Wednesday 12 August 2009

Planning And Making A Garden

The first thing in garden making is the choice of a position. Without a choice, it means just making the best one can with what you have got. With space limited it turns into no garden, or a box garden. Surely a or container garden is better than having no garden at all.

But we will now reckon that it is doable to actually choose just the right situation for our garden. What shall be picked? The greatest determining factor is the sun. No one would pick a north corner, unless it were absolutely neccessary; because, while north corners do for ferns, certain wild flowers, and begonias, they are of little use as spots for a general garden.

If viable, pick the perfect spot a southern exposure. In this placement, the sun lies warm all day long. When the garden is thus located the rows of veggies and blooms should run north and south. Placed this way, the plants receive the sun's rays all of the morning on the eastern side, and all the afternoon on the western side. One should not have any lopsided plants with this arrangement.

Say the garden aspects southeasterly. In this case the western sun is out of the problem. In order to get the best distribution of sunlight run the rows northwest and southeast.

The plan is to get the most sunlight as evenly spread as practicable for the lengthiest amount of time. . So if you use a small diagram, remembering that you would like the sun to shine part of the day on one side of the plants and part on the other, you can juggle out any situation. The southern exposure gives the ideal instance because the sun gives nearly half time to each side. A northern exposure might mean an almost entire cut-off from sunlight; while northeasterly and southwestern sites constantly get uneven distribution of sun's rays, no matter how carefully this is planned.

If possible, the garden, should be plotted out on paper. The plan is a great aid when the real planting time comes. It saves time and unnecessary buying of seed.

New garden places are probably to be found in two conditions: they are covered either with turf or with rubbish. In big garden areas the ground is ploughed and the sod turned under; but in little gardens remove the turf. How to take off the turf in the best mode is the next question. Stake and line off the garden position. The line gives us an accurate and straight course to follow. Cut the boundaries with the spade all along the line. If the region is a little one, say four feet by eighteen or twenty, this is an easy thing. Such a narrow strip can be marked off like a checker board, the turf cut through with the spade, and easily removed. This could be done in two long strips cut lengthwise of the strip. When the turf is cut through, roll it right up similar a roll of carpet.

But imagine the garden plot is big. Then divide this up into strips a foot wide and remove the turf as before. What shall we do with the sod? Don't throw it away for it is full of richness, although not quite in available form. So pack the sod grass side down one square on another. Leave it to rot and to weather. When rotted it makes a good plant food. Such a pile of rotting vegetable matter is named a compost pile. All through the summertime add any old green veggie matter to this. In the fall put the autumn leaves on. A fine lot of goodness is being fixed for a new season.

Even when the garden is large enough to plough, I would pick out the greatest pieces of sod instead of having them turned under. Go over the ploughed space, pick out the pieces of sod, shake them well and pack them up into a compost heap.

Just the ground is inadequate. The soil is still left in clods. Always as one spades one should break up the big clumps. But even then the ground is in no shape for planting. The ground must be very fine indeed to plant in, because seeds can get very close indeed to fine particles of soil. But the big clods leave big spaces which no tiny root hair can penetrate. A seed is left stranded in a perfect waste when planted in clumps of soil. A baby enclosed with big pieces of beefsteak would starve. A seed among big chunks of soil would be in a like position. The spade can never do this work of pulverizing soil. But the rake can. That's the value of the rake. It is a great clod breaker, but will not do for large clumps. If the soil still has large clumps in it get the hoe.

Numerous people handle the hoe awkwardly. The essential work of this tool is to free the soil of weeds and stir up the top surface. It is applied in summer to form that mulch of dust so precious in retaining moisture in the soil. I often see individuals as if they were going to hack into atoms everything around. Hoeing should never be such lively exercise as that. Spading is physical, hard work, but not hoeing and raking.

After chunks are broken use the rake to get the bed fine and smooth. Now the great piece of work is done.

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