GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – As summer winds down and leaves begin to change color, many gardeners may ask how to prepare for the next growing season.
Fall is not just a time for raking leaves but also a time to prepare your garden for spring success.
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Garden experts suggest that fall soil preparation sets the stage for strong growth in the spring. Cooler weather can mean fewer weeds, softer soil and less stress on plants over the winter months.
By adding organic matter in autumn, you can allow for nutrients to break down during winter months, giving your garden a much-deserved, healthy start.
Mark Valentine of Valentine Gardens and Tim Burns, the Agriculture Conservation Coordinator of the Fox-Wold Watershed Alliance, provided some more tips on proper garden preparation.
“The most important thing we can do to help alleviate some of that soil and nutrient loss is to cover the soil,” Burns said. “You can really use anything you have on hand to cover your soil, whether that’s leaves or grass clippings, straw, wood chips, mulch or anything like that you have on hand. Even if you want to chop and drop some of the other plants you have in your garden.”
Burns added some tips specifically for tomatoes as well.
“You can just chop your tomato plants and leave them lay,” Burns said. “They act as a cover for soil and protect it from any impact from the rain and keep it in place.”
Mulch is a classic choice and one of the most popular garden “toppings”. A two to three-inch layer upon the soil surface made up of wood chips, shredded bark, or straw can aid in insulating roots and regulating soil temperature.
Mulch also aids in keeping the soil moist, which reduces the need to water late into the season.
Compost can provide a nutrient-rich topping that improves soil health over time. Kitchen scraps, grass clippings, and fallen leaves mixed into a compost can create a natural, “at-home” fertilizer that can help ensure that your soil is rich for the spring.
Leaf litter is not only a great blanket but a great way to get rid of leaves. Shredded leaves spread across a garden bed can create a protective layer that will mimic a forest floor.
They slowly break down, adding organic matter to the soil and thus protecting beneficial insects over winter beneath them.
One of the final options is also straw or hay, which is most popular amongst vegetable gardens.
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Straw or hay can be especially beneficial over gardening assets such as garlic, onions, and root vegetables that persist throughout the colder months, while still allowing air and water to circulate.
So whether it’s mulch, compost, leaves or straw, fall toppings can give your garden a boost when it needs it most. Putting in little work now can allow gardeners to look forward to healthier soil, fewer weeds, and stronger plants come springtime.
