Cover crops are extremely important soil food web tools. Anyone listening to the “Teaming With Microbes” podcasts knows I am into them. Depending on which you use, these plants are capable of ...

Addition of organic matter to soil is sometimes called “carbon farming.” This practice improves the rate at which carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere and converted to plant material ...

Knowing how to cover bare soil in winter is a vital part of overwintering a garden, so if it isn't already on your winter gardening checklist, this year it should become an addition.We compiled a ...

Any sugar will work for organic soil ... water to cover anywhere from 500 to 1,000 square feet. It is a major ingredient in Garrett Juice but is also an effective foliar feeding material ...

Farmers know the importance of cover crops for preserving fertility, soil structure, and moisture levels. Backyard gardeners can apply this same principle to their land.

Regularly mowed grass supplies its own organic material from decomposition of clippings and old roots. Tilling relieves compaction resulting from repeated mowing and increases oxygen in the soil ...

Zibilske conducted a soil chamber study using two types of commercial ground covers: a needle-punched, double-layer fabric, and a tightly woven material made of flat polypropylene strands.

Prepare soil for spring with a cover crop now. Oats, daikon radish and legumes like vetch, fava or bell beans, as well as annual clovers, peas and wildflowers, will help replenish your soil.

Ideally soil should be one-half solid materials (sand, silt, clay, nutrients, minerals, organic materials and biological life) and one-half pore space. The pore space is important.

These ground covers hold onto water and reduce water loss through evaporation, but are detrimental if mixed into the soil. On the other hand, never add sawdust to the top or any part of the soil.