In-ground garden prep ?

IdahoLakeLady

Hey everyone!

 We built a house last fall and moved in on Halloween. The landscaper and I raced to get sprinklers in, sod down and bulbs in before it snowed, and just barely beat 2 feet of snow on November 12, which has been on the ground ever since. Montana winters.

 Part of my landscape design was a vegetable gardening area in a corner of our yard, with drip lines to water the plants rather than sprayer heads. I've got about a month before I can realistically work in the dirt (still at least a foot of snow that needs to melt), but I think I need to do some soil amending this spring. Our ground is relatively-clay-ey, although it was a wheat feild 5 years ago.

Since we didn't get a chance to till in any fertilizer last fall, what can we add to the garden plot to increase its productivity this spring, without burning the plants we put into it? Peat? Bonemeal? Any suggestions!?

Hey Jellisy

Can you get well rotted compost - either leaf compost or cow manure that is no longer "hot"?  That will amend the soil and increase the drainage.  Peat or a peat substitute (depending on where you fall on using peat) will help as well.  I've never planted where wheat was grown, but I imagine wheat strips the soil of certain nutrients.  I would do a little research and make sure that whatever you are adding back in will bring those back.

kastle

You may want to take a soil sample (you'd have to clear away the snow & dig down 6-8 inches) & send it off to your local Ag Extension office.  They'll analyze it & let you know of any deficiencies.

goldenjes

I added *really old* horse manure to my garden about 3-4 weeks before planting last spring.  It was pretty weed-free, and had been composting about 2-3 years.  Our local garden center can test soil and they said mine was fantastic.