The Green Gardener: Are you asking too much of your soil?

Too often we ask much from our soil and give nothing in return. Additionally, we often use chemical pesticides and fertilizers that ultimately impair the health of the soil and the plants that are dependent on it. And we wonder why our plants are not thriving.

Among the casualties of chemical gardening are beneficial invertebrates (like earthworms and predator bugs) and microorganisms that help with soil fertility, root health, and pest control. Pesticides (90 percent of which the EPA has found to be carcinogenic) put the rest of us at risk, as well. So, for your own health, as well as that of your gardens, I encourage a natural approach to repair and then constantly maintain the health of the soil so that we may reap the rewards in health, beauty, and a bountiful harvest.

When soil grows a plant it looses the nutrients extracted by that plant as well as the humus consumed by the soil microorganisms. In nature the leaves fall to the ground under the plant where they decompose and return nutrients and humus to the soil. It is a cyclic system of renewal upon which we can model our own garden management practices.

Give the rake (or blower) a rest-let the leaves lie. If leaves on the ground bother you, then I suggest composting the leaves and applying a mulch of that compost under the plant. Or cover them up with a layer of purchased mulch such as Gorilla Hair or Forest Floor. Mulch looks neat and will improve the soil structure, make nutrients more available to plants, suppress weeds, and retain moisture.

Compost keeps the soil at a maximum of health for a minimum of expense. Composting is easy and it saves landfill space by recycling green waste, which sometimes still ends up at the dump even though it gets hauled off separately. Expertise and fancy containers are unnecessary. Just place yard trimmings and plant-based kitchen scraps in a pile that is a minimum of 3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet. Balance the nitrogen (green stuff) with the carbon (dried-up brown stuff) and the water with the air. Ideally the pile is moist, but not wet. Turning the pile (a digging fork is a nice tool for this) alleviates most problems a pile might have. You may want to experiment with different methods of composting. See the Compost Resource Page at www.oldgrowth.org/compost/ to learn more.

Stop taking the soil for granted. Give it some support. In return you'll be rewarded with healthy plants able to resist insects and disease. Your garden will become a vibrant, productive mini-ecosystem able to feed your body and soul.

Note: If you have a garden of natives, the soil should be treated differently than a vegetable or ornamental bed. Generally, natives do not need the soil to be amended. I recommend two pages of Las Pilitas Nursery's online manual to learn more about soils and amendments for natives. The addresses are www.laspilitas.com/easy/easysoils.htm, and www.laspilitas.com/advanced/advamendments.htm.

Julia Jones Ufkes holds a BS in Landscape Architecture from Cal Poly Pomona, and practices environmentally friendly landscape design in Southern California.