Putting Your Garden to Bed!

Start Preparing the Soil for Your Spring Garden
By Putting Your Garden to Bed Before Winter!

One of the nice things about late autumn and early winter is it frees up time from weeding and gardening to take care of other things that were put on hold during spring and summer.

So why would we mention preparing the soil for a spring garden at this time of year? Because the method we’re about to suggest won’t take much muscle power or time and will give you a tremendous jumpstart you’ll be glad to get when spring wheels into motion.

Select a site for a new garden plot? Cover the ground with a heavy black tarp now and secure it into place with blocks, bricks or stones. Not only will the weeds and grass be killed, but the black tarp will absorb extra sunshine and help warm the soil, enabling you to start spring planting two to three weeks earlier than usual. That’s a real jumpstart. So, get out the black tarp or heavy plastic sheeting and lay claim to your new spring garden site! When spring rolls around, the black covering will stay in place to continue to add heat to the soil. Then you’ll cut openings in the sheeting to directly plant seeds or transplants.

©Deborah Tukua, co-author of Pearls of Garden Wisdom.

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