The first thing to do in preparing a garden bed is to select the right spot, and preparing it well for your plants. Without a choice, it means simply doing the best one can with conditions. If space is limited the choice may be no garden or pot plants. A garden of lovely pots with veggies or beautiful flowers can be a wonderful oasis in itself.
For the purposes of this article we will suppose that it is possible to really choose just the right site for the garden. How do we do that? The greatest determining factor is the sun.
Which hemisphere you live in determines where you will choose your garden bed. For example, if you live in the Southern Hemisphere the ideal place to plant is in a northerly facing patch, whereas if you are in the Northern Hemisphere you would want your garden facing south.
Wherever you are the important point is to have the sun's rays shining on your garden as much as possible, unless, of course, you are planting shade or semi shade plants.
The idea is to get the most sunlight as evenly distributed as possible for the longest period of time.
The garden, if possible, should be planned out on paper. The plan is a great help when the real planting time comes. It saves time and unnecessary buying of seed.
New garden spots are likely to be found in two conditions: they are covered either with turf or with rubbish. In large garden areas the ground is ploughed and the sod turned under; but in small gardens remove the sod. How to take off the sod in the best manner is the next question.
Stake and line off the garden spot. The line gives an accurate and straight course to follow. Cut the edges with the spade all along the line. If the area is a small one, say four feet by eighteen or twenty, this is an easy matter as such a narrow strip may be marked off like a checkerboard, the sod cut through with the spade, and
easily removed. This could be done in two long strips cut lengthwise of the strip. When the turf is cut through, roll it up like a roll of carpet.
But suppose the garden plot is large. Then divide this up into strips a foot wide and take off the sod as before. What shall be done with the sod? Do not throw it away for it is full of richness, although not quite in available form. So pack the sod, grass side down, one square on another. Leave it to rot and to weather. When rotted it makes a fine fertilizer. Such a pile of rotting vegetable matter is called a compost pile. All through the summer add any old green vegetable matter to this. In the
autumn put the autumn leaves on. A fine lot of goodness is being fixed for another season.
Even when the garden is large enough to plough, I would pick out the largest pieces of sod rather than have them turned under.
Go over the ploughed space, pick out the pieces of sod, shake them well and pack them up in a compost heap.
Mere spading of the ground is not sufficient. The soil is still left in lumps. Always as one spades one should break up the big lumps.
But even so the ground is in no shape for planting. Ground must be very fine indeed to plant in, because seeds can
get very close indeed to fine particles of soil. But the large lumps leave large spaces which no tiny root hair can
penetrate. A seed is left stranded in a perfect waste when planted in chunks of soil. A baby surrounded with great pieces of beefsteak would starve. A seed among large lumps of soil is in a similar situation. The spade never can do this work of pulverizing soil.
But the rake can. That's the value of the rake. It is a great lump breaker, but will not do for large lumps. If the soil still has large lumps in it take the hoe.
Many people handle the hoe awkwardly. The chief work of this implement is to rid the soil of weeds and stir up the top surface. It is used in summer to form that mulch of dust so valuable in retaining moisture in the soil. I often see people as if they were going to chop into atoms everything around. Hoeing should never be such vigorous exercise as that.
Spading is vigorous, hard work, but not hoeing and raking.
After lumps are broken use the rake to make the bed fine and smooth. Now the hardest part of the work is done. Next you need to rake in a quality natural fertiliser. Ask your local nursery for the brand that best suits your conditions.
Once the fertiliser is raked in then hose it in using a fine spray. After all you dont want to suirt it so hard that your lovely even garden bed will be all messed up. You need to fine spray it for a good 15-30 minutes for the fertiliser to soak down an inch or two.
Now you have completed the hardest part of building your garden. Off you go now, to the nursery, and pick out some beautiful plants.
