Caring for your garden is a real pleasure.
But people who have a garden or a vegetable garden know that it takes a lot of time and effort.
But did you know that with less effort you can have better harvests?
Here are the 5 secrets of effortless gardening:
“No-till gardening” means not tilling or tilling the soil in your beds.
The idea is not to disturb the complex environment of the basement. It is this natural environment that will benefit the plants in your garden or vegetable patch.
Amendments and fertilizers. But how do you apply the usual amendments and fertilizers (such as compost, manure, peat, lime, organic fertilizers, etc.)?
These amendments are simply added to the soil surface. Over time, they are integrated into the basement.
Here's how it works:On the one hand, watering works the amendments into the soil. And on the other hand, the activity of organisms that abound in the subsoil also participates in the assimilation of fertilizers.
This means that there is no need to till your land to incorporate the fertilizers. Result, less effort!
Less weeds. With the "no-till" method, the need for weeding is greatly reduced.
In addition, if you use a mulch (layer of protective material placed on the ground) containing bark, you prevent weeds from appearing.
Moreover, the few weeds that manage to break through are easily uprooted. Indeed, one of the advantages of using mulch is that the soil always remains moist.
This moist, spongy soil is the perfect way to speed up the growth of your sprouts and plantings. It is an effective process, because it reproduces the way plants grow in nature.
Less effort. If you adopt the “no-till” gardening method, there is no longer any need for strenuous efforts with your spade and shovel.
That means a lot less work for you in the spring!
On the other hand, it is important to renew the mulch of your garden or vegetable patch — and not to trample it.
Laying a thick layer of mulch on your garden soil and around your plants has many benefits.
This improves the growing conditions for your plants. In addition, it reduces weeding and watering time.
Water saving. Mulch saves water because it prevents evaporation. In addition, it prevents the soil surface of your garden from drying out.
Therefore, the need for regular watering is significantly reduced.
In addition, the mulch prevents weeds from growing. Those that do break through are easy to uproot since the soil remains loose and moist.
That's why mulch really is a "must" in areas where water is a scarce natural resource.
What kind of mulch to use? A good gardener is always on the lookout for free, organic solutions that they can use as mulch.
Here are some ideas:
Dried grass clippings are a readily available resource. Fresh grass clippings have a high nitrogen content. On the other hand, for plants that are ready to bear fruit, it is better to use dried grass clippings.
In autumn, you can use dead leaves, straw (but not hay), algae and plant waste that cover the forest floor.
It is good to know that for vegetable gardens, avoid using bark-based mulch, geotextile fabric and plastic sheeting.
Instructions for use. Once you've laid down a layer of mulch, don't disturb it.
For amendments and fertilizers (such as lime, compost or phosphate), simply add them to the surface of the mulch, without mixing.
For planting seeds and planting, simply spread the mulch. Once the seedlings root, replace the mulch around the plant.
Mulch naturally disintegrates into the soil. That's why you should frequently add mulch to your garden.
When the mulch thins and begins to disintegrate, you know you've built nourished soil and loosened it well for your next harvest!
You can easily find mulch in garden or DIY stores.
Between crop rotations, adopt the cover crop method.
This consists of planting ground cover — peas, fodder plants, rye or buckwheat.
This method is especially great for gardeners who use peat moss between their rotations. This saves the purchase and transport of heavy and bulky bags.
In addition, this method requires less manure and fertilizer.
Ground cover crop seeds are easy to plant.
Once they reach the ripening stage, all that remains is to bury them to prepare for the next crop.
Instructions for use. The use of ground cover is an effective complement to the “no-till” gardening method.
It contributes to better aeration, loosening and fertility of your soil — all without tilling!
Burying a ground cover crop must be done before it bolts. But little effort is needed for burial.
When you are ready for your crop rotation, we advise you to cut your ground cover with shears or secateurs. Then, leave the clippings on the ground, as mulch.
You can also "smother" the crop with a dense mulch (seaweed, for example). This creates what is called a “lasagna effect”. This environment allows you to replant your crop — without tilling or weeding the soil.
The benefits of ground cover.
- Avoid weeds. Nature does not like to leave a virgin land. If you don't till your soil, it will be overgrown with weeds in no time.
Cultivating ground covers will make it more difficult for weeds.
- Limits the need for peat. Adding peat to the soil requires a lot of effort. Each bag must be lifted and set down at least 4 times before the peat is spread on the ground.
Peat is needed to aerate and loosen the soil. But a ground cover is just as effective and requires much less effort.
- Limits the need for fertilizer. Forage type ground covers will add nitrogen to the soil. Therefore, you will need less fertilizer for your next crops.
We advise you to use rapeseed as a green manure:it is much lighter than manure.
After a few hours in the garden, our back tires easily.
You quickly feel the urge to go home for a cup of tea and move on to another activity.
And no need to add that the older you get, the more the poor knees and the back lose flexibility.
In your own garden, the best maintained beds are likely to be the highest ones.
Normal, since they are easier to access!
To make your gardening easier and increase your harvests, try converting your garden or vegetable patch to raised beds. This allows you to grow evenly — and without hurting your back!
Ideal dimensions. We advise you to build beds 120 cm wide.
The idea is to be able to easily reach the full width of your flowerbed from just one side.
The ideal height for a flower bed is 40 cm.
More control. With raised beds in your garden, you can better control weeds from the passages between your beds.
Indeed, the walls of your flowerbeds serve as protective barriers and prevent the invasion of weeds.
Plus, you can easily smother weeds from walkways by laying down pieces of cardboard (or mulch, for a more aesthetic look).
The result ? A neat and tidy garden — without wasting time and energy on weeding!
Dragging your garden hoses through the garden is time consuming and requires considerable effort.
Watering is an inevitable part of maintaining a garden or vegetable patch.
One can quickly become a slave to this task. There are even people who change their schedule to be able to water their plants.
Another problem is to take care not to water the leaves of certain plants (tomatoes, in particular), as this can cause the appearance of mildew.
Therefore, automatic sprinkler irrigation cannot be used on this type of plant.
Lots of problems and inconveniences for watering plants — is there a solution? Yes!
The drip system. This system consists of having several tiny pipes and several emitters (the “drippers”). It is also known as micro-irrigation.
The pipes are laid on the floor of your flowerbeds. Just turn on a small faucet and the water drips slowly and steadily down to the roots of your plants.
This system saves a lot of time. In addition, the water savings are considerable, since the water is no longer sprayed everywhere as with a garden hose.
This also means that the passages between the beds are no longer watered.
This is an important aspect. Because, without water, the weeds in the passages of your garden dry out and make weeding easier. Less effort!
Instructions for use. Lay your drip hoses under the mulch of your flowerbeds, so that they are invisible.
There are also battery-powered electric timers that program the time and duration of your watering. This allows you to take care of your garden — without being present!
Better harvests. It's one of the nice surprises of using a drip system and a timer. The growth and harvests of your plants will increase!
Drip irrigation takes longer than overhead irrigation. Therefore, it exploits the natural absorption time of the roots of your plants.
The result ? Your garden produces better crops — with less effort!
You can easily find a micro-irrigation kit in garden or DIY stores. Otherwise, you can buy it online here.
There you have it, you've discovered the 5 clever secrets of effortless gardening. :-)
If you are interested in this topic, we were inspired by the natural farming theories of the famous Japanese farmer Masanobu Fukuoka.
You can find his book, The One Straw Revolution:An Introduction to Wild Farming , at your bookstore. Otherwise, you can buy it online here.
What do you think ? Do you know any other gardening tips? Share them with us in the comments. We can't wait to read you!
