Hit the Dirt; Breaking New Ground

This is the glory time for gardeners. A time of abundance the harvest is in full swing. Beans hang heavy on the vines. Tomatoes and corn are now generously yielding up their prized fruits. Summer squash plants have long since outstripped our ability to keep up with zucchini overflowing on the compost heaps and into pig pens. Winter squash are hardening up the earliest melons are ripe with sweetness carrots and filled out in size. The garlic is drying up inside and fresh potatoes and onions are gracing the dinner table and on and on. All this along with a heavenly scent of sweet peas and no black flies to diminish the joy of peaceful hours spent in the refuge of the garden. So it's with pleasure that I now make my debut as host of The Weekly short pro garden program. Are you. Hello my name is Keith go far and welcome to hit the dirt. A weekly sharing of the practical techniques as well as the passion wisdom and lore of gardening by and for those who nurture their soul by nurturing the soil. I'd like to take the time to emphasize the word sharing in that description and I'd really like input from all of you Hardy and courageous optimists who face who laughed in the face of swarms of black flies in August frost to take on the challenge of growing your own food

Downeast. I view you all as the best resource for putting together these shows. Your helpful hints questions comments advice interesting tidbits rhetorical ramblings keen observations and anything else you'd like to share relating to the art and science of the seasonal garden dance would be most welcome. So please write to me care of you. I look forward to hearing from you. Now for those of you who are so inspired by all these bountiful harvest some beautiful plantings around are now promising to yourselves to finally start a garden or expand an existing one next year. I would suggest that now is an excellent time for more than just contemplation of the idea in my book mid to late summer is the ideal time to till the ground. Although the common practice seems to be to wait until spring. I feel that in this part of the country summer is the best time to work the earth especially breaking new ground. The old joke about Maine's three seasons winter mud and bug has more than a bit of truth to it unless you garden in well-drained LOAM. A true rarity Downeast or sand the rains of spring often make the soil unworkable into the black flies have come out and who want to be stirring up the soil and so one ends up missing the opportunity to get the early crops in really

early and with our already short growing season. It's a shame to make it any shorter. Furthermore I know that after the long grey winter I'm usually biting at the bit to feel the earth in my hands and see the green ceiling sprouting up so as there is the temptation to get on the soil before it is really dry enough. Especially with soils on the heavy side this would cause serious compaction. You know all the reasons for pulling out the spade and or tiller now are not all that negative. There are definite pluses to doing it now to the solder existing ground cover. You'll tell when you have an opportunity to break down. Adding fertility and organic matter to the soil. The soil microbes which convert the turned under plant matter into nutrients available for your crops are most active in the heated summer. Come fall and decomposition process slows way down so sod tournament turned under in the late fall or spring will take much longer to decompose and as it decomposes the act of multiplying microbes actually tie up much of the nitrogen in the soil making it unavailable to crops. Hence one should wait at least a few weeks even more before planting. Working the lighter drier soil of summer. Also it takes less toil if it is too dry

and is actually a little hard. You can water it and then wait a few days and this will make it a lot less of a strain and also result in better soil structure. I've also found that the clumps of sod make for a poor seed bed particularly for the finds he crops. And I found this particularly frustrating in the spring when I've turned over new ground then. And if you're doing so you might end up having to actually take the sod off first and compost it separately and then add extra compost to make up for the removal of this topsoil. And these are extra tasks which are just add to the labor of filling up a new piece. Starting in a new place in peace now would give you time to take soil samples and send them to a lab for analysis and fertilization recommendations which you could act upon before it is time to plant the crops next season. Adding lime and rock powders now for long term fertility will have more benefit for next year's crop than if he added The next spring. As these amendments are all slow acting and the Manoora see that you can get to do separately the garden is much better at it now than in

spring unless you really well composted it first and last but definitely important advantage that summer tilling gives one time to establish a nice cover crop stand before the winter sets in cover crops I was with as I will discuss in detail next week. I have numerous benefits for your soil. So I hope I have sway you to take the inspiration which August bountiful gardens may have on you to get into the growing act to start now. If you look on the wonderful fresh produce roll up your sleeves and get to one this is been hit the dirt. All comments and correspondence are eagerly sought. Please write to me care of W e are you. See you next time.