain’s quote, “When the world ends, I want to be in Cincinnati because it’s 20 years behind the times,” holds true. Don’t despair, it can be done – even at Lowes! Espoma has great products, easy application, and yields noticeable results. Most of their products contain mycorrhizae, a powerhouse fungi that does wonders for soil and plant health, think Clark Kent of your soil biome.
Fish emulsion and seaweed are excellent as a foliar feed. Apply them first thing in the morning, as the stoma on the leaves are wide open and ready to receive. These plant pores open, not with the rising of the sun, but to birdsong, which is why birds are so important in agriculture and is proof that magic does indeed exist.
Fox Farms is a brand that can be found locally. They make an excellent soil conditioner and great fertilizers. Use any of their products with reckless abandon, you’ll be glad you did! Compost is its own amazing thing. Different plants like different composts, you can really go down a rabbit hole on this and you won’t just find pellets. Any cured animal manure is top notch to add to any garden bed. It’s also a winning addition for your own compost pile, accelerating decomposition and adding loads of vitality. Bat guano and worm castings can be found most anywhere, usually in a smaller bag because they pack serious punch. Rock phosphate is great to have on hand, perfect when planting as it stimulates roots and will bring on more blooms.
Whatever you decide to try, don’t forget the mulch! Sure, the aesthetic brings a nice contrast, but that’s just a bonus. Apply 2-3” in depth, a little well around the base of plants, keeping the soil cool, microbes busy, water retained and plants happy. Without mulch, soil surface can become impervious and repel water. No bueno for your plants or your water bill. All the above can and should be used both for flower and food. Soaker hoses and rain barrels are a wonderful way to conserve and water well.
DIY Food
Whatever the reason: family fun, health, self-reliance, inflation, love of homegrown tomatoes, urban farming is on trend. Perhaps, soon to bring lawn farming to an end! Whether you’re just starting out with a couple of pots, or you’ve hailed a tractor to plow your entire yard, growing your own food is worth its weight in fresh produce and more! Again, we’re off to a super start with quality soil. If you are using containers, you will need an organic potting soil designed for veggies. You can direct sow seed or transplant today, water, fertilize and observe.
Vegetable plants are heavy feeders, and our native clay soil is not easy to thrive in. Have your soil tested if you want to be precise about what you add. This is much easier than it sounds, and Hamilton County Conservation District’s website tells you how. A soil test will ensure success, it’s also a fascinating look at what goes down underground. If you aren’t type A and prefer to learn from your mistakes, use your best judgment and dig in with any of the organic products we’ve discussed. The richer the soil here the better, think black fluffy gold.
Quality Matters
Depending on the size of your veggie patch, it may be advisable to order material in bulk. A couple yards of compost or veggie blend (companies often mix a raised bed blend, be careful here), can be mixed with your own backyard and generally is a good start. Some places add mulch to bulk up the soil, and this robs nitrogen from your plants while the soil works to break down the material. Pricing can generally be one indication. If the blend is dirt cheap, it likely isn’t so good. Ask for ingredients in the mix, and when in doubt, give it the old sniff test. Healthy soil has a distinct earthy aroma, like the taste of a beet.
Veggies need about 12” of soil to do their best. There’s a handy equation to figure the amount of soil needed for you to fill your beds. Length multiplied by width in feet multiplied by depth in inches, divide that number by 324 and you’ll have exact yardage of material to the decimal. L’xW’xD”/324.
Seed organic heirloom veggie varieties. Call yourself a freedom fighter! Indian author and physicist Vandana Shiva says, “Seed is the source of life. Seed is the source of food. To protect food freedom, we must protect seed freedom.” I couldn’t agree more, but if you’re hesitant to be such a radical in our current climate, you can just tell yourself heirloom varieties are heartier and tastier on all accounts, and I’ll agree with that too. Heirloom seed companies put so much practical research and effort into organic gardening. Choose seed from these companies, and you’ll have germination and fruit, while quietly classifying as a freedom fighter.
What Are You Waiting For?
This April, you can seed it all. Direct sow, lettuces, spinach, chard, and arugula. Carrots, beets, and radishes go right in the ground. Peas love this weather and birds love peas, so keep them protected. Once above ground, those sweet peas should be safe. Herbs like cilantro, dill and basil can be direct seeded and you may as well sprinkle in some of your favorite annual flowers. And remember to be fully satisfied by a seed that sprouts. If you want a head start, get transplants from a local nursery. Early April, plant seedlings of broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and kale. Toward the end of the month transplants of peppers and tomatoes. Seems the suggestion is to wait for Mother’s Day, but I prefer to take the holiday off. So, I often plant mid-April and have row cloth on hand for chilly nights. Remind yourself of Margaret Atwood’s quote, “In the Spring you should smell like dirt” and you’re bound to be a success.
Ready to pursue the greenness of your thumb, no matter your plot size? Do it well, do it right. Be in Wendell Berry’s favor when he describes, “Good farmers, who take seriously their duties as stewards of Creation and of their land’s inheritors, contribute to the welfare of society in more ways than society usually acknowledges, or even knows. These farmers produce valuable goods, of course; but they also conserve soil, they conserve water, they conserve wildlife, they conserve open space, they conserve scenery.”
It’s Your Choice
If you say, “No thanks, I don’t want to get my hands dirty, and I’d rather spend my time forest bathing and admiring the woodland wildflowers that will be gone by May.” I’d say this; consider what you’re eating, where does it come from, how was it grown, what was its journey to arrive to dinner? Consider what Joel Salatin, owner of Polyface farms in Virginia, has to say about this, “You, as a food buyer, have the distinct privilege of proactively participating in shaping the world your children inherit.” Consider how your participation in a local food economy can help your community flourish. Check out some CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture), subscribe to them; head to the farmer’s market, flounce around for fixins’; buy local at the grocery. For me, I don’t think it matters much what came first, the chicken or the egg, but I do know it matters immensely where it comes from. Again, I’m with Wendell, “I stand for what I stand on.”
- Scratching the Surface: An Ode to Spring and Soil - April 13, 2022
What a wonderfully informative article. It has made stop and think about what I am doing in my yard. I am going organic from now on because I know the chemicals are harmful to the environment. I cringe every time I see a bird foraging in my yard after I put down crabgrass preventer. I am trying to get past the unattainable goal of a perfect lawn.
Thanks so much for your comment! I’m glad you found it useful! Please feel free to reach out with any questions. The grass is greener, neighborhood pressure is real, so don’t be hard on yourself. Make changes where you can and feel better for those:)