Replenishing Your Soil: Compost, Worm Bins & More!
Soil is where it all begins, and we ask a lot from it while gardening! From sowing the seeds to reaping the harvest, soil is the foundation of your garden and can make or break your growing season. While there is a ton of science in how our soil affects our crop’s growth for home gardeners there are a few simple things to keep in mind to make sure you always have a stable foundation from which to grow.
Soil
At Revival Roots, we use an organic blend of soil with a wonderful mix of ingredients! Our soil allows for maximum root growth and light enough for water to be distributed easily. As previously mentioned in the amending blog, we usually “turn” or “dig up” our soil 2-3 times per year to revive the soil back to a healthy state so it’s ready for the next crop when the time comes. There are many options out there from generic brands to local soil companies producing their own vegetable garden mix. For organic gardening, always look for one that is OMRI certified.
Compost
Adding compost reinvigorates the soil with the nutrients your plants love. At Revival Roots, our compost is an organic mix of broken down soil nutrients and worm castings, that ensure your garden has all the food it needs to grow bountiful harvests. We also love to work with our clients who have personal compost bins at their homes. We help regulate what goes in, the temperature, the moisture level, and make sure it’s ‘turned’ so it properly breaks down. Whether you compost in a bin at home or choose to purchase a bag instead, we recommend going the organic route to ensure your harvests grow and taste their best.
Worm Bins
These can be a beneficial addition to your garden in many ways. Using a worm bin as a compost bin allows you to collect the warm castings as well as breakdown your food and yard trimmings. Another benefit to using a worm compost bin is farming the worms themselves. As they naturally reproduce you can remove some throughout the year, adding them directly to your garden beds to live in the soil. This will create natural worm castings throughout your garden and aerate the soil while they make their way around.
Fertilizers
In general, it’s always best to add fertilizers to your crops to increase the yield and strengthen the plants against pests and diseases. We often use an organic all encompassing liquid and granulated fertilizer with relatively even amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (abbreviated as NPK). These macronutrients are needed by all vegetable plants and are indicated by the three large numbers on the front of your fertilizer package. In its liquid form these nutrients are immediately available for plants to use. We also use a granulated fertilizer that is slower to break down over time to not overwhelm your seedlings with a sudden shock of nutrients. Again, we always recommend using an organic and OMRI certified fertilizer to keep unsafe and unnatural additives out of the garden, providing only the best quality food for your produce.
