Nuking Your Garden (every year)

Kevin Brown, Agricultural Resource Specialist, BCCD
What is one of the worst things you can do to your garden?  Till it.  Yes, that’s right, till it.  Tilling is just like throwing a nuclear bomb in there every year.  It is like a tornado coming through every year and destroying everything in its path.  Think about it.  You are grinding and pulverizing everything in the soil, including its inhabitants.  There are so many beneficial microorganisms in your soil doing so many wonderful things to your soil and your plants, and you come through with a rototiller and grind it all to dust.  They need homes and food and shelter and air space just like we do, and you just destroyed it.  After tilling, they start to rebuild their lives again and get back to doing productive things, and along comes your rototiller again, taking out all forms of life once again. 

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So, how do you grow a garden and keep all that soil teeming with life and working for you?  It’s actually quite simple, and a LOT less work.  A no-till garden has no rocks to pick, (if done right) very few weeds; and when it rains, the water infiltrates into the ground so you do not have to water it.  It also can be done with very little, to no, equipment, fertilizer, sprays, etc.  Sounds like oceanfront property in Arizona, doesn’t it?  But local people are doing it and doing it very successfully.  I never liked gardening.  It was way too much work.  Now I have one, and I will be the first to admit, I should do a lot more work with it.  However, I pretty much mulch, plant, and harvest.  Nothing else.  If it were more, I wouldn’t do it.  And it works well.

I am not an environmental zealot.  I am just a lazy gardener.  I also believe that having mother nature work for you is better than fighting her every step of the way.  Doing things conventionally is just paddling upstream every inch of the way.  Want proof?  Instead of going about your day-to-day gardening life as normal, stand back and really take notice of how things are working.  Dig up some soil.  How does it smell?  It should have an “earthy” smell to it.  When it rains, where does the water actually go?  I’ll bet most runs off it.  Take the temperature of your soil on those hot, dry days.  Is it too hot for anything to flourish (microbes or plants)?  Look for life.  Yes, most of the microbes will be microscopic.  But, are there worms?  Lots of them?  Are there beetles and millipedes and ladybugs and more?  97% of all these living things are beneficial.  Only a very, very small percentage are harmful.
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No till, no dig, mulch gardening, etc.  They are all pretty much using the same premise.  Use mulch to feed, water and weed your garden.  Use beneficial bugs to control the bad ones.  Build soil structure.  I tweak how I do things every year, but there is really not much work that has to go into this kind of gardening.  I will end by saying that if you do happen to try this way, plant late.  This way of gardening keeps the soil very cool and moist.  That is great in the summer, not so much in early spring.  
The Bradford County Conservation District is committed to helping people manage resources wisely.  You can visit the Bradford County Conservation District at 200 Lake Rd in Wysox across from the Wysox Fire Hall. Contact us at (570) 485-3144 or visit our web page at www.bccdpa.com.