any master gardeners on board? soil ??

[ntiveheart]

ok, no clay in the garden.

but i can't imagine building raised beds for half an acre of garden lol
i'm pushing my luck to ask for more poultry runs......if i started asking for raised beds, there might be anarchy in the dewitt house!

 

[mountaintopchicken]

Half an acre. Oh. Howabout mulching the beejeebers out of it, like Ruth Stout? If you haven't heard of her, she is pretty famous for touting her method of gardening that involved keeping a thick layer of mulch on your garden at all times. She was a fan of using lots of straw or hay, but whatever you could get lots of cheaply and would work as mulch would help you.

I happen to have sandy loam soil - I would be in deep trouble without my mulch. What a difference it makes! Underneath the mulch, I have nice moist soil with happy earthworms. In unmulched sections (mostly sections I haven't finished yet) I have dust and lifeless looking packed down dry soil.

HarlansHollowAussies - hi! I remember you from the quad skate thread - that was you, wasn't it?

Edited to add: here's a Ruth Stout article from Mother Earth News:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organic-Gardening/2004-02-01/Ruth-Stouts-System.aspx

 

[HarlansHollowFarms]

Quote:
Yes, I got the first pair, they were to small...I am now waiting on the second pair...maybe they will be here by tuesday.

Soory for hijacking your thread, but the mulch idea is good and since you have chickens I am assuming you compost all that will help, but it will take awhile to get great soil!