Starting A No-Till Garden
By Sherrie Ottinger (The Tennessee Dirtgirl)
Keeping the soil covered, and keeping roots – even dead ones – in the soil, can create the best sponge for rainfall, soaking up the water, and pulling it down, instead of it running off and carrying soil with it. Not disturbing the surface, allows the fungal communities to do what they were meant to do. There’s an amazing trade-off between the roots of plants and fungi. Science has shown us how plants we call “weeds” send roots deeper than many plant roots can go, and pull up nutrients need by those plants. So do fungi. The communication and exchange that goes on, is beneficial to the health and well-being of all life.
No-till gardening is a way to simulate Nature’s covering and lack of disturbance. There are several ways to go about beginning a no-till garden, and my recommendation is to start it in the fall, so winter wetness, and underground activities will break down the organics – rotting stuff – and have it ready for spring gardening. Can you start now? Yes, but don’t expect a lot the first year, unless your base soil is already good. Solarizing the soil for 2 or 3 weeks can start the process. This will kill everything green and some seeds as well. When you uncover it, you’ll have a big wilted spot. Cover it with several layers of newspapers, begin sure to overlap, so no ground is left uncovered. Top with 4” – 6” of composted manure or topsoil, then a thick layer of OLD rotted hay or straw. Safe planting for us, is the week after Mother’s Day, in May, and you should be able to make holes for your plants and seeds, easily. This layering will continue from now on. I add new rotting matter as often as I can find it. I also bury my scraps in the garden, to rot. You’ll notice a change in your soil’s tilth and smell, the second year, and each year thereafter, it will only get better.
Later I’ll talk about cardboard gardening. That’s the one you’d start in the fall.
The Tennessee Dirtgirl
