Cleansing Blog

Weedless gardening! That’s an oxymoron, an impossibility, right? Well, my gardens may not be 100 percent weed-free, but they are 100 percent free of weed problems.

I’ve achieved this happy state in four ways: 1) never tilling or otherwise disturbing the soil, so dormant weed seeds stay asleep, away from light and air; 2) designating permanent areas for walking and for planting to avoid compaction and the need for tillage; 3) maintaining a thin mulch of weed-free organic material to snuff out any weed seeds that blow in or are dropped into the garden by birds; 4) using drip irrigation whenever watering is called for to avoid promoting weed growth in paths and between widely spaced plants. Those are the basics of keeping my garden free of weed problems. Over the years I’ve honed some details of this weedless gardening system, and I’d like to share them with you.

ORGANIC FERTILIZERS AND MULCHES

A particularly nice aspect of this weedless gardening system is how much it simplifies fertilization. I rarely use commercial fertilizer. It’s not that my plants don’t need food, it’s just that the slow and steady decomposition of the organic mulches fulfills most of my plants’ nutrient needs.

Where extra nitrogen might be needed, I use soybean meal, which supplements the diet of young trees, bushes and intensively grown vegetables. The soybean meal is inexpensive, readily available at farm and feed stores, and only needs to be applied once a year. The nitrogen in soybean meal applied anytime from late autumn to late winter will not leach out of the soil during the cold months, but begins to release as spring’s moisture and warmth awakens hungry plants. For plants that regularly need that extra nitrogen, I spread 1 to 2 pounds per 100 square feet. Other meals, such as cottonseed or alfalfa meal, can be used similarly, but generally cost a little more.

If your soil is naturally poor, you may want to apply other nutrients as fertilizers, such as phosphorus and potassium, until organic mulches decompose and build up a reserve of those nutrients in the soil. Bone meal, seaweed and wood ashes are all good sources of phosphorus and potassium.

Because most of my gardens’ fertility comes from organic mulches, I tailor which mulch I use to the particular plant’s needs. Generally, this involves nothing more than using nutrient-rich mulches for plants that are heavy feeders, and other mulches for light feeders. Two nutrient-rich mulches for my vegetables are compost and grass clippings; I make both right here at home.

If you’re not up to making your own weed-free compost, you often can buy good bulk compost locally. I often spread a thin layer of grass clipping on top of the compost in my vegetable beds. The thin layer of grass clippings helps smother any weed seedlings that survived composting, and keeps the compost moist to make the nutrients in it more readily available. Be careful about using neighbors’ grass clippings, however. I found this out the hard way 30 years ago, as I watched my potato vines wilt overnight after using what I later learned were clippings from a lawn that was treated with weed killer.

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Organic gardeners don’t want to ingest or feed their family foods that contain chemicals from pesticides. A plant grown organically and in the proper balance will naturally repel pests and diseases.Some Organic garden tips is where seeds can be used to grow carrots also. Carrots do not require a lot of efforts to grow them. Organic gardening, then, begins with attention to the soil. You regularly add organic matter to the soil, using locally available resources wherever possible.

Organic gardening is the activity of growing vegetables, plants, trees, flowers, vines, fruits, bushes, shrubs and everything else you are able to consider in an entirely natural way. Put differently that would mean no toxic substances, pesticides or chemicals are used in the whole gardening operation. Organic gardening means your kids and the family dog or cat, can play in the garden safely in a chemical free zone. Many other Organic tips is that it can be a very fun and relaxing thing to do. I use raised beds in my organic garden as it makes it easier to maintain.

This type of garden is an extra benefit because everything that you will be eating is pesticide and chemical free which is healthier for you and your family. Organic gardening normally starts by dealing with the garden’s soil. It is necessary to add organic matter to it, in the form of leaf mold or garden compost.

This is similar in that cultivating the right environment is the primary focus, using beneficial plants to keep it balanced, injecting more extreme measures only when all else has failed. Organic gardeners will tell you that vegetables produced by this method contain better nutrition than those sold in supermarkets. That’s because natural materials like compost help keep the soil healthy, instead of the routine depletion and artificial fertilization used in conventional methods. Organic garden tips say pest controls rarely have a “danger” warning on them. It is very important to apply organic pest control products exactly as the label directs.

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Okay, so I was overly ambitious when I set about planting at least 14 different types of vegetables, plus assorted herbs, in my 15’ x 16’ back yard. But that’s the way you learn right?

And sure, I have learned a lot about what works and doesn’t in urban veggie gardening — particularly in a humid Washington, D.C., summer.

First the don’ts:

•Don’t plant cucumber, squash, or zucchini. My dad was right when he said they spread to 20 feet. Those things will just keep on growing until they crowd out all your other plants. Plus the rats like to gnaw on the fruits before they can fully ripen, and there’s the risk of cross-pollination in subsequent growing seasons.

•Don’t plant lettuce. It just gets too hot too soon for them, in this climate at least. The seedlings also get eaten by an unknown urban pest.

•Don’t plant spinach. The reasons are the same as with lettuce.

•Don’t plant corn. The plants are too big for a small area—not that I had to worry about this. My corn seeds didn’t even germinate.

Now the dos:

•Do plant tomatoes. I especially recommend the smaller varieties, like sweeties, for urban areas. My sweeties came up nicely and produced beautiful juicy red fruits. A word of advice from my experience: Use netting to ward off pests that like to steal tomatoes while still green. I suspect rats. Another bonus for urban gardening: Tomatoes grow fine in containers; mine are in wooden ones.

•Do plant green beans. The plants aren’t overly big and they love hot, humid summers, but they do like to spread. I recommend training them along a trellis to keep them under control and to allow for easier picking. Soy beans also grow well (mine got crowded out by zucchini—see above).

•Do plant green peppers and eggplant. They thrive in hot, humid weather, are small and contained, and like tomatoes, they easily adapt to container growing. I especially recommend the mini Japanese eggplant (Ichiban).

•Do plant herbs. They’re ideal for urban gardening: I’ve successfully grown a variety of herbs, including lemon thyme, parsley, basil, tarragon, marjoram, sage, oregano, rosemary, and dill.

The wild cards? Radishes and broccoli. My radishes came up woody and soon died out—I think it got too hot for them. And, of course, something chomped my broccoli. Netting may also be the answer there.

These recommendations are based entirely on my urban gardening experience; others may have different advice based on theirs.

Anyone else care to share?

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