This will be my first year gardening in an area with heavy clay after moving across the country. I tilled up two beds where there was lawn a couple of times over and then worked in some good quality compost and fall leaves that I collected. I covered one with fall leaves and the other with a tarp. we'll see how it goes but I didn't have enough time to do a longer method. Figure it will do ok this year and I can improve the soil over time.
“Gardening with clay soil is a marathon, not a sprint.” - Growfully with Jenna. Isn’t that the truth! Zone 8a North Texas, Heavy Red Clay “Soil” down here. Great video.
Hi Jenna, Love all of your videos. You are such a great communicator. You get to the point and every thing you say count. You make everything look exciting including tilling your soil with a fork. LOL. I am in LA and I also have clay soil. I have a bad back so I can't do the soil like you do so I use raised beds. However, I hate grass growing through and up my beds. I am going to use your plastic cover method to kill off grass for future beds and then lay down card board before I put in my framed raised beds. Thanks for that tip.
Hello & thank you so much! That means a lot to me. The solarization will work great for ridding your bed areas of grass & weeds- you can even use it at the end of the season to burn off any remaining weeds or grass that have popped up through the growing season, after your veggies are done.
Dear Jenn what I do and have tremendous success growing tomatoes in clay soil is I dig my trench after tilling then I use a garden fork four finger go deep under my plants which allows the heavy rains we get in June July on occasions this will allow drainage and root growth in the four holes other wise my garden gets flooded and the result is tragic a lot of plants water logged this has saved my tomatoe crop many years now so I will always do this! Thanks for your video,s
Our soil is very similar here in 5b Iowa, so I generally follow the same practice: till once and then never again. We have wood chips covering most of the back yard now, and that does make the soil even easier to work with when I want to plant something new. Thanks for sharing your process!
Wood chips are such a great resource! Where do you get yours? ChipDrop isn't active in this area. and I've not had great luck with the local tree trimming companies. I'm about to rent a chipper myself!
@@GrowfullywithJenna We’re lucky to have a few great tree trimming companies here. I usually call the people who took down our maple tree for us and they’re happy to drop em off for free. They have a long wait list but it’s worth it!
Jenna I subscribed to you a couple months ago. In November I moved from zone 9b to zone 6a and gardening is totally different here. I needed to learn how to garden all over again. To do that I'm learning from you. Thanks for your very informative videos.
The foundation of gardening is really about improving and maintaining soil life. Growing fruit, veg and flowers is stage two. Always have to think long term. Unless you have good soil, year one is always about improving soil life. Nice video, I like your presentation style.
@@GrowfullywithJenna My garden is clay. In my first year I built raised beds and filled them with my version of Mel’s mix mainly to improve drainage and help seedings establish their roots before reaching the rock hard clay. I dedicated a large area to growing Comfrey so I always have biomass for my compost plus the comfrey tap roots go deep into the clay. In other beds I broadcasted alfalfa seeds as their tap roots go deep into the clay. I grew sunflowers, sweetcorn and broad beans, again mainly for biomass for composting plus I left their roots in the soil. Over the first winter I grew more broad beans and leeks. The roots of leeks are massive so they also help break up the clay soil, again producing biomass for the compost and leaving roots in the soil. For me, it took about three years of creating my own compost, using it to top dress my beds, leaving roots in the soil etc. before I no longer saw any signs of a clay soil base. In years one and two I found it wierd how I sometimes saw clumps of clay near the top surface of the raised beds. I only imagine they came from rodents digging. After three years, whenever I stuck my dibber into the soil, all I saw was great soil, full of life and worms. I don’t know if it’s scientific or not but I now have a measure of what good soil is without using a microscope or refractometer. If each time you stick your dibber into the soil and you see a worm, you have soil full of life. I genuinely can’t believe how my many worms are in my soil, for me it’s amazing from where I started. The biggest lesson I have learnt from trying to grow in clay soil is that you have to plan to create a constant surplus of compost which ultimately means you either need to dedicate an area to grow biomass for composting and/or ensure you grow specific types of crops which you know will produce biomass for your compost. The second biggest lesson I learnt was from watching Elaine Ingham videos. Leave the roots of plants in the soil, never pull the roots out. Whenever I help friends start a vegetable garden, I find it difficult to teach them the importance of creating a composting system. For most newbies, their mindset of what compost is is the bagged stuff you buy from shops. Most people who have never done any gardening in their life before just don’t get the concept of composting.
I will be helping my son put in a garden this spring. I helped him move into his new house in late October last year, we should have done something to prepare a section of soil for this year, it didn't happen. Long story short, I will put in a garden for him. My plan is to dig out the grass, incorporate some of my homemade compost, put in a few landscape timbers and call it good. I also have an extra 10 gallons or so of worm castings I will incorporate into the soil with the compost. I will have him let the soil rest for at least a week or two (better), allowing the newly introduced soil microbes to acclimate themselves to their new home (he has to keep it moist). Then he can plant the seedlings I have given him. It is always best to prepare new soils for gardening in the fall ( a lot easier too), but sometimes you just have to work with what you have. Enjoy your videos.
I come from California, we have lived in Ohio 6 years. I started amending my soil in my back yard 5 years ago. We chip our leaves and branches and spread them over low spots and areas we will have our garden. The soil has improved greatly. We also let the dandelions grow wild so they can help break up the hard clay. We have a wooded lot and this year we are finally getting rid of the trees that are blocking the sun in the garden area we have planned. We are also building an enclosed garden to keep out critters. Wish us luck! We are very excited. 5 years is a long time to amend soil but in hard pan soil you have to let it happen naturally by adding and prepping the area through the seasons. We use all our leaves and fallen branches, food scraps grass cuttings and when that breaks down after a year we spread it and start again in the summer and fall. It will be worth all the hard work when i can grow food for my family.😁 thank you for all your information you share with all of us who love to garden!
just moved to a new property and is very compacted clay, had the tarps for 2 months killing some of the weeds and now made my first no till raised bed, a bradfork will be my next investment. I always learn a lot from your videos
I used solarization to my garden area I expanded this year and def recommend. I did it over winter low you said. Also, one of the things I love about videos is you sharing your knowledge and sources. Thank you!
I agree. After five years of working with the soil in my raised beds, I am finally pleased with my efforts. I have listened, I have learned, and I have created.
I am so glad to have found your channel Jenna!! I garden in zone b3( Alberta,Canada) and I also struggle with clay soil. Thank you for your honest advice, and please keep making your lovely videos
Great video Jenna! I use the card board like you and lately have been using logs to frame out my new beds. They are free and with lumber prices now it works great in certain scenarios. The logs take more room and can't always be used in tighter spots in my garden but last year I put in some new beds outside my fence to grow potatoes. I heard the deer don't bother potatoes but we'll see this year. In any event the logs worked great for this project.
Sounds like a good use of resources to me! Keep an eye on those potatoes- I did the same thing last year and deer mowed a bunch of mine off. I ended up having to put one of those black plastic deer netting fences up around them.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Yes I have a back up plan. Actually I'll probably protect them with a fence when they're young and remove it when the get larger. Greg from Maritime gardening up in Canada claims the deer there didn't bother his potatoes so they must be polite Canadian deer lol.
I just tilled a very large, wet, clay area of the yard, basically because I didn't have much of a choice. I had compost delivered and the dump truck got stuck in the yard and caused very deep ruts. I thought it was easier just to till and lay cardboard and compost over it and plant shallow greens and such in it until the cardboard starts to break down. Time wasn't on my side to kill the grass, otherwise. And of course, it's snowing today in zone 6a, so I'm watching sunny gardening videos and rearranging and repotting houseplants....lol. Also, I am sooo making that broadfork. It's perfect for my old back!!
Oh no! Sorry to hear about that truck-- sounds like you've had the same weather as me- wet, wet, wet (and snow mixed in for fun 😩). I hope it dries out for you soon!
We use wood chips (free from chip-drop) in our pathways along with cut grass. Doing this hastens the breakdown of the chips as we are "mechanically" helping the process by walking on them. Nice video
Wood CHIPS added heavily for 3 years completely changed my deep red clay soil. I also add all fall leaves in a thick layer and then work into the soil before spring planting. Then all summer add thin layers of grass clippings each week i cut the grass. After 5 years, i have the deepest brown/black soil that is beautiful and loaded with earth worms. So wood chips, leaves, and grass clippings
Same as you except no cover crop. Just black tarp, till once, dedicated walkways and massive amounts of organic matter everywhere, sometimes ill even add largeish grain sand if i happen to have some ( too small grain +clay and it makes cement or so i've heard). This year I scraped the walkways on the beds like you do but only on half the garden to see if it'll heat up faster and do a comparaison test.
I've heard that about the small grain sand (playground sand) too. I've also been told that one would need to add 50% sand by volume to make a difference in clay soil. I'm curious what you think about the areas where you've added sand- do you notice a difference? I'd be curious to hear the results of your comparison test!
@@GrowfullywithJenna It did make a difference in the spot where i dumped it but it was indeed quite a lot, I would not purchase sand just for that purpose unless maybe to mix in a raised bed dedicated to propagation or root vegetables. Will let you know! thanks for the ideas btw
Been gardening my long life and agree with you, having little no dig experience, better for my tomatoes and peppers is my opinion after 2 season but Grandpa Jude said grow on a long hill or a ridge seems best,I'm hopeful to catch some cover crop learning Lady, Thanks for your teaching Lady
I appreciate your video! My hubby and I are about to do some strawbale gardens, but we have clay soil too and we are wanting to amend it. We just got pasture pigs who are doing a great job rooting up our soil. We have unearned natural prairie, and the grass can get as tall as me. The pigs naturally til the soil, and they also fertilize it. Our next plan was to also go through with clay-busting cover crops after we rotate the pigs to their next paddocks. We have some land closer to our home where we won't have animals on, so I'll give some of these methods a try.
I had a lot of fun with the straw bale gardens- and at the end of the season that rotted straw made an excellent amendment for my soil. I hope it goes well for you! Gotta love those pigs- nature's rototillers!
Excellent video. So much good information. I always start new areas in the fall and I use cardboard with a super thick layer of shredded leaves and grass clippings mixed together. I have awful clay here in zone 5 Illinois and there are no fast methods of dealing with it . You simply have to put in the work. That said, I cannot believe how rich clay soil is--once you get it workable. Thanks again for such a nice presentation.
Jenna, since you are creating a new bed in clay, might I suggest you give amended clay soil a try for potatoes? I mulched grass clippings and leaves into heavy clay, grew potatoes just fine and had enormous yields (I did use synthetic fertilizer but that is required as plants need nutrients - I don't have enough compost for compost tea). My experience shows that clay soil did better than sandy loam for potatoes, probably because clay holds more nutrients, retains moisture better and better shields the roots from the hot air.
Yes! Growing them in my amended clay soil is my favorite way to grow potatoes! I much prefer to grow them in-ground (check out the video where I compare 4 methods th-cam.com/video/GKFB_bMQvQo/w-d-xo.html), but I do the no-dig bed both to break in a new plot and when the ground is too wet to plant (as it is right now). Thanks!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I just watched it! Your results line up with my especially with the straw bale performing really poorly. The way I deal with overly wet soils is that I plant the potatoes very densely. There might be enough water to drown 1 plant but if you had 4-8, there's not enough water to go around. Last year I planted potatoes around 10 inches deep around this time (way too early). We had 48 hours of rain and the seed pieces were submerged under at least 5 inches of water for a few days. They still made it and the yield was relatively unaffected in comparison to my other trials.
@@theurzamachine Wow! That is really interesting! And good to know. Thank you for sharing your experience. I would have probably just given those potatoes up for lost. Impressive!
I've had very good luck using sorghum, corn and sunflower to open up clay soil. Their roots penetrate deeply. The rye & oats are autumn sown and do a good job "granulating" the top 6-8 inches but the afore noted warm season plants really drive deeply. I cut the corn, sorghum right at pollination time and use the cuttings to much remainder of garden at midsummer when most needed. Then I sow either buckwheat or millet immediately after cutting the sorghum.
I did sunflower & sorghum sudangrass at my folks place last summer... chopped & dropped and just let all the residue sit on top of the plot this winter. I'm very curious to see what it's looking like this spring (I've not checked on it yet)! I'm curious what you used to terminate. My poor dad ended up out there with a machete, chopping up sorghum... not the most efficient tactic, but he actually seemed to enjoy it 😄. We don't have a bushhog-type mower that can tackle something like that!
@@GrowfullywithJenna if you wait to let the sorghum or cereal rye send up a seed head *with pollen anthers* and then cut it you shouldn't have much regrowth. *TIMING* It's all in the timing. Once plant shifts to reproductive stage then it can't (?)/won't send up new growth when you cut it. Trying to terminate prior to pollination allows plant to 'retry'. Of course, the entire plot sowing will NOT be on exact same schedule so be prepared to whack the stragglers that resprout. Edit: terminate with weed eater. I've done small beds with pruning shears when I felt 'ambitious'.
Imagine bigger farms using regenerative agriculture ideas creating a more healthy soil. Cover Crops rule! I’m so happy for your channel. I remember when you only had 2K subs. You’re growing you channel just like your awesome 6a knowledge. Happy growing Jenna 👩🌾
I see some farmers slowly coming over to this way of thinking- we've got one down the road who has started using cover crops extensively and is trying to minimize his sprays as much as possible. It's promising, especially in an area dominated by conventional farming techniques. And thank you so much- I really appreciate the support & encouragement you've given me along the way. It means a lot to me. Hope this garden season is a wonderful one!
You move amazing quick in your garden! Lol. I have always either used cardboard and leaves or black plastic to kill off the grass. It gets hotter and doesn't let in light. We have had nothing but rain 25 miles west of Chicago for the past two weeks, so I haven't had many opportunities to get my seedlings planted. I'm about two weeks behind. Last year at this time in zone 5b I had half my garden planted. We have had nearly 5 inches of rain in the past two weeks. Today is rain mixed with snow. Ugh!
I'm sure that constant rain is very frustrating. Where I live, we haven't had a good rainfall since last May, it's hard not to be a little envious. Too little or too much, both are detrimental.
Being west of Chicago your probably a Cubs fan, or not. I moved from Chicago in 1990 to Baraboo WI, did not plant my tomatoes and peppers until June last year. I do have cold weather crops out there, but I will not plant my onions or potatoes until the first of May, last year they took a really bad hit in late April (fricken weather!). You must be out around the fox river, used to catch a shit load of channel cats out there. Rain is good. Have a great growing season.
Haha, I wish I moved that fast-I sped everything up in editing for the sake of fitting it in 😆. Same here with the rain and being behind- I don't think we got as much rain as you, but it does feel like it's been raining every other day for two weeks. Snow tonight and tomorrow. I have a sneaking suspicion we're going to go straight from this in to summer... but I hope I'm wrong! I hope it dries out for you soon!
Hard pan with plenty of clay in our area. So raised beds for me to grow food n cut flowers. Though I do amend the heck out of the landscape bed soil for my plants there. In summer need a jack hammer to dig holes for plants. Lol It's that bad. Xx
I feel your pain- we have areas with hardpan and it is no picnic! I'm glad the raised beds are working for you-- planting with a jackhammer would not be my idea of fun 😆! Best wishes for a wonderful gardening season!
I have not started many beds, and i am doing raised beds and barrels exclusively(so far). I either start in pure compost, or i have started Hugel. Sticks from the yard, then whole leaves from the fall, then compost. My native soil is clay and sucks, to i use compost.
@@GrowfullywithJenna not really. Maybe the top inch, but everything below that so far has stayed decently moist. But i am also installing a drip system to prevent dryout as well.
If I want a bed fast I'll till it and lay down leaves and other yard scraps Cover that with card board weighted down with branches, old logs, etc. I burn that in short sections and once the coals settle I water it down; that way I'm not committed to tending a huge fire or risk things getting out of hand. Once all the burning is done I'll remove any wood that didn't burn down, fork in compost and pull any weed roots that managed to survive. This can be done in a few days. At that point the ground is ready amendments, hilling, etc.
I love that home made broad fork. I can tig weld. is it much better than the $150 premade store ones? looks like the bigger base makes it more stable? Now I just have to search the internet for some plans to make one. been trying to find a used one, but they seem uncommon tools.
It is much sturdier than the store ones ( a LOT heavier too). Apparently my sister just showed my brother-in-law this video th-cam.com/video/K4krslH2jgU/w-d-xo.html and he made it based on that. I've been looking for plans on line, as I've had lots of questions about it, but have yet to find any. If you find some, I'd love to know!
We are also in ohio, and just starting to get into some serious gardening, we built some raised beds for root veggies last year expanding onto our we 14 row bed for annual vaggies and 3 beds for edible perennials and now added a small hoop house. We are hoping to put in a few more raised beds for our vining crops and are starting a large bery patch which will be amended and tilled like you have done in your larger plots. We are on floodplain, in heavy clay in Ashtabula and deal with alot of spring water retention on our property as its low lying and bowled, we will be putting in some trenching and a pond thisnyear tonhelp drain off the land but in the mean time raised beds solve 3 problems at once, poor soil, wet conditions and offers us some weed control and ease of planting as well. We love watching! Wish us luck! Oh...and i have to know where you got thay awesome broad fork that breaks up your clods as you go! Thats awesome
Sounds like you've got some wonderful things going on there! Best of luck with all of your projects. The broadfork was handmade by my brother-in-law and is apparently called a 'modified' broadfork. My sister just showed him this video: th-cam.com/video/K4krslH2jgU/w-d-xo.html and he built it!
I have never had the patience for killing the lawn so I rent a sod cutter and cut and flip the turf then I cover with compost and manure and then cover with thick hay. I do this in the fall and plant in the spring never needing a tiller😊
New to vegetable gardening and to new Western NC with heavy clay soil. Beginner question- what do you do with the cover crop afterward? I saw you cut it down, but what about the roots- especially if you don’t want to turn over the soil again? Also, what about the dead grass from heating up with the tarp? Can i start turning over soil as is or do i have to remove the dead grass first. Thanks! After a year I’m our new home observing the conditions, I’ve decided to spend this summer preparing for having a real garden next year. Your videos are super helpful. I have been conflicted about how to do this most effectively and responsibly and this red clay is no joke!!
You can just let the roots rot away in to the soil if you like. Sometimes I will use a broadfork to break them up a bit without turning the soil. Same with the grass- I find that using a broadfork is helpful in breaking up the roots enough so that I can plant, you can also till... no need to remove the dead grass.
Thanks for this great information. I think I will try using the tarp over winter this year. This awful clay in Ohio is such a challenge. But I am determined to at least try it next year.
Learning is fun. This was great. A great journey. Gonna help a handicap friend start an awesome garden. But I working with red dirt. I see what you did in this video. And it was great with the walkways. Did you run into any problems with the clay soil you feel, now, that could benefit, I'm open to the information. And thank you.
Have you considered either making a video on how to make one or patenting and selling the design to a farm/garden tool co? Also, GardenProfessors founder Linda Chalker-Scott suggests letting nature prep a new bed by covering it with a 12"+ pile of fresh arborist woodchips and letting vermin do the work. Thinking about trying that this year.
I've tried to talk my brother-in-law into into making & selling these- but so far, no dice! I think if you're willing to let the plot sit long enough so that the wood chips can break down, that's a wonderful plan!
im about to build a garden with raised beds for the first time, and im curious about what to plant together. Should fruits and veggies be planted in seperate beds? Im doing strawberries, watermelons, and cantaloupe for fruit. I believe watermelon likes sandy soil not sure about the others i need to do research!
I like to put my strawberries in separate beds, just because I find it to be easier. Watermelons & cantaloupes I plant with my other veggies. Melons & watermelon grow great in my soil which is no where near sandy 😀
A little bit of everything, but I try to focus on things the rabbits won't eat (though they pretty much end up eating everything, so I often use temporary fencing to protect plants. Right now I've got fruit trees, elderberries, strawberries, haskaps, rhubarb, asparagus, onions, garlic... I'm probably forgetting something 😄. Regarding cardboard, the short answer is 'no'. The long answer, I talk about here: th-cam.com/video/KvjeOv4E5GI/w-d-xo.html at about 2:38
Thanks. I use ground fabric much in the same way I use my tarps- as a temporary way to smother out weeds. I will never, ever put it down permanently again. I did in one of my first gardens and it was a nightmare. Even with wood chip mulch over top, the weeds eventually found their way into the fabric and were almost impossible to pull out (much more difficult than just pulling out of soil), When I did decide to remove it, it was difficult to remove and the soil underneath it seemed very compacted and wet. I'm sure it has its applications, but in my garden I'll stick to my biodegradable mulches.
Thank you, Jenna. I used it in one of my inground gardens last year and I have it in my both inground gardens this year. I haven't removed any of it at this time, but I do have mixed emotions about it myself. I knew you would give me your honest opinion and I like hearing others' opinions. Thanks again and God Bless!
It depends a bit on which cover crop you're using and what the desired effects are... but for most cover crops you can mix into beds or allow them to remain on top of the soil as a mulch. Hopefully the cover crop video answered your questions, but if not, let me know!
or if you ar on a schedule you can mix your clay with some peat and manure in autumn and you are good to go early spring, or you can skip manure if you are on a hurry, juz mix local soil with peat, get first crops and add manure nexty autumn
Hello Jenna, I am just getting started on new beds in heavy clay soil here in the Hudson Valley of NY. My soil was in young tree saplings and Phragmites so I had to do some clearing and digging out small tree stumps. I’ve tried to scrape off only top 3 inches or so of topsoil cause of all the roots. I thought a broad fork or tiller would be best to aerate. (Cannot find any broad fork like the one you use in video’s!) I plan to till in some fairly aged wood chips as well as composted soil. Any advice? I love your videos; they are among the best out there!
Adding aged wood chips is a great addition. Unfortunately, the broadfork I use was custom-made by my BIL and I've not been able to find a similar pre-made version for sale.
It's the opposite of clay, in all the bad ways. It's abrasive, has no nutrients and doesn't hold any. Control water with raised beds and drainage. There are much better soil amendments, of which carbon is the best and carbohydrates are good but temporary. Biochar, compost, manure, leaves, cardboard, pine cones, newspaper, rotten wood. No such thing as green "waste".
Hi Suzanne- my opinion is very similar to James'- in fact I warn against using sand in my video about improving clay soil (th-cam.com/video/QS7qQVOzK7g/w-d-xo.html), because, "When sand mixes with clay, it creates a soil structure akin to concrete. To create a real change in a clayey soil structure, you would need to add a 1:1 ratio of sand to clay. Considering the actual volume of clay soil underfoot, that equates to a lot of sand." extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2018-01-31-does-sand-improve-clay-soil-drainage Now- after digging around a bit on this, fine playground sand is really to blame for this concrete-like effect. Some folks claim that be using 'river' sand, you won't get that same result. BUT- as James says, sand has no nutrients and doesn't hold any. It's not really doing your clay any favors.
Hi Jenna, so appreciate your videos. I'm starting some new beds in clay and I'm thinking tilling in: gypsun, lime, a mixture of wood chips broken down and leaves. Covering crop with some coffee bean bags from a local roaster, the burlapse sack bags and adding mushroom compost. Do you think I'll be able to plant in the season?? Or should I be patient?...lol.
Hi Lena- I think it sounds like you could plant this season, and have some really lovely results- especially since your wood chips are already broken down. I'm curious about the coffee bean bags- tell me more! Are they like the burlap sacks grain used to come in- and are you using them to block out weeds from growing around your plants?
Hi, Jenna! We have sticky wet clay soil in our yard and it's awful. We had someone try to grade it last year (he put a bunch of topsoil down) to help with drainage. He also planted grass but it didn't take so now we have giant patches of dirt with weeds. -_- I would love to have the yard be mostly garden with just some grass, but we have to start with the soil. What would you recommend? Planting grass would help keep the top soil from washing away, but I also want to amend the soil underneath. I've watched your amending clay soil videos, but am unsure of where to start first. We have access to aged manure/compost through our local zoo and would love to figure out how to incorporate it to help the soil. We also plan to sow daikon radishes this fall to further help. And I bought a broadfork! I just need to put it together. Ha! I live in zone 6b. Thank you so much for your videos! =)
Hello! First- I have to say how funny it is- the thought of getting manure from a zoo never even crossed my mind, but in the last week you are the 3rd or 4th person to mention it! It's genius! If it were me, I'd start by incorporating the manure and then planting with a cover crop right away. You could use rye if you wanted something that looked a bit more like 'lawn' while you're in the process of improving the area and it's a good one for clay. Another option for the areas that won't be garden is to plant white dutch clover- a perennial cover crop that's good for the soil. Timing for the gardens is something to keep in mind as well- you could really keep the area in cover crop till next year (for example, rye followed by buckwheat, followed buy daikon)- but if you want to plant a veggie garden this year, maybe just choose one cover crop- and after termination you can either work it into the soil and plant your veggies OR leave it on the soil surface like a mulch and just move it out of the way to plant.
@@GrowfullywithJennaAdmittedly, I mentioned the zoo poopy doo on another one of your clay videos! I had no idea until I accidentally stumbled upon it. We have a couple raised beds and some pot options, so I'm totally fine with using those while we fix the yard. We have a tree that has root rot because of the drainage and it needs to be fixed. And it's a water maple! It must be bad if the water maple thinks there is too much h20. -_- It sounds like rye would be a good starting place for us. I might put the clover in the corners by the trees that don't have grass. My husband likes coleus, but they didn't like it too much back there. Would you recommend using a broadfork, turning in the manure, and then planting the cover crops over top starting with the bald spots? I'm inclined to just do the entire yard (it's mostly clover, violets, dandelions, with some grass here and there), but I also tend to way overestimate my ability to get stuff done in a period of time. Haha! Now to find the seeds at a decent price. Thank you mucho, girlie!
@@thehotsinger ah ok- I thought maybe you did… and then someone else mentioned working at a zoo! A broadfork or even just a garden fork/ pitch fork will work to turn in the compost/manure- but if you need to use a tiller to mix it in for the sake of time- go for it.
Great videos! You have a lot of raised beds! Being from Ohio, this looks like the longest marathon ever, lol! You have a lucky husband. I prefer a raised bed, with legs, so I never have to bend over to garden, ;)
Thanks! I wouldn't have half of those, but the farm I used to work at was getting rid of them-- I couldn't pass them up. I prefer my in-ground beds, but do like the raised beds for early plantings when my soil is still really wet & cold.
Hi Jenna. We are located in central Ohio and oh my goodness, the rock and clay… we are still learning how to improve the soil. I am really curious, where did you find your broadfork? I have never seen one like it. It looks like it might be easier to handle.
I mow (well, I 'mow' it down with a weedwhacker) at anthesis (AKA during pollen shed and before seed production begins) or it can be tilled under in early spring at less than 12" in height. In a small plot, I just turn it over with a fork instead of tilling.
We started with a heavy clay subsoil (topsoil was scraped off) better suited to making bricks. Over the last 45 years we've put everything imaginable into it, with the exception of biochar. That's my next project. Compost lasts ten years, biochar lasts centuries.
Wow! After 45 years your soil is probably beautiful! I've been playing around with biochar and have been impressed with the results. I have a friend who swears by it and makes his own in large quantities- I need to learn his process!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I recently cut down a bunch of 30-40 foot trees, mostly spruce, so I have a lot of branches and wood that isn't burnable in a fireplace. I need to figure out how to make biochar safely and LEGALLY. I'll report back...
@@GrowfullywithJenna And, yeah, the soil looks a LOT better (we have 7 mulch piles) but it breaks down after five, ten years and you have to keep feeding it. Every carbon-based molecule we can find goes into the garden, but it turns into carbon dioxide so fast. Pure carbon stays.
Great question! No- I don't plant my corn in these beds. Corn actually does relatively well in our clay soil- so I typically mix some composted manure into the soil and plant the corn on a large, flat plot. You can see an example in this video at around 11:20 th-cam.com/video/YmHYcLs5N9s/w-d-xo.html
This is on my list of things to try this year! So many folks on my 'improving clay soil' video said they used gypsum, but it was my understanding it really on works on sodic clay soil (which I don't have). My plan is to do several amendment tests- possibly in buckets to I can really isolate them, and see what actually works!
That modified broadfork is awesome! How did you come by the design?? I need to get one, and my boyfriend is a welder so maybe he can help me fabricate something similar... that added leverage seems like it would make it so much easier
I also weld.and did build my broad fork, But the basic design and Jenna has a upgrade and look improve, If it's movable into location. I might copy the extra part..thanks
Hi Jenna! I am trying to make a new bed on what I think is clay soil. I covered with cardboard in the fall and put a very thick layer of shredded leaves on top. It rains a lot where I live so it’s been consistently wet. I’ve checked the beds and the cardboard still hasn’t broken down, and neither have the leaves! Tonnes of worms though. Do you aerate through the cardboard and leaf mulch, or do you remove it, till/aerate then put the leaf mulch back on top?
My clay is so heavy here that fork wouldn't work ( or my back wouldn't work again😃)....just years and years of composted manure, straw....leaves and green materials.....I have hot beds ( horse manure and straw)...that become beautiful black soil after 2 years....then it gets dumped back onto the garden....walk ways are at a minimum and I use a wooden planting frame on the ground that I lift every fall and then put down again in the spring planting....I find growing up ( vertical) is the best for me and many,many multi plantings...the weather plays the greatest effect on all this for me....to wet....to cool to hot....it all affects these multi plantings....but it's fun when it works out...and the food is great....PS how did your peas make out in the snowand cold ?
Sounds like you are giving your soil just what it needs... good stuff! My mom & dad do something similar at their place with the planks to walk on. I was a little worried as cold as it got a week or so ago, but peas are doing well- breezing right through this cold wet weather! Hope your multi-plantings go well this year!
Great video! Quick question, if your going to till , why do you have to kill the grass first? Also with the cover crops, when they die, do you leave the roots in the ground?
It may vary depending on your lawn- but we have so many weeds and weedy grasses mixed in with the actual lawn that tilling through all those roots is quite difficult. And with cover crops, yes, leave the roots in the ground if you can!
New gardener here. If I have heavy deadpan clay, then isn't it essentially lifeless? Hydraulic tilling won't do much damage would it? That way I can amend the soil with compost and broadfork from the next year on. Is there a flaw in my thinking? I've looked at broadfork videos and it seems like it would take over a month (2 hours a day) to break through half an acre
Rye can be very persistent and the general recommendation for termination is to till under at less than 12" tall OR mow/crimp at anthesis (AKA during pollen shed and before seed production begins). The first time I used it, I cut it down at the wrong time and it just grew back again and again, so I ended up tilling it in, which helped, though I did still have some clumps that regrew. I just pulled them out and flipped them over by hand when they popped up. Terminating at anthesis is more effective because a lot the plants' energy stores are depleted at this point and it is not likely to grow back.
Here in Michigan there's pretty much only sand, like throughout the entire forest is sand (sand forest) with like a couple inches of topsoil. Don't get me wrong it's really good for drainage and saves a ton of money on perlite but I have to Hugelkultur here or all the nutrients will wash out so that means lots of hole diggin haha as Joe dirt would say (life is a garden, dig it) post scriptum granted there is fossils here and those ancient minerals are being absorbed by the plants and then into me but if I want to add any other nutrients I definitely have to add wood and aged biochar under the soil.
@@GrowfullywithJenna I'm trying not to judge it that hard and go with the flow~ with what prime creator gave me. Gardening on the surface of a planet is sacred because on most planets extraterrestrials can't live on the surface.
What are the dimensions of your fenced-in garden? How tall is the outer fence? I'm looking at spots on my property to put beds and a chicken coop. Great videos! One of my favorite "go to" channels for gardening.
My situation is kinda odd. I had purchased a raised bed kit, and put it together. It was a "Birdies" raised bed made of steel sheets that you fasten together. It is about 4 feet high and approx 4 X 6. Maybe 4X8 even, I forget. Anyway, I put some logs in the bottom and then had payed the neighbor guy to dump 2 loads of soil into it. It is called "Hugulkultur". The problem is that I had asked him to bring me topsoil from around his place, and he brought me some soil that is basically clay soil. And, it had not been a transaction with any paperwork saying any specifics. I think that the good topsoil may be what he had dumped in the bed first, and is on the bottom. Clay soil likely had lots of good stuff in it, BUT, I need to sorta get some compost and other organic matter incorporated into that clay to make it a good soil to grow things in that want well draining soil. I have now planted some ornamental plants in that bed. I planted about 4 calla lillies, a bird of paradise, a Cordyline (both tropical foliage plants) and 2 Petunia's. BUT, I do want to in fall add some organic matter, and if it will help, use something to incorporate it into the soil. Since the bed is a raised bed, I would use a pick axe or a long handled tool to try to work it into the clay soil. I'm in zone 6a, so, those plants I have in the bed are basically annuals to me. So, I will be working a bed that is free from any perennial plants. Sorry this is so long. The logs that are under the soil will rot away and the clay soil on top will eventually be much lower in the soil profile of the raised bed, BUT, for now, I do want to increase the drainage of what is the clay soil "topsoil" that I have now. I hope that you can help.
We bought a new home and I am finding that the majority of it is laying on rock. Solid rock! What do you suggest? Raised beds or can I still grow in ground?
Hi. Im new to your channel and fairly near to gardening. My first time gardening was last year. I just moved to a new home theres a garden bed in a shaded area and prior to seeing your video i looked at the soil in a sunny location for summer crops and its clay so i dug up a few inches and made trenches and put food scraps in and covered it back in february. And now were in April, my plan was just to add fertilizer and plant bc i dont uave conpost. Can i do this or or do i have to do all the steps you added?
Hello! You certainly don't have to do all the steps I added- it's just what has worked well for me. I'd recommend going ahead and planting, and then just continuing to work on improving that soil over time!
Hi Jenna! Thank you for this. We live in Zone 6b and after planting winter rye, weed whacking it a few weeks ago, then solarizing it for several weeks, we realized the rye grass only thrived and had to be weed whacked again today! This is our primary garden, so would you recommend putting a good layer of compost right on top of the cut rye and layering mulch on top of that? Will both the compost and mulch kill the underlying rye grass and make a happy growing environment for our upcoming summer/fall crops? Or, should we try something else? Thank you so much for your time and help!
Hello and you're welcome! Rye is very persistent and the general recommendation for termination is to till under at less than 12" tall OR mow/crimp at anthesis (AKA during pollen shed and before seed production begins). The first time I used it, I had a similar experience to you. I did end up tilling it in, which helped, though I did still have some clumps that regrew. I just pulled them out and flipped them over by hand when they popped up. I've not tried smothering it as you describe- if you go that route, just ensure it's completely covered give it plenty of time before planting with your crops because "Rye suppresses germination of seed after termination due to allelopathy. It can take up to 3 or 4 weeks for that effect to subside. Make sure to plan termination if early spring seeding is planned. Incorporating the residue after termination can speed up breakdown of the rye to allow earlier seeding." From: u.osu.edu/growingfranklin/2018/04/30/managing-over-wintered-rye-cover-crop-in-spring/
Oh, boy, looks like we've got some work to do! This is year two of our attempt at no-tilling. Will go with another cover crop option this winter, but for the current season to get plants in the ground in two weeks, tilling looks like the best option. Adding good compost and mulch will help restore the health of the soil, yes? Anything else you would recommend? So appreciate your time, Jenna!
@@BokenkampsInBaja I wouldn't fret too much about having to till it again- I do think it's probably the best option in this case, and you don't have to overwork the soil- just enough to incorporate the rye a bit. All that leaf and root residue from the rye, as well as the compost will definitely help attract and feed microorganisms. When you look at the long term health of your plot, this will help improve it... even with that little extra bit of tillage.
...water down everything and go over it with my big tiller and hammer it with lime, then double dig it at the season end and lime iime again and till the soil into powder
So basically the exact opposite of my approach 😆.... that's a lot of digging & tilling! My dad used to do something similar- he loved tilling that soil into powder!
.. Yes Sweetheart, even brothers and sisters in the same family have different preferences and growing techniques .. different soil types also .. I have 3 tillers that I enjoy operating .. a mini tiller, a small tiller, and a Heavy Duty Tiller. VRRrroooOOMMM VRRrroooOOMMM .. !! kiss kiss .. Love Kelly .. !! @@GrowfullywithJenna
I'm glad you asked- for my low lying areas I actually opted for hügelkultur beds th-cam.com/video/u8SWtuhL3so/w-d-xo.html I found these work better than trying to build a bed on the soil that's always saturated.
Hi Harley- check out this video, I show my seed starting set ups. th-cam.com/video/Jos0dKeWZOg/w-d-xo.html The one I use the most is at 01:23 Also, this video breaks down my whole process: th-cam.com/video/hGDYbRsOX7M/w-d-xo.html Hope this helps!
What about sowing seeds in very clayish soil the following way during a rainy season. I made holes about 6 inches deep and inches wide. I mixed sand, very well composted organic matter, and a little of the clay in the holes and then planted the seeds. BTW other stuff like corn and other edibles have grown in this soil in the past with no amendments. I figure the seeds need oxygen in the soil, and the combination of very clayish soil and a lot of water would not allow oxygen into the soil. The compost and sand are to soften up the soil and allow for better water drainage and allow more oxygen into the soil.
I'm over in the Newark area. I started with a broad fork and broke the first one. Bought a better one and I can't even get it in the ground LOL. Rented tiller is being delivered tomorrow, about the time the snow will be here 🤣🤣🤣 Darn you Ohio!!!!
@@GrowfullywithJenna Same :( The rental company was like "I don't think you want this tiller today" LOL so I rolled with it. Looks like it's being put off for a few more weeks! DANGIT OHIO CMON! 🤣 I guess I'll finish the fence in the meantime and plan which trellis' I'm going to be using. I have probably 200 more things to up pot anyhow so I suppose I'll work on that today too...
Clay can be tricky. I use trimmer tiller to scratch surface then dump a load of wood chips come back in a year till then dump compost come back in another year then till and plant then harvest . Then till next spring and till and be like i know i dumped a couple tons in this clay over the last few years! 😠 😡 😤 😣 my clay suckes out anything i put in it
Jenna I cant find the right thread to ask this question so I will just ask it here. My wife plants about 40 pots of flowers every year and they are beautiful. Our new problem is that we adopted 3 kittens last year and this year we cant keep them out of the pots. We have one big old cattle trough that they especially like to use as a litter box. we have covered them with chicken wire, cattle panels and provided them with an outside litter box to use and still they use the pots. She even purchased some granular stuff that was suppose to keep them away but it must be replaced after every rain and that is about every day this spring. Her next test is egg shells but it will take a lot of eggs. Do you or your followers have any methods for keeping cats out of your pots and gardens because if the rain ever stops and we get our garden in that will be next I am sure of that? help!
Not meant to be a downer but a lot of folks may be turning lawn area into potato gardens if food shortages occur. This was uber appropriate in terms of potentially being extremely important for much of the population. Thank you.
Growing organically and having fresh produce is worth something. At least you know what you put on it. And you can grow stuff you can't find in the store.
This will be my first year gardening in an area with heavy clay after moving across the country. I tilled up two beds where there was lawn a couple of times over and then worked in some good quality compost and fall leaves that I collected. I covered one with fall leaves and the other with a tarp. we'll see how it goes but I didn't have enough time to do a longer method. Figure it will do ok this year and I can improve the soil over time.
Absolutely! I continue to amend and improve every year- I think it will work just fine for you. Hope your gardening season goes great!
“Gardening with clay soil is a marathon, not a sprint.” - Growfully with Jenna.
Isn’t that the truth! Zone 8a North Texas, Heavy Red Clay “Soil” down here.
Great video.
Thank you!
Hi Jenna, Love all of your videos. You are such a great communicator. You get to the point and every thing you say count. You make everything look exciting including tilling your soil with a fork. LOL. I am in LA and I also have clay soil. I have a bad back so I can't do the soil like you do so I use raised beds. However, I hate grass growing through and up my beds. I am going to use your plastic cover method to kill off grass for future beds and then lay down card board before I put in my framed raised beds. Thanks for that tip.
Hello & thank you so much! That means a lot to me.
The solarization will work great for ridding your bed areas of grass & weeds- you can even use it at the end of the season to burn off any remaining weeds or grass that have popped up through the growing season, after your veggies are done.
Dear Jenn what I do and have tremendous success growing tomatoes in clay soil is I dig my trench after tilling then I use a garden fork four finger go deep under my plants which allows the heavy rains we get in June July on occasions this will allow drainage and root growth in the four holes other wise my garden gets flooded and the result is tragic a lot of plants water logged this has saved my tomatoe crop many years now so I will always do this! Thanks for your video,s
Thanks for sharing your technique, David!
I always incorporate worm tea and fungal strains to my new garden beds.
Good stuff!
Our soil is very similar here in 5b Iowa, so I generally follow the same practice: till once and then never again. We have wood chips covering most of the back yard now, and that does make the soil even easier to work with when I want to plant something new. Thanks for sharing your process!
Wood chips are such a great resource! Where do you get yours? ChipDrop isn't active in this area. and I've not had great luck with the local tree trimming companies. I'm about to rent a chipper myself!
@@GrowfullywithJenna We’re lucky to have a few great tree trimming companies here. I usually call the people who took down our maple tree for us and they’re happy to drop em off for free. They have a long wait list but it’s worth it!
Jenna I subscribed to you a couple months ago. In November I moved from zone 9b to zone 6a and gardening is totally different here. I needed to learn how to garden all over again. To do that I'm learning from you. Thanks for your very informative videos.
Oh goodness- If I moved to 9b, I'd have to learn to garden all over again too! Best of luck!
The foundation of gardening is really about improving and maintaining soil life. Growing fruit, veg and flowers is stage two. Always have to think long term. Unless you have good soil, year one is always about improving soil life.
Nice video, I like your presentation style.
Absolutely. Improving soil health is always my focus (I do not have good native soil).
@@GrowfullywithJenna My garden is clay. In my first year I built raised beds and filled them with my version of Mel’s mix mainly to improve drainage and help seedings establish their roots before reaching the rock hard clay. I dedicated a large area to growing Comfrey so I always have biomass for my compost plus the comfrey tap roots go deep into the clay. In other beds I broadcasted alfalfa seeds as their tap roots go deep into the clay. I grew sunflowers, sweetcorn and broad beans, again mainly for biomass for composting plus I left their roots in the soil. Over the first winter I grew more broad beans and leeks. The roots of leeks are massive so they also help break up the clay soil, again producing biomass for the compost and leaving roots in the soil.
For me, it took about three years of creating my own compost, using it to top dress my beds, leaving roots in the soil etc. before I no longer saw any signs of a clay soil base. In years one and two I found it wierd how I sometimes saw clumps of clay near the top surface of the raised beds. I only imagine they came from rodents digging.
After three years, whenever I stuck my dibber into the soil, all I saw was great soil, full of life and worms. I don’t know if it’s scientific or not but I now have a measure of what good soil is without using a microscope or refractometer. If each time you stick your dibber into the soil and you see a worm, you have soil full of life. I genuinely can’t believe how my many worms are in my soil, for me it’s amazing from where I started.
The biggest lesson I have learnt from trying to grow in clay soil is that you have to plan to create a constant surplus of compost which ultimately means you either need to dedicate an area to grow biomass for composting and/or ensure you grow specific types of crops which you know will produce biomass for your compost.
The second biggest lesson I learnt was from watching Elaine Ingham videos. Leave the roots of plants in the soil, never pull the roots out.
Whenever I help friends start a vegetable garden, I find it difficult to teach them the importance of creating a composting system. For most newbies, their mindset of what compost is is the bagged stuff you buy from shops. Most people who have never done any gardening in their life before just don’t get the concept of composting.
I will be helping my son put in a garden this spring. I helped him move into his new house in late October last year, we should have done something to prepare a section of soil for this year, it didn't happen.
Long story short, I will put in a garden for him.
My plan is to dig out the grass, incorporate some of my homemade compost, put in a few landscape timbers and call it good.
I also have an extra 10 gallons or so of worm castings I will incorporate into the soil with the compost. I will have him let the soil rest for at least a week or two (better), allowing the newly introduced soil microbes to acclimate themselves to their new home (he has to keep it moist).
Then he can plant the seedlings I have given him.
It is always best to prepare new soils for gardening in the fall ( a lot easier too), but sometimes you just have to work with what you have.
Enjoy your videos.
What an awesome gift you are giving him! That sounds like it will work well- just that addition of compost will help so much.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Well I am the compost master. But I am almost out, Have to dig into my winter compost, weather has not cooperated,
I come from California, we have lived in Ohio 6 years. I started amending my soil in my back yard 5 years ago. We chip our leaves and branches and spread them over low spots and areas we will have our garden. The soil has improved greatly. We also let the dandelions grow wild so they can help break up the hard clay. We have a wooded lot and this year we are finally getting rid of the trees that are blocking the sun in the garden area we have planned. We are also building an enclosed garden to keep out critters. Wish us luck! We are very excited. 5 years is a long time to amend soil but in hard pan soil you have to let it happen naturally by adding and prepping the area through the seasons. We use all our leaves and fallen branches, food scraps grass cuttings and when that breaks down after a year we spread it and start again in the summer and fall.
It will be worth all the hard work when i can grow food for my family.😁 thank you for all your information you share with all of us who love to garden!
Sounds like you are off to an amazing start, Michelle! Best wishes!
just moved to a new property and is very compacted clay, had the tarps for 2 months killing some of the weeds and now made my first no till raised bed, a bradfork will be my next investment. I always learn a lot from your videos
Congratulations on the new property & best of luck with that clay soil!
I've watched this video at least 10 times to prepare my first inground vegetable bed for next year. I'm in NE Ohio.
Best of luck with your new garden!
I used solarization to my garden area I expanded this year and def recommend. I did it over winter low you said. Also, one of the things I love about videos is you sharing your knowledge and sources. Thank you!
I'm glad it worked well for you!
Soil is an Art, and you are one of my Artists I pay attention to.
😏
Thank you!
@@GrowfullywithJenna You are very welcome 😊 J
I agree. After five years of working with the soil in my raised beds, I am finally pleased with my efforts. I have listened, I have learned, and I have created.
Such a timely video. That's what I'm going to do in the next few days. Thanks! I'm from Ohio too, so your videos are especially valuable for me.
Great to hear from a fellow Ohioan! Have fun creating new planting beds!
I am so glad to have found your channel Jenna!! I garden in zone b3( Alberta,Canada) and I also struggle with clay soil. Thank you for your honest advice, and please keep making your lovely videos
Thank you, Dawn! I'm glad you found my channel too 😊. I hope you can find some useful tidbits here. Best of luck with that clay!
Great video Jenna! I use the card board like you and lately have been using logs to frame out my new beds. They are free and with lumber prices now it works great in certain scenarios. The logs take more room and can't always be used in tighter spots in my garden but last year I put in some new beds outside my fence to grow potatoes. I heard the deer don't bother potatoes but we'll see this year. In any event the logs worked great for this project.
Sounds like a good use of resources to me!
Keep an eye on those potatoes- I did the same thing last year and deer mowed a bunch of mine off. I ended up having to put one of those black plastic deer netting fences up around them.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Yes I have a back up plan. Actually I'll probably protect them with a fence when they're young and remove it when the get larger. Greg from Maritime gardening up in Canada claims the deer there didn't bother his potatoes so they must be polite Canadian deer lol.
@@franksinatra1070 haha 😆 they must be!
I just tilled a very large, wet, clay area of the yard, basically because I didn't have much of a choice. I had compost delivered and the dump truck got stuck in the yard and caused very deep ruts. I thought it was easier just to till and lay cardboard and compost over it and plant shallow greens and such in it until the cardboard starts to break down. Time wasn't on my side to kill the grass, otherwise. And of course, it's snowing today in zone 6a, so I'm watching sunny gardening videos and rearranging and repotting houseplants....lol. Also, I am sooo making that broadfork. It's perfect for my old back!!
Oh no! Sorry to hear about that truck-- sounds like you've had the same weather as me- wet, wet, wet (and snow mixed in for fun 😩). I hope it dries out for you soon!
We use wood chips (free from chip-drop) in our pathways along with cut grass. Doing this hastens the breakdown of the chips as we are "mechanically" helping the process by walking on them. Nice video
Ooh- I didn’t think about hastening the breakdown- great point!
Wood CHIPS added heavily for 3 years completely changed my deep red clay soil. I also add all fall leaves in a thick layer and then work into the soil before spring planting. Then all summer add thin layers of grass clippings each week i cut the grass. After 5 years, i have the deepest brown/black soil that is beautiful and loaded with earth worms. So wood chips, leaves, and grass clippings
Nice!!
Same as you except no cover crop. Just black tarp, till once, dedicated walkways and massive amounts of organic matter everywhere, sometimes ill even add largeish grain sand if i happen to have some ( too small grain +clay and it makes cement or so i've heard). This year I scraped the walkways on the beds like you do but only on half the garden to see if it'll heat up faster and do a comparaison test.
I've heard that about the small grain sand (playground sand) too. I've also been told that one would need to add 50% sand by volume to make a difference in clay soil. I'm curious what you think about the areas where you've added sand- do you notice a difference?
I'd be curious to hear the results of your comparison test!
@@GrowfullywithJenna It did make a difference in the spot where i dumped it but it was indeed quite a lot, I would not purchase sand just for that purpose unless maybe to mix in a raised bed dedicated to propagation or root vegetables. Will let you know! thanks for the ideas btw
Been gardening my long life and agree with you, having little no dig experience, better for my tomatoes and peppers is my opinion after 2 season but Grandpa Jude said grow on a long hill or a ridge seems best,I'm hopeful to catch some cover crop learning Lady, Thanks for your teaching Lady
Grandpa Jude sounds like one smart guy!
I appreciate your video! My hubby and I are about to do some strawbale gardens, but we have clay soil too and we are wanting to amend it.
We just got pasture pigs who are doing a great job rooting up our soil. We have unearned natural prairie, and the grass can get as tall as me. The pigs naturally til the soil, and they also fertilize it. Our next plan was to also go through with clay-busting cover crops after we rotate the pigs to their next paddocks.
We have some land closer to our home where we won't have animals on, so I'll give some of these methods a try.
I had a lot of fun with the straw bale gardens- and at the end of the season that rotted straw made an excellent amendment for my soil. I hope it goes well for you!
Gotta love those pigs- nature's rototillers!
Excellent video. So much good information.
I always start new areas in the fall and I use cardboard with a super thick layer of shredded leaves and grass clippings mixed together. I have awful clay here in zone 5 Illinois and there are no fast methods of dealing with it . You simply have to put in the work. That said, I cannot believe how rich clay soil is--once you get it workable. Thanks again for such a nice presentation.
Thank you so much, Susan! And, I agree, 100%- clay can actually be wonderful to garden in, once you work with it a bit. Take care!
Jenna, since you are creating a new bed in clay, might I suggest you give amended clay soil a try for potatoes? I mulched grass clippings and leaves into heavy clay, grew potatoes just fine and had enormous yields (I did use synthetic fertilizer but that is required as plants need nutrients - I don't have enough compost for compost tea).
My experience shows that clay soil did better than sandy loam for potatoes, probably because clay holds more nutrients, retains moisture better and better shields the roots from the hot air.
Yes! Growing them in my amended clay soil is my favorite way to grow potatoes! I much prefer to grow them in-ground (check out the video where I compare 4 methods th-cam.com/video/GKFB_bMQvQo/w-d-xo.html), but I do the no-dig bed both to break in a new plot and when the ground is too wet to plant (as it is right now). Thanks!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I just watched it! Your results line up with my especially with the straw bale performing really poorly. The way I deal with overly wet soils is that I plant the potatoes very densely. There might be enough water to drown 1 plant but if you had 4-8, there's not enough water to go around.
Last year I planted potatoes around 10 inches deep around this time (way too early). We had 48 hours of rain and the seed pieces were submerged under at least 5 inches of water for a few days. They still made it and the yield was relatively unaffected in comparison to my other trials.
@@theurzamachine Wow! That is really interesting! And good to know. Thank you for sharing your experience. I would have probably just given those potatoes up for lost. Impressive!
I've had very good luck using sorghum, corn and sunflower to open up clay soil. Their roots penetrate deeply. The rye & oats are autumn sown and do a good job "granulating" the top 6-8 inches but the afore noted warm season plants really drive deeply. I cut the corn, sorghum right at pollination time and use the cuttings to much remainder of garden at midsummer when most needed. Then I sow either buckwheat or millet immediately after cutting the sorghum.
I did sunflower & sorghum sudangrass at my folks place last summer... chopped & dropped and just let all the residue sit on top of the plot this winter. I'm very curious to see what it's looking like this spring (I've not checked on it yet)! I'm curious what you used to terminate. My poor dad ended up out there with a machete, chopping up sorghum... not the most efficient tactic, but he actually seemed to enjoy it 😄. We don't have a bushhog-type mower that can tackle something like that!
@@GrowfullywithJenna if you wait to let the sorghum or cereal rye send up a seed head *with pollen anthers* and then cut it you shouldn't have much regrowth.
*TIMING*
It's all in the timing. Once plant shifts to reproductive stage then it can't (?)/won't send up new growth when you cut it.
Trying to terminate prior to pollination allows plant to 'retry'. Of course, the entire plot sowing will NOT be on exact same schedule so be prepared to whack the stragglers that resprout.
Edit: terminate with weed eater. I've done small beds with pruning shears when I felt 'ambitious'.
omg!! Thank you!! I have black soil,but many areas are clay...this helps!!!!!
You are welcome!
Great information. I'll be in zone 8a 8b.
Heavy clay in Arizona ( ground not yours )
Bit I want an oasis so I'm going to do everything to get there.
Best of luck towards your beautiful oasis!
Wow! A great demonstration Jenna. I’ll make sure to use your tips and ideas in our future veg gardens.
Thanks!
Imagine bigger farms using regenerative agriculture ideas creating a more healthy soil. Cover Crops rule! I’m so happy for your channel. I remember when you only had 2K subs. You’re growing you channel just like your awesome 6a knowledge. Happy growing Jenna 👩🌾
I see some farmers slowly coming over to this way of thinking- we've got one down the road who has started using cover crops extensively and is trying to minimize his sprays as much as possible. It's promising, especially in an area dominated by conventional farming techniques.
And thank you so much- I really appreciate the support & encouragement you've given me along the way. It means a lot to me. Hope this garden season is a wonderful one!
Jenna, your gardens are amazing!
Thank you!
You move amazing quick in your garden! Lol. I have always either used cardboard and leaves or black plastic to kill off the grass. It gets hotter and doesn't let in light. We have had nothing but rain 25 miles west of Chicago for the past two weeks, so I haven't had many opportunities to get my seedlings planted. I'm about two weeks behind. Last year at this time in zone 5b I had half my garden planted. We have had nearly 5 inches of rain in the past two weeks. Today is rain mixed with snow. Ugh!
I'm sure that constant rain is very frustrating. Where I live, we haven't had a good rainfall since last May, it's hard not to be a little envious.
Too little or too much, both are detrimental.
@@GratiaHomestead water is kind of like salt. At least you can add water, but I can't subtract it.
@@GratiaHomestead water is like salt. At least you can still add water, but I can't subtract it.
Being west of Chicago your probably a Cubs fan, or not. I moved from Chicago in 1990 to Baraboo WI, did not plant my tomatoes and peppers until June last year.
I do have cold weather crops out there, but I will not plant my onions or potatoes until the first of May, last year they took a really bad hit in late April (fricken weather!).
You must be out around the fox river, used to catch a shit load of channel cats out there.
Rain is good. Have a great growing season.
Haha, I wish I moved that fast-I sped everything up in editing for the sake of fitting it in 😆. Same here with the rain and being behind- I don't think we got as much rain as you, but it does feel like it's been raining every other day for two weeks. Snow tonight and tomorrow. I have a sneaking suspicion we're going to go straight from this in to summer... but I hope I'm wrong! I hope it dries out for you soon!
Hard pan with plenty of clay in our area. So raised beds for me to grow food n cut flowers. Though I do amend the heck out of the landscape bed soil for my plants there. In summer need a jack hammer to dig holes for plants. Lol It's that bad. Xx
I feel your pain- we have areas with hardpan and it is no picnic! I'm glad the raised beds are working for you-- planting with a jackhammer would not be my idea of fun 😆! Best wishes for a wonderful gardening season!
another great vid. Thanks and havagudun Jenna
You're welcome- you too!
You and your videos are (AMAZING )thank you and keep em coming
Thank you so much!
I have not started many beds, and i am doing raised beds and barrels exclusively(so far). I either start in pure compost, or i have started Hugel. Sticks from the yard, then whole leaves from the fall, then compost. My native soil is clay and sucks, to i use compost.
When planting into straight compost, do you ever have issue with how quickly it dries out?
@@GrowfullywithJenna not really. Maybe the top inch, but everything below that so far has stayed decently moist. But i am also installing a drip system to prevent dryout as well.
@@thomaslist252 thanks!
If I want a bed fast I'll till it and lay down leaves and other yard scraps Cover that with card board weighted down with branches, old logs, etc. I burn that in short sections and once the coals settle I water it down; that way I'm not committed to tending a huge fire or risk things getting out of hand. Once all the burning is done I'll remove any wood that didn't burn down, fork in compost and pull any weed roots that managed to survive. This can be done in a few days. At that point the ground is ready amendments, hilling, etc.
Sounds like a great process- thanks for sharing!
I love that home made broad fork. I can tig weld. is it much better than the $150 premade store ones? looks like the bigger base makes it more stable? Now I just have to search the internet for some plans to make one. been trying to find a used one, but they seem uncommon tools.
It is much sturdier than the store ones ( a LOT heavier too). Apparently my sister just showed my brother-in-law this video th-cam.com/video/K4krslH2jgU/w-d-xo.html and he made it based on that. I've been looking for plans on line, as I've had lots of questions about it, but have yet to find any. If you find some, I'd love to know!
We are also in ohio, and just starting to get into some serious gardening, we built some raised beds for root veggies last year expanding onto our we 14 row bed for annual vaggies and 3 beds for edible perennials and now added a small hoop house. We are hoping to put in a few more raised beds for our vining crops and are starting a large bery patch which will be amended and tilled like you have done in your larger plots. We are on floodplain, in heavy clay in Ashtabula and deal with alot of spring water retention on our property as its low lying and bowled, we will be putting in some trenching and a pond thisnyear tonhelp drain off the land but in the mean time raised beds solve 3 problems at once, poor soil, wet conditions and offers us some weed control and ease of planting as well. We love watching! Wish us luck! Oh...and i have to know where you got thay awesome broad fork that breaks up your clods as you go! Thats awesome
Sounds like you've got some wonderful things going on there! Best of luck with all of your projects.
The broadfork was handmade by my brother-in-law and is apparently called a 'modified' broadfork. My sister just showed him this video: th-cam.com/video/K4krslH2jgU/w-d-xo.html and he built it!
I have never had the patience for killing the lawn so I rent a sod cutter and cut and flip the turf then I cover with compost and manure and then cover with thick hay. I do this in the fall and plant in the spring never needing a tiller😊
Nice! Sounds like you've got a good method going.
New to vegetable gardening and to new Western NC with heavy clay soil. Beginner question- what do you do with the cover crop afterward? I saw you cut it down, but what about the roots- especially if you don’t want to turn over the soil again? Also, what about the dead grass from heating up with the tarp? Can i start turning over soil as is or do i have to remove the dead grass first. Thanks! After a year I’m our new home observing the conditions, I’ve decided to spend this summer preparing for having a real garden next year. Your videos are super helpful. I have been conflicted about how to do this most effectively and responsibly and this red clay is no joke!!
You can just let the roots rot away in to the soil if you like. Sometimes I will use a broadfork to break them up a bit without turning the soil. Same with the grass- I find that using a broadfork is helpful in breaking up the roots enough so that I can plant, you can also till... no need to remove the dead grass.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Thank you so much! That was very helpful!
Thanks for this great information. I think I will try using the tarp over winter this year. This awful clay in Ohio is such a challenge. But I am determined to at least try it next year.
Yes! I am so excited to see how this goes... grows?? Both 👍
👍💚
Learning is fun. This was great. A great journey. Gonna help a handicap friend start an awesome garden. But I working with red dirt. I see what you did in this video. And it was great with the walkways.
Did you run into any problems with the clay soil you feel, now, that could benefit, I'm open to the information. And thank you.
I would think daikon radish would be helpful way to start a bed too if you had time. Excellent plans you show
Yes, definitely!
Have you considered either making a video on how to make one or patenting and selling the design to a farm/garden tool co?
Also, GardenProfessors founder Linda Chalker-Scott suggests letting nature prep a new bed by covering it with a 12"+ pile of fresh arborist woodchips and letting vermin do the work. Thinking about trying that this year.
I've tried to talk my brother-in-law into into making & selling these- but so far, no dice!
I think if you're willing to let the plot sit long enough so that the wood chips can break down, that's a wonderful plan!
I am coveting your DIY broad-fork! (drooling) 🤤🤤🤤. That would make a great future video!
My brother in law made that wonderful thing! I keep trying to convince him to sell them, but no luck yet. I've had so many questions about it!
@@GrowfullywithJenna That would be great if you can sell them. I think it would be a wonderful business.
I like your tomatoes with cabbage! I wouldn't have thought to pair them together. I much prefer Companion planting too monocropping!
I try to mix everything up as much as a I can (though with no real rhyme or reason 😆).Like you, I try to avoid monocropping!
im about to build a garden with raised beds for the first time, and im curious about what to plant together. Should fruits and veggies be planted in seperate beds? Im doing strawberries, watermelons, and cantaloupe for fruit. I believe watermelon likes sandy soil not sure about the others i need to do research!
I like to put my strawberries in separate beds, just because I find it to be easier. Watermelons & cantaloupes I plant with my other veggies. Melons & watermelon grow great in my soil which is no where near sandy 😀
Your are so amazing and knowledgeable! Love you ❤️
Thank you! 😊
What do you grow outside your fence?
Also, I keep seeing that cardboard is now toxic. Does that concern you?
A little bit of everything, but I try to focus on things the rabbits won't eat (though they pretty much end up eating everything, so I often use temporary fencing to protect plants. Right now I've got fruit trees, elderberries, strawberries, haskaps, rhubarb, asparagus, onions, garlic... I'm probably forgetting something 😄.
Regarding cardboard, the short answer is 'no'. The long answer, I talk about here: th-cam.com/video/KvjeOv4E5GI/w-d-xo.html at about 2:38
Been waiting for this! Thank you!
You're welcome!
Great tip Jenna 👍 Thxs
You're welcome!
Wow great jen
Thanks
You're a hard worker Jenna. What are your thoughts on using ground fabric?
Thanks. I use ground fabric much in the same way I use my tarps- as a temporary way to smother out weeds. I will never, ever put it down permanently again. I did in one of my first gardens and it was a nightmare. Even with wood chip mulch over top, the weeds eventually found their way into the fabric and were almost impossible to pull out (much more difficult than just pulling out of soil), When I did decide to remove it, it was difficult to remove and the soil underneath it seemed very compacted and wet. I'm sure it has its applications, but in my garden I'll stick to my biodegradable mulches.
Thank you, Jenna. I used it in one of my inground gardens last year and I have it in my both inground gardens this year. I haven't removed any of it at this time, but I do have mixed emotions about it myself. I knew you would give me your honest opinion and I like hearing others' opinions. Thanks again and God Bless!
After you cut down your cover crops, do you mix the material into the beds? What is the benefit of the cover crop vs planting right away?
Just watched your whole cover crop video - I love your channel!!
It depends a bit on which cover crop you're using and what the desired effects are... but for most cover crops you can mix into beds or allow them to remain on top of the soil as a mulch. Hopefully the cover crop video answered your questions, but if not, let me know!
or if you ar on a schedule you can mix your clay with some peat and manure in autumn and you are good to go early spring, or you can skip manure if you are on a hurry, juz mix local soil with peat, get first crops and add manure nexty autumn
Sounds like that would work well!
No dig over grass, in the fall, cardboard, leaf mulch and compost. They are usually perfect in the spring. Sometimes I add garden soil in the spring.
Thanks for sharing!
Hello Jenna, I am just getting started on new beds in heavy clay soil here in the Hudson Valley of NY. My soil was in young tree saplings and Phragmites so I had to do some clearing and digging out small tree stumps. I’ve tried to scrape off only top 3 inches or so of topsoil cause of all the roots. I thought a broad fork or tiller would be best to aerate. (Cannot find any broad fork like the one you use in video’s!) I plan to till in some fairly aged wood chips as well as composted soil. Any advice? I love your videos; they are among the best out there!
Adding aged wood chips is a great addition.
Unfortunately, the broadfork I use was custom-made by my BIL and I've not been able to find a similar pre-made version for sale.
What’s your opinion about adding sand?
It's the opposite of clay, in all the bad ways. It's abrasive, has no nutrients and doesn't hold any. Control water with raised beds and drainage.
There are much better soil amendments, of which carbon is the best and carbohydrates are good but temporary. Biochar, compost, manure, leaves, cardboard, pine cones, newspaper, rotten wood. No such thing as green "waste".
Hi Suzanne- my opinion is very similar to James'- in fact I warn against using sand in my video about improving clay soil (th-cam.com/video/QS7qQVOzK7g/w-d-xo.html), because, "When sand mixes with clay, it creates a soil structure akin to concrete. To create a real change in a clayey soil structure, you would need to add a 1:1 ratio of sand to clay. Considering the actual volume of clay soil underfoot, that equates to a lot of sand." extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2018-01-31-does-sand-improve-clay-soil-drainage Now- after digging around a bit on this, fine playground sand is really to blame for this concrete-like effect. Some folks claim that be using 'river' sand, you won't get that same result. BUT- as James says, sand has no nutrients and doesn't hold any. It's not really doing your clay any favors.
Hi Jenna, so appreciate your videos. I'm starting some new beds in clay and I'm thinking tilling in: gypsun, lime, a mixture of wood chips broken down and leaves. Covering crop with some coffee bean bags from a local roaster, the burlapse sack bags and adding mushroom compost. Do you think I'll be able to plant in the season?? Or should I be patient?...lol.
Hi Lena- I think it sounds like you could plant this season, and have some really lovely results- especially since your wood chips are already broken down.
I'm curious about the coffee bean bags- tell me more! Are they like the burlap sacks grain used to come in- and are you using them to block out weeds from growing around your plants?
Hi, Jenna!
We have sticky wet clay soil in our yard and it's awful. We had someone try to grade it last year (he put a bunch of topsoil down) to help with drainage. He also planted grass but it didn't take so now we have giant patches of dirt with weeds. -_- I would love to have the yard be mostly garden with just some grass, but we have to start with the soil. What would you recommend? Planting grass would help keep the top soil from washing away, but I also want to amend the soil underneath. I've watched your amending clay soil videos, but am unsure of where to start first. We have access to aged manure/compost through our local zoo and would love to figure out how to incorporate it to help the soil. We also plan to sow daikon radishes this fall to further help. And I bought a broadfork! I just need to put it together. Ha! I live in zone 6b. Thank you so much for your videos! =)
Hello! First- I have to say how funny it is- the thought of getting manure from a zoo never even crossed my mind, but in the last week you are the 3rd or 4th person to mention it! It's genius!
If it were me, I'd start by incorporating the manure and then planting with a cover crop right away. You could use rye if you wanted something that looked a bit more like 'lawn' while you're in the process of improving the area and it's a good one for clay. Another option for the areas that won't be garden is to plant white dutch clover- a perennial cover crop that's good for the soil. Timing for the gardens is something to keep in mind as well- you could really keep the area in cover crop till next year (for example, rye followed by buckwheat, followed buy daikon)- but if you want to plant a veggie garden this year, maybe just choose one cover crop- and after termination you can either work it into the soil and plant your veggies OR leave it on the soil surface like a mulch and just move it out of the way to plant.
@@GrowfullywithJennaAdmittedly, I mentioned the zoo poopy doo on another one of your clay videos! I had no idea until I accidentally stumbled upon it. We have a couple raised beds and some pot options, so I'm totally fine with using those while we fix the yard. We have a tree that has root rot because of the drainage and it needs to be fixed. And it's a water maple! It must be bad if the water maple thinks there is too much h20. -_-
It sounds like rye would be a good starting place for us. I might put the clover in the corners by the trees that don't have grass. My husband likes coleus, but they didn't like it too much back there. Would you recommend using a broadfork, turning in the manure, and then planting the cover crops over top starting with the bald spots? I'm inclined to just do the entire yard (it's mostly clover, violets, dandelions, with some grass here and there), but I also tend to way overestimate my ability to get stuff done in a period of time. Haha! Now to find the seeds at a decent price. Thank you mucho, girlie!
@@thehotsinger ah ok- I thought maybe you did… and then someone else mentioned working at a zoo! A broadfork or even just a garden fork/ pitch fork will work to turn in the compost/manure- but if you need to use a tiller to mix it in for the sake of time- go for it.
Great videos! You have a lot of raised beds! Being from Ohio, this looks like the longest marathon ever, lol! You have a lucky husband. I prefer a raised bed, with legs, so I never have to bend over to garden, ;)
Thanks! I wouldn't have half of those, but the farm I used to work at was getting rid of them-- I couldn't pass them up. I prefer my in-ground beds, but do like the raised beds for early plantings when my soil is still really wet & cold.
Hi Jenna. We are located in central Ohio and oh my goodness, the rock and clay… we are still learning how to improve the soil.
I am really curious, where did you find your broadfork? I have never seen one like it. It looks like it might be easier to handle.
Great to hear from fellow Ohioans!
My brother-in-law made that fork, it's a modified broadfork. I've yet to find anything similar for sale!
How do you terminate your winter rye?
I mow (well, I 'mow' it down with a weedwhacker) at anthesis (AKA during pollen shed and before seed production begins) or it can be tilled under in early spring at less than 12" in height. In a small plot, I just turn it over with a fork instead of tilling.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Thank you. Good video!
We started with a heavy clay subsoil (topsoil was scraped off) better suited to making bricks. Over the last 45 years we've put everything imaginable into it, with the exception of biochar. That's my next project. Compost lasts ten years, biochar lasts centuries.
Wow! After 45 years your soil is probably beautiful!
I've been playing around with biochar and have been impressed with the results. I have a friend who swears by it and makes his own in large quantities- I need to learn his process!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I recently cut down a bunch of 30-40 foot trees, mostly spruce, so I have a lot of branches and wood that isn't burnable in a fireplace. I need to figure out how to make biochar safely and LEGALLY. I'll report back...
@@GrowfullywithJenna And, yeah, the soil looks a LOT better (we have 7 mulch piles) but it breaks down after five, ten years and you have to keep feeding it. Every carbon-based molecule we can find goes into the garden, but it turns into carbon dioxide so fast. Pure carbon stays.
Do you think a blue tarp would work or does it have to be black?
Blue would work just fine!
Do you recommend this type of dug up beds for corn AND when you put corn seed do you sow them in hills?
Thank you.
Great question! No- I don't plant my corn in these beds. Corn actually does relatively well in our clay soil- so I typically mix some composted manure into the soil and plant the corn on a large, flat plot. You can see an example in this video at around 11:20 th-cam.com/video/YmHYcLs5N9s/w-d-xo.html
Have you used or have any pros or cons on gypsum?
This is on my list of things to try this year! So many folks on my 'improving clay soil' video said they used gypsum, but it was my understanding it really on works on sodic clay soil (which I don't have). My plan is to do several amendment tests- possibly in buckets to I can really isolate them, and see what actually works!
@@GrowfullywithJenna definitely interested to see how your experiment goes
We have heavy Appalachian clay. Is there a place where we can also buy a modified broadfork like this one?
I've not found one like it for sale yet... though I keep looking as lots of folks have asked about it- my brother in law made the one that I use.
What is your opinion on clear tarps to utilize solarization to kill off grass vs opaque tarps? Which do you find is better? Thank you
That modified broadfork is awesome! How did you come by the design?? I need to get one, and my boyfriend is a welder so maybe he can help me fabricate something similar... that added leverage seems like it would make it so much easier
I also weld.and did build my broad fork, But the basic design and Jenna has a upgrade and look improve, If it's movable into location. I might copy the extra part..thanks
My brother-in-law (also a welder) made it after my sister showed him this: th-cam.com/video/K4krslH2jgU/w-d-xo.html
I wish someone made a tutorial how to make it. Looks awesome!
@@NobodyNN659 maybe I can convince my BIL!
Hi Jenna! I am trying to make a new bed on what I think is clay soil. I covered with cardboard in the fall and put a very thick layer of shredded leaves on top. It rains a lot where I live so it’s been consistently wet. I’ve checked the beds and the cardboard still hasn’t broken down, and neither have the leaves! Tonnes of worms though.
Do you aerate through the cardboard and leaf mulch, or do you remove it, till/aerate then put the leaf mulch back on top?
My clay is so heavy here that fork wouldn't work ( or my back wouldn't work again😃)....just years and years of composted manure, straw....leaves and green materials.....I have hot beds ( horse manure and straw)...that become beautiful black soil after 2 years....then it gets dumped back onto the garden....walk ways are at a minimum and I use a wooden planting frame on the ground that I lift every fall and then put down again in the spring planting....I find growing up ( vertical) is the best for me and many,many multi plantings...the weather plays the greatest effect on all this for me....to wet....to cool to hot....it all affects these multi plantings....but it's fun when it works out...and the food is great....PS how did your peas make out in the snowand cold ?
Sounds like you are giving your soil just what it needs... good stuff!
My mom & dad do something similar at their place with the planks to walk on.
I was a little worried as cold as it got a week or so ago, but peas are doing well- breezing right through this cold wet weather!
Hope your multi-plantings go well this year!
Great video! Quick question, if your going to till , why do you have to kill the grass first? Also with the cover crops, when they die, do you leave the roots in the ground?
It may vary depending on your lawn- but we have so many weeds and weedy grasses mixed in with the actual lawn that tilling through all those roots is quite difficult. And with cover crops, yes, leave the roots in the ground if you can!
New gardener here. If I have heavy deadpan clay, then isn't it essentially lifeless? Hydraulic tilling won't do much damage would it? That way I can amend the soil with compost and broadfork from the next year on. Is there a flaw in my thinking? I've looked at broadfork videos and it seems like it would take over a month (2 hours a day) to break through half an acre
I have never ever done cover crops. is rye hard to remove? it looks just as tough as grass to me!
Rye can be very persistent and the general recommendation for termination is to till under at less than 12" tall OR mow/crimp at anthesis (AKA during pollen shed and before seed production begins). The first time I used it, I cut it down at the wrong time and it just grew back again and again, so I ended up tilling it in, which helped, though I did still have some clumps that regrew. I just pulled them out and flipped them over by hand when they popped up. Terminating at anthesis is more effective because a lot the plants' energy stores are depleted at this point and it is not likely to grow back.
Here in Michigan there's pretty much only sand, like throughout the entire forest is sand (sand forest) with like a couple inches of topsoil. Don't get me wrong it's really good for drainage and saves a ton of money on perlite but I have to Hugelkultur here or all the nutrients will wash out so that means lots of hole diggin haha as Joe dirt would say (life is a garden, dig it) post scriptum granted there is fossils here and those ancient minerals are being absorbed by the plants and then into me but if I want to add any other nutrients I definitely have to add wood and aged biochar under the soil.
Yes- that's at least one benefit of clay, it holds on to nutrients and water. I think sand would be very challenging to grow in!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I'm trying not to judge it that hard and go with the flow~ with what prime creator gave me. Gardening on the surface of a planet is sacred because on most planets extraterrestrials can't live on the surface.
@@zephaniahmarion4890 great way to look at it!
Wow that’s a good work out! 🌷💚🙃
Yes- It really is! I save money on a gym membership this way 😆.
What are the dimensions of your fenced-in garden? How tall is the outer fence? I'm looking at spots on my property to put beds and a chicken coop.
Great videos! One of my favorite "go to" channels for gardening.
Thank you!
The fenced in area is approx. 45' x 75' and the fence is 5' tall.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Thanks!
Where did you get your broad fork?
My brother in law made it.
My situation is kinda odd. I had purchased a raised bed kit, and put it together. It was a "Birdies" raised bed made of steel sheets that you fasten together. It is about 4 feet high and approx 4 X 6. Maybe 4X8 even, I forget. Anyway, I put some logs in the bottom and then had payed the neighbor guy to dump 2 loads of soil into it. It is called "Hugulkultur".
The problem is that I had asked him to bring me topsoil from around his place, and he brought me some soil that is basically clay soil. And, it had not been a transaction with any paperwork saying any specifics. I think that the good topsoil may be what he had dumped in the bed first, and is on the bottom. Clay soil likely had lots of good stuff in it, BUT, I need to sorta get some compost and other organic matter incorporated into that clay to make it a good soil to grow things in that want well draining soil.
I have now planted some ornamental plants in that bed. I planted about 4 calla lillies, a bird of paradise, a Cordyline (both tropical foliage plants) and 2 Petunia's. BUT, I do want to in fall add some organic matter, and if it will help, use something to incorporate it into the soil.
Since the bed is a raised bed, I would use a pick axe or a long handled tool to try to work it into the clay soil. I'm in zone 6a, so, those plants I have in the bed are basically annuals to me. So, I will be working a bed that is free from any perennial plants.
Sorry this is so long. The logs that are under the soil will rot away and the clay soil on top will eventually be much lower in the soil profile of the raised bed, BUT, for now, I do want to increase the drainage of what is the clay soil "topsoil" that I have now.
I hope that you can help.
So, I live in the Northwest and have very heavy clay soil. What type of broad fork are you using. I looks like a modified one and not standare
You're correct- it is a modified broadfork
We bought a new home and I am finding that the majority of it is laying on rock. Solid rock! What do you suggest? Raised beds or can I still grow in ground?
Oh... that is tough. Raised beds may likely be your best bet.
Hi. Im new to your channel and fairly near to gardening. My first time gardening was last year. I just moved to a new home theres a garden bed in a shaded area and prior to seeing your video i looked at the soil in a sunny location for summer crops and its clay so i dug up a few inches and made trenches and put food scraps in and covered it back in february. And now were in April, my plan was just to add fertilizer and plant bc i dont uave conpost. Can i do this or or do i have to do all the steps you added?
Hello! You certainly don't have to do all the steps I added- it's just what has worked well for me. I'd recommend going ahead and planting, and then just continuing to work on improving that soil over time!
@@GrowfullywithJenna thanks Jenna!
Thank you!
You're welcome!
Hi Jenna! Thank you for this. We live in Zone 6b and after planting winter rye, weed whacking it a few weeks ago, then solarizing it for several weeks, we realized the rye grass only thrived and had to be weed whacked again today! This is our primary garden, so would you recommend putting a good layer of compost right on top of the cut rye and layering mulch on top of that? Will both the compost and mulch kill the underlying rye grass and make a happy growing environment for our upcoming summer/fall crops? Or, should we try something else? Thank you so much for your time and help!
Hello and you're welcome! Rye is very persistent and the general recommendation for termination is to till under at less than 12" tall OR mow/crimp at anthesis (AKA during pollen shed and before seed production begins). The first time I used it, I had a similar experience to you. I did end up tilling it in, which helped, though I did still have some clumps that regrew. I just pulled them out and flipped them over by hand when they popped up.
I've not tried smothering it as you describe- if you go that route, just ensure it's completely covered give it plenty of time before planting with your crops because "Rye suppresses germination of seed after termination due to allelopathy. It can take up to 3 or 4 weeks for that effect to subside. Make sure to plan termination if early spring seeding is planned. Incorporating the residue after termination can speed up breakdown of the rye to allow earlier seeding." From: u.osu.edu/growingfranklin/2018/04/30/managing-over-wintered-rye-cover-crop-in-spring/
Oh, boy, looks like we've got some work to do! This is year two of our attempt at no-tilling. Will go with another cover crop option this winter, but for the current season to get plants in the ground in two weeks, tilling looks like the best option. Adding good compost and mulch will help restore the health of the soil, yes? Anything else you would recommend? So appreciate your time, Jenna!
@@BokenkampsInBaja I wouldn't fret too much about having to till it again- I do think it's probably the best option in this case, and you don't have to overwork the soil- just enough to incorporate the rye a bit. All that leaf and root residue from the rye, as well as the compost will definitely help attract and feed microorganisms. When you look at the long term health of your plot, this will help improve it... even with that little extra bit of tillage.
@@GrowfullywithJenna You're very kind and encouraging. Thank you, Jenna! May Jesus bless you and yours.
when you use hay as a cover do you have any problem with the hay seed coming up?
I have not. I try to always get 2nd or 3rd cutting alfalfa to avoid weed seeds.
Great info!
Glad you think so!
...water down everything and go over it with my big tiller and hammer it with lime, then double dig it at the season end and lime iime again and till the soil into powder
So basically the exact opposite of my approach 😆.... that's a lot of digging & tilling! My dad used to do something similar- he loved tilling that soil into powder!
.. Yes Sweetheart, even brothers and sisters in the same family have different preferences and growing techniques .. different soil types also ..
I have 3 tillers that I enjoy operating .. a mini tiller, a small tiller, and a Heavy Duty Tiller. VRRrroooOOMMM VRRrroooOOMMM .. !!
kiss kiss .. Love Kelly .. !!
@@GrowfullywithJenna
Would this work with areas of clay soil that have standing water? (Also Ohio 6A here)
I'm glad you asked- for my low lying areas I actually opted for hügelkultur beds th-cam.com/video/u8SWtuhL3so/w-d-xo.html I found these work better than trying to build a bed on the soil that's always saturated.
@@GrowfullywithJenna thank you so much!
Can you give a break down of your seed starting setup? I can't seem to figure it out. I've lost every seedling this year. Even my lettuces died lol
Hi Harley- check out this video, I show my seed starting set ups. th-cam.com/video/Jos0dKeWZOg/w-d-xo.html The one I use the most is at 01:23
Also, this video breaks down my whole process: th-cam.com/video/hGDYbRsOX7M/w-d-xo.html Hope this helps!
@@GrowfullywithJenna thank you.
Root plants like carrots go in now. Then the leafy greens. Then summer plants after frost.
What about sowing seeds in very clayish soil the following way during a rainy season. I made holes about 6 inches deep and inches wide. I mixed sand, very well composted organic matter, and a little of the clay in the holes and then planted the seeds. BTW other stuff like corn and other edibles have grown in this soil in the past with no amendments. I figure the seeds need oxygen in the soil, and the combination of very clayish soil and a lot of water would not allow oxygen into the soil. The compost and sand are to soften up the soil and allow for better water drainage and allow more oxygen into the soil.
I'm over in the Newark area. I started with a broad fork and broke the first one. Bought a better one and I can't even get it in the ground LOL. Rented tiller is being delivered tomorrow, about the time the snow will be here 🤣🤣🤣 Darn you Ohio!!!!
Oh no!!
And yep- it's snowing away here today!
@@GrowfullywithJenna Same :( The rental company was like "I don't think you want this tiller today" LOL so I rolled with it. Looks like it's being put off for a few more weeks! DANGIT OHIO CMON! 🤣 I guess I'll finish the fence in the meantime and plan which trellis' I'm going to be using.
I have probably 200 more things to up pot anyhow so I suppose I'll work on that today too...
"Dangit Ohio Cmon" is right 😆
Watching this was torture….seeing all the green and having to still wait a month for things to really get going! 😭😭😂😂 all great ideas though.
It's slow going this year! Everything feels behind because of how grey & cold it's been. I'm ready for sunshine & green!
Love to watch you broad forkin'! No wonder you have that figure!
😆
@@GrowfullywithJenna ;)
Clay can be tricky. I use trimmer tiller to scratch surface then dump a load of wood chips come back in a year till then dump compost come back in another year then till and plant then harvest . Then till next spring and till and be like i know i dumped a couple tons in this clay over the last few years! 😠 😡 😤 😣 my clay suckes out anything i put in it
Ooh- that is frustrating! I can't say mine's quite that bad... but I have to believe yours will improve eventually!
Jenna I cant find the right thread to ask this question so I will just ask it here. My wife plants about 40 pots of flowers every year and they are beautiful. Our new problem is that we adopted 3 kittens last year and this year we cant keep them out of the pots. We have one big old cattle trough that they especially like to use as a litter box. we have covered them with chicken wire, cattle panels and provided them with an outside litter box to use and still they use the pots. She even purchased some granular stuff that was suppose to keep them away but it must be replaced after every rain and that is about every day this spring. Her next test is egg shells but it will take a lot of eggs. Do you or your followers have any methods for keeping cats out of your pots and gardens because if the rain ever stops and we get our garden in that will be next I am sure of that? help!
Hoping someone else might weigh in on this. This is not something I have any experience with-sorry!
Not meant to be a downer but a lot of folks may be turning lawn area into potato gardens if food shortages occur. This was uber appropriate in terms of potentially being extremely important for much of the population. Thank you.
I know what you mean. I sure wish it didn't take looking food shortages and price hikes to convince people to grow their own food.
Growing organically and having fresh produce is worth something. At least you know what you put on it. And you can grow stuff you can't find in the store.
@@jamesvandamme7786 absolutely!!
I don't own a tiller machine
I have a Troy bilt that I haven't used in ten years. It was OK to start a new garden in heavy weeds.