Cultivation Is A Magic Wand For Gardners

There is a magic wand available for every amateur gardener. It comes under the heading of soil cultivation. The benefits of this ancient agricultural practice will help your plants grow bigger and better than they have ever been before. And you will gain more pleasure from your gardening.

For thousands of years farmers have cultivated the soil end reaped the benefits of bumper crops. It is not difficult to copy the methods of tho commercial grower and the job can be done without resorting to heavy or expensive equipment. Cultivating or tilling the soil at regular intervals will give your plants a big boost; in addition it will Increase tho attractiveness of your general scene.

There are undoubtedly hundreds of amateur gardeners in the Long Beach area who pay relatively little attention to soil cultivation; In fact, there are probably many who don't even know what the term means. Actually, cultivation consists of breaking up or loosening the soil.

One of tho most significant benefits derived from this practice is weed control. If this typo of plant life Is allowed to make headway then you can be mi re your ornamentals will suffer accordingly, Weeds have a habit of hogging the water and food that ordinarily would be utilized by your ornamentals or vegetables, Unless weeds are controlled they may ultimately take over your entire garden.

Soil cultivation that is practiced for tho purpose of controlling weeds should start as soon as it is possible to distinguish between weeds and the more desirable plants. Young weeds often can be removed simply by scratching the earth. The older the weeds are allowed to become the tougher will be the job of eradicating them. In their mature form the roots are often deep in the soil; dislodging them at this time is liable to also uproot your annuals and perennials.

Soil cultivation also has a bearing on the rate of water absorption into the soil. Ground that is not tilled often forms a hard, impenetrable crust. Because of this relatively impervious layer water will run off tho surface faster than It will sink in. This means the moisture intended for your plants may drain off onto your neighbor's property.

There can be no general rules concerning the frequency of soil cultivation. There are too many local lac- tors involved such as soil texture, type of plant, and amount of weed growth, both actual and potential. However, It is usually wise to work the soil a few days after watering to prevent the formation of a surface crust. This may be followed up with a second cultivation to eradicate any weeds that have appeared in the meantime.

Simply cultivating the soil Is not sufficient to put it in first class condition. If the soil particles are of an Inferior nature, cultivation by itself will not enable you to produce bumper crops or prize-winning flowers. Soils that are either too light (sandy) or too heavy (adobe or clay) should be improved with liberal quantities of humus. This material in the form of peat or manures can easily be worked into the soil when it is cultivated.