A healthy, productive, and longer-lasting garden requires a lot of preparation. You will require much more than making the right choice of plants to create such a garden. Growing your own produce is one of the best gifts you can give yourself and your family. Not only will you be growing healthier and nutrient-rich vegetables, fruits, and herbs, it is also a safer alternative. Besides, the sustenance and cost-effective benefits come as extras. At Creative Habitats, we offer professional garden preparation work to help you get the most out of your gardening efforts.
Professional Garden Preparation Work
Our garden bed preparation services are available throughout Auburn, AL, and the surrounding region. We have developed a proven process which we use in combination with industry-standard preparation work procedures. Our experienced crew will follow these steps to prepare the perfect planting beds for your garden:
- Removing Vegetation: The first step is to kill any existing vegetation. Any woody vegetation will be taken care of with pruning and even a saw. Removal of herbaceous vegetation such as grass and chickweed begin with defining the bed’s outline during fall. We may recommend an herbicide to take care of the vegetation if it is spring. If possible, we may consider moving directly to digging without killing the existing foliage.
- Tilling: Next, we will use tilling to turn the bed over. This is done only when the soil is damp enough and not wet. We will usually turn the soil up to a depth of 6 to 12 inches depending on the condition and the planting needs.
- Composting: We can spread a layer of compost or organic matter 2 to inches thick as part of the preparation work. The soil is then turned over again to mix the material thoroughly. This step helps enhance the soil’s nutrition content and soil structure. Some of the common organic matter additives besides compost that we may add or recommend adding include plant materials, ground bark, leaf mold, manure, lime, sawdust, peat moss, green manure, and topsoil.
When the soil is turned over, it helps expose any weed seeds. A weed/feed product may be applied or a thick layer of mulch to prevent germination of these seeds. If a weed/feed product is applied, it is recommended to install plants from packs or pots to fill the bed instead of sowing seeds. An additional layer of compost may be added after planting the bed. A layer of compost or mulch on the top of the soil can help prevent weeds from growing. It will also help create a neater appearance and maintain soil moisture.
Soil Test
As part of our preparation work, we can also conduct a soil test to determine what steps may be required for the process. This can involve:
- Soil Nutrition Testing: We will determine the nutrients that your soil is lacking. The right choice of compost, manure, and fertilizers can be made on this basis.
- Soil pH: We will determine whether your soil’s pH level is in the ideal range for your garden. Lime or wood ash may be used to make it more alkaline and sulfur to make it more acidic.
We can create a custom preparation work depending on the types of garden you need to create and the current condition of the soil. If you need more information about our services, feel free to contact Creative Habitats at 334-524-5408. Send us an email at designsbycreativehabitats@gmail.com and our experts will get back to you at the earliest.