Typical spring garden chores - rake and clean anything still left in your beds, pull up old dead plants, and till up that soil.
In a word - don't.
What, why?
You might be growing a simple lawn, a wildflower meadow, or a full on farm or homestead. Wherever you may be growing - there is an ecosytem and when it comes to soil - paying attention to your soil food web is key for soil health.
When spring comes, the urge to clean up is strong, but not everything is ready to wake up.
Those leftover stems and leaves in your beds may be full of beneficial insects and pollinators that lay eggs and hatch in the spring - with out giving them time to hatch, they wont.
Beneth the soil is no differnt. The things that provide nutrients to your plants naturally - bacteria, fungi, and everything you see crawling around down there like worms, call your soil home.
That soil life feeds your plants and tilling destroys the home they built or are building. By not tilling, they dont have to restart.
Believe me, the roots of the plants you want to plant - will love joinging your soils happy home.
Sometimes, you do need to dig a hole - you have to get a transplant in there somehow. The key is to let nature work and 1. Disturb as Little as Possible:)
Check out these awsome links to learn more:
When to start spring cleanup to protect our insects:
https://xerces.org/blog/dont-spring-into-garden-cleanup-too-soon
npr.org/2022/05/02/1095861475/need-an-excuse-not-to-mow-your-lawn-join-no-mow-may-and-help-pollinators
A whole channel dedicated to No Till Growing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnEWvdxMr7E
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Put them in the trash.
They go to a landfill once in there. There are much better places for them.
1. A compost pile
2. As mulch for your garden beds
3. Mow them into your lawn
4. Have someone come get them - Indy has several full time composting companies to choose from now and we even need some for our community garden compost
Compost and get Dirt Rich. Don't let those leaves go to waste.
]]>
Oh, and we are also seeding a lawn... I never thought I'd do that with all the negative's a lawn normally comes with - you know the mono cropping, the runoff, ect.
But, I realized each time I brew a compost tea, I make about enough for an acre. I dont have nearly an acre of space. And, there are technically grasses in cover crops.
So, I'm giving the lawn grass a go. Don't worry the only thing we are feeding it is the compost tea - no nasty chemicals. Plus, I've mixed in a good bit of clovers and wildflowers.
It's looking nice already:)
For the garden beds I'm using MPL Biodiversity Crop Mix from the Maine Potato Lady.
To get it out there I mixed the seeds and a 50/50 Dirt Rich Compost and Clay mixture, making small hand full sized balls and tossing it all around the garden and even in the new lawn.
]]>This also means it's a 3 brew special!
Brew 1: Foiliar Spray
16 oz of Feermented Nettle Extract from @ Casual Fields
10 oz of Dandelion, Comfrey, Nettle JLF
5 Gallons of Rain water
Spray lawn and garden plants
Brew 2: Fall Compost Tea
5 Gallons of Vermicompost, Dirt Rich Compost, Bokashi, and Frass Fungal Matt
1 Cup Molassis
16 oz of Fermented Comfrey Extract from @ Casual Fields
6 oz of Dandelion FPJ
50 Gallons of rainwater
Aerated 12-24 Hrs
Brew 3: Fermented Comfrey Extract Tea (For use next week)
Recipe from Causual Fields
If it gets full we are going to do a brew of our homemade composts and LAB.
If it gets full enough, we will do a brew of a fungal flat.
Fungal Flat? A layering of compost, vermicompost, frass, and bokashi. Allowed to bloom then used as the brew's base.
]]>We need rain! The forcast says it will rain but we are dancing for extra insurance.
In our polinator garden we had a direct sowing completly fail! Yes, nothing grew.
What happened? Well, not enough rain hit after the sowing but just enough to germinate then dry and die:( Plus I removed a little to much of the excess cover crop mulch exposing to much compost and soil.
Couldn't we have just turned on the hose? Yes - but we have not used a hose in that garden in nearly two years. Why?
One, to be water wise and two, hose water from our tap has chlorine that is no good for the soil.
It's an extra degree of difficulty to not water but had I timed the rain better, it would be a differnt situation.
Anyway - we are sowing more zinnia's and sunflowers to have blooms in time for Bates Hendricks Street Fest.
]]>Rain water
TeaLab Bubble Snake
5 Lbs Home Grown Worm Castings
5 Cups Frass From Midwest Meal Worms
5 Cups Oats
12 Hour Brew
Post Brew - adding 10 Tablespoons of Home Grown Lactic Acid Bacteria and 5 tablespoons of mycorrhizal innoculant
]]>Rain water
1 Cup Worm Castings From Wicked Smart Success
1 Cup Frass From Midwest Meal Worms
1 Cup Dirt Rich Compost From Cultuvate
2 tablespoons of Molassis
24 Hour Brew
Post Brew - adding 1 Tablespoon of Microbe Plus from Bokashi Earth Works and 1 tablespoon of mycorrhizal innoculant and feeding the plants and soil.
]]>Idk about you but I can taste the home grown tomato made into some bruschetta with the home grown basil and garlic, sitting on the porch taking a bite out of the carbon footprint, that's Dirt Rich.
The lowest temp in sight is 48 one night next week, so our plants will be loving thier compost tea.
It's going to be a great week to get more plants going, especially those cold hardy plants.
What are we sowing?
Going to plant some peas and beans into the tomato bed to get a little nitrogen:) and of course eat the peas and beans too.
Then, going to get Tomatoes started and some companions:
-Basil
-Marigolds
-Calendula
-Cilantro
]]>
This time of year happens to be the ideal time to plant clover and its St. Paddy's day. So, with rain in the forecast - lest sow some clover and fix some nitrogen into the soil!
Check the list out, complete with seed, seed source, and where we planted it! Super pumped about our homegrown seeds.
1.Red Clover, DLF Seeds, Home Garden and Community Pollinator Garden
2. White Clover, DLF Seeds, Home Garden and Community Pollinator Garden
3. Peas, Baker Creek, Home Garden
Just 3 days till spring!
Happy Growing!
Pete
See the 3 planted on Instagram: instagram.com/cultuvate
Need Soil? Get Dirt Rich
Need Compost? Get Dirt Rich
]]>Check the list out, complete with seed, seed source, and where we planted it! Super pumped about our homegrown seeds.
1.Siamese Dragon Stir Fry Mix Salad Blend, Baker Creek Seeds, Home Garden
2. Garlic Chives, Seed Savers, Home Garden
3. Dill, Baker Creek Seeds, Home Garden
4. Arugala, Baker Creek Seeds, Home Garden
5. Turnips, Baker Creek Seeds, Home Garden
Thought of Masanobu Fukuoka while planting the Turnips. Turnips and Clover planted at the same time and kinda thrown all over was a good part of his do nothing style in Japan. Check out his book: The One-Straw Revolution
An Introduction to Natural Farming.
Or take a look at this doc "One Straw Revolution" on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rj7nrOjhMtk. It's dated but a good way to get the idea quick.
Stay tuned for the 3 things we are planting 3 days berfore spring post.
Happy Growing!
Pete
See the 5 planted on Instagram: instagram.com/cultuvate
Need Soil? Get Dirt Rich
Need Compost? Get Dirt Rich
]]>
Check the list out, complete with seed, seed source, and where we planted it! Super pumped about our homegrown seeds.
1. Oregon Sugar Pod Peas II, Baker Creek Seeds, Home Garden
2. Red and White Clover, DLF Seeds, Community Pollinator Garden
3. Kale, HOMEGROWN!, Home Garden
4. Cilantro, Homegrown, Home Garden
5. Radish, Homegrown, Home Garden
6. Red Mustard, Homegrown, Home Garden
7. Pak Choi, Baker Creek Seeds, Home Garden
8. Cantaloupe Calendula, Territorial Seeds, Community Pollinator Garden
9. Flower Mix (I cut a bunch of seeds last year and threw them back out in the garden), Home Grown, Community Pollinator Garden and Home Garden
10. Carrots, Baker Creek, Home Garden
Bonus: Already planted garlic (November, Territorial Seeds) and going to plant lots of parsley - I love it tooooo much.
Realistally, I've been left at home all weekend alone - so this list may get alot longer.
Happy Growing!
Pete
]]>Here is what we sowed last week:
Direct sow
-Zinnias
-Sunflowers
-Cosmos
-Tomatoes
-Calendula
Transplant
(under cold frame)
-Peppers
-Tomatoes
-Basil
-Squash
Growth has been slow, even under our cold frames. Can't wait for the warmer temps.
Personally, I hate growing seeds indoors but love direct sowing outside. It's simpler but as these cold nights have proved - it's an exercise in patience. I'll end up with more tomatoes than I can eat and more flowers than we can pick but right now --- I am grrrrr.
The good news is if you are a transplanter, next week is perfect, Higher temps and rain!
It is also good for direct sowing:)
This week we are planting more flowers, corn, squash and legumes in our Psychedelic Soil:)
Want a free Psychedelic Soil sample?
Just hit reply and let us know where to send it :)
At its core, Psychedelic Potting Soil is a living soil ready to grow in color.
Why did we make our own potting soil? To ensure what's NOT in the soil
-NO Peat Moss
-NO Chemicals
-NO TOXINS
-NO Manure
-NO Run Off
-NO Waste
-NO Bullshit (literally and figuratively)
Simply living soil comprised of Pittmoss and Leaf Compost - ready to grow in color:)
Soil Health:
The humble tank full of Anhydrous Ammonia Fertilizer, its going to make those plants grow... but at what cost?
One big cost is lack of healthy soil - if the soil has what it needs, plants will have what they need. The nitrogen fertilizers of the world, like the one shown above work. But, healthy soil should not need this type of fertilizer.
Why - healthy soil is a lot like a healthy body. When you eat the right foods and get your vitamins in you don't need to have prescriptions that come with their own side effects.
This type of fertilizer or any similar chemical NKP fertilizer is a lot like a pharmaceutical - its going to prevent the health problem but there may be side effects to add to the issue.
In the case of fertilizer its going to grow plants, its not going to feed the soil what it needs to be healthy and has the side effects of less soil life and nutrient runoff.
Nutrient runoff causes polluted water ways, which intern kills fisheries and a ripple effect of other environmental problems.
We may not all be connected but all of nature is connected in one big food web that is the ecosystem.
Whether you have a small back yard, a mini farm or 40 acres - building healthy soil with compost and proper soil practices may take time and may not feel like the biggest contribution in the world to the environment but each step in the right direction adds another step in the right direction toward sustainability.
Healthy soil is alive - our soil and compost's mission is to get your soil so alive, that its tripping with life:)
BATES-HENDRICKS GARDEN
The garden is growing!
We grew a multi species cover crop in the flower beds at the Bates-Hendricks garden.
This is the first year, thanks to the cover crops, that we have not had a HUGE weed issue. Plus, these now dead crops will add organic matter back to the soil over time as the soil microbiome does its thing with the decaying matter:)
Now it's time to get it in our garden beds and let all that good compost and I can't wait - there is a bunch to get into the beds and fall is the perfect time!
Check out the links below to learn more:
https://www.thespruce.com/good-reasons-to-compost-in-fall-2152986
Don't have any of your own compost?
We have the hookup! Checkout our Garden Rich Leaf Compost, perfect for topdressing or making into a compost tea:)
]]>Thanks for coming to our blog! For this post, we talked with Phyllis Boyd, Executive Director of Groundwork Indy.
For those of you who do not know, GroundWork Indy does a lot of great work in the Indianapolis community and we are happy to have helped supply them with raised beds through our 1-for-1 raised bed program. Why? Because they put them to superb use! Keep reading to learn more about Groundwork Indy from Phyllis herself!
1. What is the purpose of Groundwork Indy and what is your role?
Groundwork Indy changes places and changes lives by employing youth to work on community-based projects that equitably enhance environment, economic, and social well-being.
Groundwork Indy’s role is to support community efforts to organize and execute projects that involve the built environment of public and shared spaces.
I’m the executive director and my role is to lead the organization.
2. What gets you excited to do what you do everyday?
I love working with people, youth in particular, to make our city more equitable, healthy, and beautiful.
3. What motivated you to start working working in the realm of sustainability?
Everything is connected, so working in the realm of sustainability involves taking a comprehensive approach to community health and environmental, economic, and social justice.
4. Why is growing food important to you?
On a personal level, growing food grounds me and makes me happy. It’s wonderful to be directly engaged in something that is essential to living, to support community efforts to improve food access, and to teach youth about growing food.
5. What is the one message, in 140 characters, that you would want people to see?
By engaging youth in the work of healing their communities, in imagining and working toward building life-enhancing places for everyone, we show our youth that we believe in them and what they have to offer - this is perhaps the most important aspect of our work.
(sorry, this is more than 140 characters…)
A huge thanks to Phyllis for all that she does! To learn more about giving or volunteering with Groundwork Indy go to http://groundworkindy.org/
]]>At Cultuvate we are on a mission to cultivate a culture of sustainability. True sustainability starts on your plate.
This and that diet of the year aside, food is the fuel that keeps us going! Where it comes from and how its grown makes or breaks ecosystems in to many ways to count. Nothing is more sustainable than food grown organically in your own home, neighborhood, or community.
If you don't grow it, know who does!
Once people know how to grow their own, the only scarcity we will ever face in the world is time.
On our site you will find all the products you need to start your own home food system from table, to compost, to table again. And as part of our commitment to sustainability the majority of our products are made from recycled materials!
We feel that everyone should have the access to making sustainable food choices. To us it is flat out wrong that food deserts cut off communities to this choice. That is why we carry long lasting products at great prices, so everyone can have the freshest food in their yard or patio, porch, school, balcony, or roof. This is the time to reconnect to food and put a sustainable choice on your plate.