How would you admind your soil

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erie

Newbie
Original poster
Nov 4, 2012
17
10
Just how would you ad-mind your soil since it has been gardened with Commercial Fertilizers for years?

What would you do first to it to change from Commercial Fertilizers to Organic Fertilizers?

Just how many years would it take to bring the soil back to where it was once was organically?

There are books out there that talk about soil ad-mind, but which ones are the best informed books?

I have not seen any earthworms in my soil for years, what would you do to improve your soil to get earthworms to come back into your soil?
 
I believe that in California, to be classified to be organic the soil must be chemical free for two years. To help the soil switch some farmers will plant alfalfa. clover or legumes and plow under the mature crop to enrich the soil.
 
 
The almighty USDA sets the organic standards now, it order to get certified, the land must be chemical free for 3 years.
That, of course, doesn't mean that the land has fully recovered from damage in that time.

~Martin
 
I do have clay soil and compost should help it allot.

Just how do you know if manure is organic? You can buy it at Wal-Mart in the Spring.

Which is better Chicken manure or Cow manure?

Has anyone heard of Ohio Earth Organic Fertilizer?

If you was to get a soil test where would you go to get a full soil test that would give you information on what Organic Fertilizers to use on your garden?

I really need to read up on how to improve my soil and get as much information on going Organic.

So far you all have given me very good advise and I am reaching out for your help in doing so. This is why I am asking so many questions and where to buy the best Organic Fertilizers and how to apply them be it spray or granular.

An also who are the top experts on Organic Gardening.

So if you want me to stop asking questions please tell me.

When is the best time to till your garden in the Fall or Spring of the year? An why?
 
Scoop all the cow s..... out of the milking barn.

Turn it into the soil a month or two before planting.

Eat the food and be glad you still speak American English.

For now.

Good luck and good smoking.
 
Call your county Extension Service..they will answer all your questions...


I woulda found their number if I knew where ya lived...
 
The starting point is to get a good soil test done so you know what's in the soil and what's not.
 
Just how do you know if manure is organic? You can buy it at Wal-Mart in the Spring.
Which is better Chicken manure or Cow manure?

I would avoid that stuff, it's usually cheap garbage with lots of useless fillers.

Gather up all the free organic matter you can get, coffee grounds, leaves, grass clippings, etc.

There's no sense spending money if you don't have to.

The extension service is usually of limited use because they and their soil tests are geared toward chemical gardening/farming.
They aren't likely to be able to make good organic recommendations, not around here anyway.

I would at least get a basic pH test and adjust the pH of the soil if needed, liming is a requirement where i'm at because the soil is universally acidic (unless growing something like potatoes which require acidic soil).

Organic gardening is very forgiving, if you apply a lot of good organic matter it acts as a natural buffer against nutrient deficiency.
I've organic gardened/farmed for a tad over 30 years now without an advanced soil test, just pH, and have never had a major problem.
It does help to be able to 'read' the plants though so you know what's going on.

The book "Let's Get Growing" by Crow Miller is excellent, because it's well written and simplified as far as the nutrient recommendations for various plants, light feeders, heavy feeds, etc.
It's out of print, but widely available and cheap....


Don't tire yourself out looking for revolutionary new organic gardening techniques or info because not much has changed in the past 50 years other than in some areas of pest and disease management.


~Martin
 
Erie,

I'm a complete newbie here, but can answer any question you have concerning gardening. As some of the others stated, a soil test is the first thing you need to do. It'll tell what the current levels are for Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Potassium - as well as what your PH level is. With the next growing season pretty far off right now, the only thing you should do is adjust the PH, if needed. The optimal PH level for most vegetables is between 6.0 and 6.5, and you simply add lime to raise your current level, or sulfur to lower it. You'll most likely not need any Phosphorous next year, because it takes a long time to deplete once added to an existing soil. Since synthetic fertilizers have been added every year already, I bet there's a significant amount of Phosphorous present. However, Nitrogen and Potassium will definitely be needed - especially Nitrogen. It doesn't stay in the soil very long at all. There are all kinds of organic fertilizers you can use that are comprised of mainly one major nutrient. For instance, blood meal typically has an NPK value of 12-0-0, which means it is 12% Nitrogen, 0% Phosphorous, and 0% Potassium. A good source of just Potassium is Potash, but you need to be careful when  adding it to your soil.The reason is because it will raise the PH pretty quick....Anyway, I hope this helps.

Jeff
 
Erie, if you're interested in a soil testing sources. Here is are a couple that we use. There may be others that are better suited for you.

http://producers.wardlab.com/default.aspx

http://aglabs.com/soilTesting.html

We've used turkey manure for gardening. It's excellent for that. It's hot stuff, though. If you could find a farm that grows organic turkey or other that would be great. Avoid most that commercial product.  In your case I don't know but my experience corn cob works in clay and soybean stubble too to some extent. Compost, peat moss, leaves, etc. So then again you'd have to locate the organic material.  I like to sprinkle (a little) ash as well. 
 
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