SPOT ON about the soil's biology! The soil's 'biome' creates the 'pathways' from which plants uptake the minerals necessary for optimal growth. I grew up on my Grandpap's farm and he was a BIG fan of J. I. Rodale [Dr. Steiner as well]. I'm 70+ and I've yet to use anything synthetic because I know how to take care of the soil's biome. People ask me what my so-called green thumb 'secret' is all about - my reply is I'm a soil farmer...that's all. Great video! Cheers to a great 2022 growing season!
I am so glad you are sharing this today with us all. And am hoping everyone reads this. You are fantastic. I THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. CHEERS to all the Soil Farmers.
@@iamorganicgardening You're welcome! Like you, I compost leaves - the earth worms LOVE leaves and help turn leaves into what I call black gold. Another 'natural' plant I add to everything is alfalfa meal/pellets/hay because alfalfa contains a 'potent' growth hormone (triacontanol) that helps stimulate plant roots' growth. Alfalfa also increases beneficial soil microbes and enhances photosynthesis. Adding alfalfa pellets or meal to your soil can also help reduce harmful nematodes. Leaves and alfalfa are a soil farmer's best friends for amending and sustaining the soil's biome in my book! Cheers...
@@ross6343 That 'potent' growth hormone (triacontanol) that helps stimulate plant roots' growth is in the roots only not the plant. So it is not in pellets or the meal. Do you have and thing that can show me different. Maybe a link to something?
@@ross6343 I also applaud your way of soil farming I do verimculture to get my compost. It's the best way to compost in my opinion. The worms do all the work.
Yes! I went to a lot of trouble to sign in because this is worth it. I have been touting the same philosophy forever! I am a 72-year-old market gardener, with 50 years organic gardening experience in zones 5, 4, and 3. Thank you for saying this. Now I can use this for a reference and not be alone. Knowledge of nature must replace ignorant consumerism!
Hi Mark, glad to see you back with a great tutorial on growing soil. I attended an online class hosted by Matt Powers, he hosted a researcher of 30+yrs from Rutgers' Univ, NJ. It was an eye opener. He showed video of root tip growth of seedlings using the soil microbes inorder to grow. Roots take in the microbes, seperate the outer coating and incorporate the plasma into the tissue, the outer casings were put to the tender root tip to help it grow in length and be a protective tip guard. This should open every gardeners' eyes to grow soil, not just plants. Happy spring!...blessings.
Welcome back for another season Mark. So, there are two schools of thought in this debate. The Elaine Ingham belief that you explained that all minerals are available in all soils naturally and we just need the biology to unlock it. Then there's the Steve Solomon or Dan Kittredge school that thinks many soils are either naturally lacking in certain minerals or the upper layers of soil plants can reach have been so leached or abused that certain minerals need to be added for optimal plant growth until the soils have recovered, and that proper soil testing can help us figure it out. As someone who grows in Florida beach sand, I find myself in the latter category. Certain things like boron and other trace elements are lacking, and even the addition of mulch and use of cover crops would just take too many years to return it to productivity.
THANK YOU for sharing this. Great POINT. My own insight is this. There is the 99% rule that what I stated in the video. But there is always a exception. Like what you have and shred with me. Know them well.. That is why I agree with you to that I always keep a open mine and share what works 99% of the time
Fertilizer has just become more expensive for a couple of different reasons so this biology lesson is very reassuring. Most will be panicking at this point but not someone who knows their stuff like this gentleman. I am just a beginner so my learning curve is about to start. Better to learn from someone who has walked the path already I guess. Thank you sir.
Mark I’m glad you are back! Last Fall I picked up over 150 bags of my neighbors leafs, over 10 years of building the soil back with free stuff. This is the year everyone should be growing something, remember folks you can’t eat the grass.
I'm glad to see you back. You have such a unique way to explain soil biology for us. It seems like I spend a lot of time (and money) fertilizing my garden. I'm going to take your information and at least try it. Since I'm in Florida I still have to add some things to my sandy soil, but I think I can back off a bit. Thanks for sharing your information with us. Have a great week.🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋
When my dad past away I moved into his place. He'd use so many bags of fertilizer, dirt cow manure, fungcides, I even saw a bottle of that agent orange stuff. I trimmed tree branches and dropped them right there around the trunks. Any vegetation got chopped and dropped. To water I had to shove the hose in the ground. Where ever I turned and tumbled the ground I would get red wrigglers from the bait store. Then, I discovered free wood chips. If you have alot of money you can buy your soil etc. But after 3 years and the cost of a couple of containers of worms, my half acre of organic property grows by itself. A little too good I might say. It's a jungle now. I'm in west, central Florida, an hour north of Tampa.
Missed your videso. I hope all is well. I have been collecting my leaves and recycling them in my yard. I had collected 5 bags of leaves ,let them decompose and spread them under my citrus trees. I have limes and lemons in abundance for the first time. I did use fertilizer spikes in late fall until the leaves broke down and I spread them out a couple months ago.
Algae and Archae are microorganisms living in soils as well and contributing to the nitrogen cycle, producing oxygen. A healthy, undisturbed fertile soil can have 20% of algae microbial biomass in its upper layer. In Germany here we say that a healthy soil has about 100 earthworms per square meter.
Hey Mark, I help people train their dogs. When they ask me about my garden, I always refer them to your channel. You’re an excellent teacher and generous to share your knowledge and experience with all, Thank you.
This is so wonderful to see! It confirms what God put on my heart when I started gardening three years ago. I knew there had to be another way besides what was being sold. I started experimenting with straw bales, cardboard topped with leaves and soil and straw, all kinds of things. I grew straight in my clay ground, potatoes on cardboard topped with clippings, straw, any spare dirt etc, and got a harvest. I was excited! I'm doing more cardboard gardening this year, I'm behind, going thru a lot, but I won't give up. I'm planting stuff anyway. My tomatoes are growing great, I lost a few but that's ok. Starting a ton of stuff this week! I made videos but haven't posted yet, having some phone issues. I'll post them soon. I love your experiments and clear explanations! I had an idea, to research root structures(one thing I was interested in as I feel like the different types can be layered to enable closer planting and ground cover which imo the plants do better this way but you can decrease unwanted growth of weeds by this planting, at least that's my hypothesis..) So, for instance if I plant a carrot beside a watermelon, the roots aren't fighting so much for the same real-estate, but if I plant a bunch of onions beside each other, they're all in the same zone, yet if I plant a carrot, onion, tomato... They're in different areas of the soil and their roots can work together... But I struggled finding detailed info on the various plants roots, so being new I just planted random stuff together. It worked fine. It would be really interesting to plant stuff in a clear, very deep, plexiglass planter to see the various roots interact, true depth and so on... Thank you so much for your videos! God bless! 🌺🌼❣️🌱🌿😀👍🌿🌱❣️🌼🌺
This man, hands down is my favorite gardening channel!!! I've been watching him for years, and admittedly it took me longer to understand than I would like to admit. But he's right. He's right about all of it. I haven't found a hole in his methods yet! I wish I had all the money back that I spent on 'cures', 'fertilizer', and insect deterrents. Keep it natural, and promote a healthy ecosystem. We'll all be happier, and healthier in the long run. Peace.
@@iamorganicgardening, it truly is! Observing is just one of my favorite parts! You really learn a lot from sitting, and paying attention to what everything is doing.
I'm in Florida. I've had my 10 chickens in my greenhouse for a couple of years. I decided to take it back last fall and have been amending the sandy, chicken poopy, buggy soil. I have a wormbin on the side. Over the winter I planted wheat grass and too many Oxalis stricta, yellow wood sorrel. Only cause it's all over the surrounding grounds. I would add the earth worms to distribute but they all left where the rain would pour off the roof into the fallen leaves. The first and second time I planted the grass seed it would die no matter how much I watered. Then I got a drip hose and ran it over nite because it kept the couple of plants from freezing, including an avocado tree 3' tall. All the worms came back. No joke. I'm still amending. Fast rotting leaves in water buckets and adding it. Compost tea. I've got swiss chard longevity spinach and kale. Easy to grow things. It's a 16' x 8' space and I'll expand it to it's full 16 x 16 this summer. 😊
@Nancy Fahey. My worms did the same thing. When Faye (the tropical storm) dumped all that rain on us. The worms just crawled out of their 55 gallon drum bed and left. From now on if we are going to have a lot of rain, I cover them temporarily with a tarp or plywood. Something to keep them from being flooded. That helps for sure.
So happy to see a new video from you! Your enthusiasm and genuine interest in helping others understand this valuable information really comes through in your videos! I have learned so much from watching your videos and I have been loving the results in my garden! Thank you!!
Hey Mark, welcome back. I'm on my 6th year of growing soil in my raised bed garden. I never till and cover crop every fall/winter. Another fantastic benefit of mimicking nature is water infiltration. Last summer I filled a 5 gallon bucket, poured it on an area of soil, and within seconds, it was GONE. No run off, no erosion. Every drop of rainfall that hits my soil is captured and retained for plant growth and soil biology proliferation. Growing soil has been one of the greatest joys of my life. Thanks Mark. Wish you a bountiful growing season
I am so very glad that you have walk down this amazing path. And seeing for your self how that water just very nicely filters in to your soil now. My friend you have done a fantastic work. THANK YOU and BRAVO.
Incidentally I’m sooooo excited about starting a new garden this spring following your advice! I just purchased a home with a nice little area on the south side and I have built 2 boxes 4’x12’ and a giant pile of shredded leaves that has been composting for a year. Your voice is in my head as I gather cardboard, a little topsoil, and wood chips for the pathways.
I've been following your advice for several seasons now, and the soil has improved year after year. When we moved to this property, the old garden was compacted clay and extremely poorly drained after years, I presume, of roto-tilling and use of chemical fertilizer. I was just out there in the garden for the first time yesterday doing some very early (for us) cleanup. The soil is loose, dark black and very well drained. I did a light raking to remove some early season weeds and grass--I think I could dig a foot deep hole with just my hand and no effort if I wanted to.
Welcome back Mark! So good to see you back. up and running. Has it been that long that you've been running? I think I've been with you from close to the beginning. And even like so many of your other subscribers, I'm a long time gardener; 60+ years. Yet, in spite of that I've learned so much from you and applied it to my small garden. Every year my clay packed norther Illinois garden gets better and better. Looking forward to seeing what you have planned for us this year. Happy spring time to you as well!
Good to see you again. THANK YOU so very much watch my channel for a very long time. I hope that I have help you also of the years. I am going everything in gardening is connected with each other in nature.
Mark you would be pleased to see the soil in the rose bed. When digging out some weeds with a pitchfork yesterday I would find worms in every disturbance of the soil. I’ve been adding wood chips for years and now I understand soil biology. Happy Easter!
How should I start a new garden on existing lawn where we want to add some more raised beds? We have a huge maple tree that shaded the entire side of our house. I’m sad to see it go but now we have an entirely new area to grow food! I have existing raised beds that I started 20 years ago by adding compost and soil. I’m excited to learn about becoming a soil farmer now. Grateful to hear there is a way to bring back the nutrients and minerals. Thank you from North Eastern PA.
And a very Happy Spring to you also. Boys a doing great. Glad to hear from you. Hope al is well too? I think y=we are going to get a lot of topic storms again this year and very hot.
I have a five-pound bag of calcium nitrate I bought 6 or 7 years ago, and there's still about 4.9 pounds left in it LOL. I agree completely, you just don't really need that kinda synthetic stuff. It's all about soil biology and letting the roots do their job. The only fertilizers I ever use anymore come from right on my own property or from a neighbor's horses - compost and plant-based teas. Sometimes a little wood ash from burning brush. Stuff like that.
@@iamorganicgardening thank you, friend. You've really helped me understand all this. Also I'm still using several raised beds made of cattle panels, I learned that from your videos too. I appreciate your work and I look forward to upcoming videos.
I always question what did they do 100+years ago. There was no big box stores to go to. Makes sense God created the soil with everything already in it. The leaves fall from the trees in the winter protect the base of the tree and roots from the cold as they break down they feed the soil and the tree. Such a wonderful creation!!!!
Thanks Mark. Glad you are teaching and sharing again. My cover crops are growing and building soil. My worm count has increased in the last two years. Thanks for the great content.
Growing up dad would hand me a posthole digger and a spot to did. We would add the soil to the compost pile and use that compost next season during planting and top dressing of the garden. Since the property was the old bowling alley style I had plenty of holes to dig over the years as fencing got longer and longer.
100 %.. compost hold moisture . Plus you need to mulch with something like wood chips. What you are having problems with is your lack of water. Water is your key to keep everything alive.
So great to see you with another great video! In all of CZcams land your channel is the one I trust for information and the science that is demonstrated in such a clear way! I plan to use a popular vertical container garden tower this spring - what would you suggest for the growing medium? For those of us who may be limited to container “gardening” - could u make a video with some best guidance tips for growing medium? There is a lot of information out there but I question how helpful it is to always rely on synthetic means for container gardening. Inquiring minds want to know!🤓 Thank you for taking time to always have such educational videos!
Thanks for sharing🥰 I’m a new to gardening & have been using potting mix for containers. I haven’t grown anything in the ground because of pests or use soil…..but it’s good to know if I decide to plant in ground🥰
Hey Mark! i have couple of questions: 1) You said you have like ~ 9 hectares (22 acres). How much of that surface do you plant cover crops on and put leaf mold on? i guess you would need a lot of organic matter to cover all of that. 2) Ever used charged biochar/charocal in soil? Do you have any thoughts on those amendments for soil?
About 5 acres of leaves, and the rest winter rye. It is not the organic matter that does the trick it is all about the living roots in the soil that makes it better. I have never tried biochar. The cover crops plants roots grow soil, meaning it builds soil aggerates while biochar does not.
For raised beds, where is the best source for the sand, silt, clay? I have bought top soil to try and mix in with manure/humus to start up my raised beds. But when I look at what is in the top soil, it looks like a lot of it is not actually soil but bits of organic matter.
Evergreen forest soil isn't as diverse as deciduous or river plain soil. i would like to know what i should be adding to flesh my mountain soil out. Rotted tree residue, lake side silt, maneuver, leaves, sawdust, ash? What suggestions might you have? Especially in a raised bed orientation. ---Thankx
You do not need add those thing. You need soil life ( biology ) and maybe a cover crop when you are not using your garden. To grow soil and feed the microbes. Compost tea is a way to do this.
I think I would use a "scattergun approach" and mix in some of all those things you mentioned. Maybe not too much sawdust; from what I've read woodchips or sawdust actually mixed into the soil can tie up nitrogen as they decompose slowly. But everything else you mentioned contains all sorts of helpful things and breaks down pretty quickly.
Rake back the leaves to see the real soil at least 2 feet wide in next year veg planting area. Make rows that wide in all planting areas. Pathways need not be done. Then spread the seeds lightly on the surface and scratch in at least a half a inch deep. Do this before 4 weeks before your first frost in your area. DO NOT place fall leaves back on top of the winter rye seeds. ENJOY
I fully understand what you are doing. It will get to a point that you have to stop tilling in. How do you know when this time is. When you can dig down one foot with your hand. Then leave it alone , not more tilling. And start make compost tea so you get get back your soil biology. New video on this coming soon.
I live in Detroit where pollution is high and †he soil is really bad in spots. It's expensive to get the soil tested so I want to try the raised bed method. My main question to you is ...how can I get this soil relatively free of these pollutants so I can sow plants directly into the soil? I'm assuming cover crops or something to that effect. But am interested in your opinion regarding this type of issue. Also which cover crop would you recommend? Lead is the main problem, arsenic, & few others. I'm not sure what else could be in the soil. With the emissions of the Big 3 and many other plants in Detroit...it's hard to say what all could be there!
What a great explanation of soil biology! A question for one of your next videos. I have mostly clay, gravel (thanks to previous owner), and 4"-20" basalt rocks, with small to large areas of this weird stuff that is pretty yellowish. This yellow stuff is mostly hard as a rock underground. As a matter of fact, my husband went after it with a pick axe to break off chunks of it. I actually thought it WAS rock at first, but when I used in a rock border, it started dissolving. Sometimes I can crush it in my hand and it turns into something sort of granular, then 'dust'. Sometimes is pretty gooey and adheres to the gravel to form what looks like a larger 'rock'. Usually it starts about 4-6" under the surface, and goes down various depths. Usually it's just in smallish areas - maybe 1-2' diameter. But as I was digging a gladiolus bed, I came across a very large patch. After digging out the top portion of it, it became very, very solid (hence, my husband and his pick axe). I poured a couple of gallons of water into the hole and although it finally did sink in, that was after several hours. Obviously no earthworms. I'm not sure that cover crop roots can even get through it... can they? Or... what to do?
My plants aren’t taking up calcium because the ends of the tomatoes and peppers have rot. I believe that it’s a lack of calcium. So don’t I have to use a calcium fertilizer to help them stop rotting my fruit? Then also work on getting my soil healthy like you have been showing with cover crops?
Every time my beginner gardening friends aak me that what kinda fertilizer they need for there plants i tell them that u need mulch, water and sunlight, and plant in the ground not in a pot; that s it 😅 for the most part its enough, and anyway if these things are not in order, the fertilizer wont help..
Mark, it’s spring here in the PNW, what to do with the thick bushy winter rye cover crop? Turn over, chop down to rot over winter, or cover with compost on top and start planting? I only have hand tools.
So is it the same deal with cannabis? I found out after years that I was not actually using "soil" but like you said "potting mix". Although I have moved away from those terrible bottled nutes. I have moved to doing no til and thr results have been amazing. They are so much more healthy. I take about 40% peat moss, 30 % pumice/lava rock, 20 % compost and 10% castings. I also added a few hands full of red wigglers. I do cover crop as well. So does the biology work the same way as it would in real soil? Do you by any chance know if it would grow better if it was in real soil?
YES, the same. Things to think about. What food is their available for the worms you add to eat ? I think none. The yellow piece of paper shown in the video , do you have all those minerals on it ? from your mix. Minerals in real soil or your mix needs soil life, Do you have bacteria and fungi at equal amounts? Do you have protozoa and nematodes to eat the bacteria and fungi to release plant available nutrients to you plants? With 40 % peat, ( not soil ) it is hard for the microbes to live. You are better off with making you own compost and grow in.
I thought the worms would be eating the covercrop that is terminated as well as the compost and organic fertilizer that I use. It's called craft blend. It is a mix of kelp, alfalfa meal, fish meal, wild flax, crustacean, alfalfa,oyster shell... and a few more.
@@iamorganicgardening what do you mean making your own compost and grow in? Do you mean actually growing in the compost itself? I have tried composting a earlier this year and it was going well and then it rained and it got soaked and the smell was awful. I do utilize Rootwise which is an inocululum of beneficial microbes and mycorrhizae. And another rootwise product that helps feed them.
@@iamorganicgardening I have added beneficial nematodes about 4 months ago. Would I need to add more as it goes. I have been meaning to get a "soil" test done to find out what it is lacking. Although how do you find out how much fungi, bacteria, and protocol you have?
I have a question, a naive one, really. I live in VT on a property with several acres of woods (mostly hardwood trees) on a slope. The small flat portion is mostly clay, but in the woods there is a thick layer of what looks like 'soil': the kind of stuff you showed in this video, crumbly, light, very dark. Can I use that soil for my veggie garden? Over the last 3 years I have added woodchips and shredded leaves, but the results are still pretty disappointing.
Hi Mark. A quick question, if you have a moment. In your experience, how long do your cover crop seeds remain viable? Seed prices are going to do nothing but go up in this economy, so I was curious if it's worth it to buy extra seed for winter rye and clover to use next year and perhaps after that. Thanks for more schooling!
This is my idea going forward. Do you have chicken weed, henbit or purple dead nettle growing natural in you garden. If so it is a cover crop for free...
@@iamorganicgardening ha! I've been trying to eradicate the dead nettle for ages. I guess I'll let it go. I can find other pioneer plants too, nearby. Just have to research some of them more. I also have mullein growing that can propagate. Now you've me thinking. I'll see what I can come up with.
Hi so what about if you dont have clay soil or leaves, grass or anything like that just soil what would you do would you have to buy the fetilizer to help the plants?
The main thing you need in soil is soil biology ( bacteria, fungi and then nematodes and protozoa that need to eat those bacteria and fungi to release plant available nutrients to the plant roots. ) So you would make a compost tea to grow those things and ad to your soil.
Hi I have lots of earth worms in my buckets that I use for growing things in , they must have come with the garden soil around the house. Should I get them out ?
@@iamorganicgardening Mark, what to do with the thick bushy cover crop once matured? Turn over, chop down to rot over winter, or cover with compost on top and start planting?
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray solid which bears a close physical resemblance to the other five .
SPOT ON about the soil's biology! The soil's 'biome' creates the 'pathways' from which plants uptake the minerals necessary for optimal growth. I grew up on my Grandpap's farm and he was a BIG fan of J. I. Rodale [Dr. Steiner as well]. I'm 70+ and I've yet to use anything synthetic because I know how to take care of the soil's biome. People ask me what my so-called green thumb 'secret' is all about - my reply is I'm a soil farmer...that's all. Great video! Cheers to a great 2022 growing season!
I am so glad you are sharing this today with us all. And am hoping everyone reads this. You are fantastic. I THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. CHEERS to all the Soil Farmers.
@@iamorganicgardening You're welcome! Like you, I compost leaves - the earth worms LOVE leaves and help turn leaves into what I call black gold. Another 'natural' plant I add to everything is alfalfa meal/pellets/hay because alfalfa contains a 'potent' growth hormone (triacontanol) that helps stimulate plant roots' growth. Alfalfa also increases beneficial soil microbes and enhances photosynthesis. Adding alfalfa pellets or meal to your soil can also help reduce harmful nematodes. Leaves and alfalfa are a soil farmer's best friends for amending and sustaining the soil's biome in my book! Cheers...
@@ross6343 That 'potent' growth hormone (triacontanol) that helps stimulate plant roots' growth is in the roots only not the plant. So it is not in pellets or the meal. Do you have and thing that can show me different. Maybe a link to something?
ABSOLUTELY, I've learned in the last few years that my first and most important job is to grow soil.
@@ross6343 I also applaud your way of soil farming I do verimculture to get my compost. It's the best way to compost in my opinion. The worms do all the work.
Hey Mark, welcome back.
THANK YOU, miss you all.
Yes! I went to a lot of trouble to sign in because this is worth it. I have been touting the same philosophy forever! I am a 72-year-old market gardener, with 50 years organic gardening experience in zones 5, 4, and 3. Thank you for saying this. Now I can use this for a reference and not be alone. Knowledge of nature must replace ignorant consumerism!
THANK YOU so very much for signing in. I LOVE your garden that I get to see on Facebook. You do a amazing job every year and giving advice also.
Hi Mark, glad to see you back with a great tutorial on growing soil. I attended an online class hosted by Matt Powers, he hosted a researcher of 30+yrs from Rutgers' Univ, NJ. It was an eye opener. He showed video of root tip growth of seedlings using the soil microbes inorder to grow. Roots take in the microbes, seperate the outer coating and incorporate the plasma into the tissue, the outer casings were put to the tender root tip to help it grow in length and be a protective tip guard. This should open every gardeners' eyes to grow soil, not just plants. Happy spring!...blessings.
That is so Fantastic .. Bravo. Matt does nice work THANK YOU for sharing.
Welcome back for another season Mark.
So, there are two schools of thought in this debate.
The Elaine Ingham belief that you explained that all minerals are available in all soils naturally and we just need the biology to unlock it.
Then there's the Steve Solomon or Dan Kittredge school that thinks many soils are either naturally lacking in certain minerals or the upper layers of soil plants can reach have been so leached or abused that certain minerals need to be added for optimal plant growth until the soils have recovered, and that proper soil testing can help us figure it out.
As someone who grows in Florida beach sand, I find myself in the latter category. Certain things like boron and other trace elements are lacking, and even the addition of mulch and use of cover crops would just take too many years to return it to productivity.
THANK YOU for sharing this. Great POINT. My own insight is this. There is the 99% rule that what I stated in the video. But there is always a exception. Like what you have and shred with me. Know them well.. That is why I agree with you to that I always keep a open mine and share what works 99% of the time
Fertilizer has just become more expensive for a couple of different reasons so this biology lesson is very reassuring. Most will be panicking at this point but not someone who knows their stuff like this gentleman. I am just a beginner so my learning curve is about to start. Better to learn from someone who has walked the path already I guess. Thank you sir.
THANK YOU so very much. Very kind of you.
Mark I’m glad you are back! Last Fall I picked up over 150 bags of my neighbors leafs, over 10 years of building the soil back with free stuff. This is the year everyone should be growing something, remember folks you can’t eat the grass.
Nicely Said. THANK YOU so very much.
I'm glad to see you back. You have such a unique way to explain soil biology for us. It seems like I spend a lot of time (and money) fertilizing my garden. I'm going to take your information and at least try it. Since I'm in Florida I still have to add some things to my sandy soil, but I think I can back off a bit. Thanks for sharing your information with us. Have a great week.🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋
THANK YOU. Glad to hear from you. Sounds like a great plan about your garden. Enjoy your week also.
When my dad past away I moved into his place. He'd use so many bags of fertilizer, dirt cow manure, fungcides, I even saw a bottle of that agent orange stuff. I trimmed tree branches and dropped them right there around the trunks. Any vegetation got chopped and dropped. To water I had to shove the hose in the ground. Where ever I turned and tumbled the ground I would get red wrigglers from the bait store. Then, I discovered free wood chips.
If you have alot of money you can buy your soil etc. But after 3 years and the cost of a couple of containers of worms, my half acre of organic property grows by itself. A little too good I might say. It's a jungle now.
I'm in west, central Florida, an hour north of Tampa.
Missed your videso. I hope all is well. I have been collecting my leaves and recycling them in my yard. I had collected 5 bags of leaves ,let them decompose and spread them under my citrus trees. I have limes and lemons in abundance for the first time. I did use fertilizer spikes in late fall until the leaves broke down and I spread them out a couple months ago.
All Good. Hoping the same for you. Just been helping my friend.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge/findings Mark ! !
Success is not rising above others.
Success is helping others rise with you. - KJ
Well said! I live that way. THANK YOU.
Algae and Archae are microorganisms living in soils as well and contributing to the nitrogen cycle, producing oxygen. A healthy, undisturbed fertile soil can have 20% of algae microbial biomass in its upper layer. In Germany here we say that a healthy soil has about 100 earthworms per square meter.
THANK YOU for your help. Great
You have been doing this for a long time, I've been following for years. Great job.
I appreciate that! Love hearing from you all. THANK YOU.
And learning.
Hey Mark, I help people train their dogs. When they ask me about my garden, I always refer them to your channel. You’re an excellent teacher and generous to share your knowledge and experience with all,
Thank you.
I appreciate that, THANK YOU so very much.
Glad to see you back at it again!!
THANKS. Lots to share in this crazy year.
This is so wonderful to see! It confirms what God put on my heart when I started gardening three years ago. I knew there had to be another way besides what was being sold. I started experimenting with straw bales, cardboard topped with leaves and soil and straw, all kinds of things. I grew straight in my clay ground, potatoes on cardboard topped with clippings, straw, any spare dirt etc, and got a harvest. I was excited! I'm doing more cardboard gardening this year, I'm behind, going thru a lot, but I won't give up. I'm planting stuff anyway. My tomatoes are growing great, I lost a few but that's ok. Starting a ton of stuff this week! I made videos but haven't posted yet, having some phone issues. I'll post them soon. I love your experiments and clear explanations!
I had an idea, to research root structures(one thing I was interested in as I feel like the different types can be layered to enable closer planting and ground cover which imo the plants do better this way but you can decrease unwanted growth of weeds by this planting, at least that's my hypothesis..)
So, for instance if I plant a carrot beside a watermelon, the roots aren't fighting so much for the same real-estate, but if I plant a bunch of onions beside each other, they're all in the same zone, yet if I plant a carrot, onion, tomato... They're in different areas of the soil and their roots can work together... But I struggled finding detailed info on the various plants roots, so being new I just planted random stuff together.
It worked fine. It would be really interesting to plant stuff in a clear, very deep, plexiglass planter to see the various roots interact, true depth and so on...
Thank you so much for your videos!
God bless! 🌺🌼❣️🌱🌿😀👍🌿🌱❣️🌼🌺
Ahhhh. Finally I get my dose of I AM ORGANIC GARDENING !!! Welcome back, missed you, and thanks for all you do!!!
You brought a smile to my face. THANK YOU so very much.
This man, hands down is my favorite gardening channel!!! I've been watching him for years, and admittedly it took me longer to understand than I would like to admit. But he's right. He's right about all of it. I haven't found a hole in his methods yet! I wish I had all the money back that I spent on 'cures', 'fertilizer', and insect deterrents. Keep it natural, and promote a healthy ecosystem. We'll all be happier, and healthier in the long run. Peace.
THANK YOU... Nature is awesome. I love to listen.
@@iamorganicgardening, it truly is! Observing is just one of my favorite parts! You really learn a lot from sitting, and paying attention to what everything is doing.
It’s so kind of you to share your knowledge with us. I thank you from my heart. New sub who is a beginner at gardening. GBY ♥️
Thanks for subbing!
Glad to see you back Mark. Hoping you have a great growing season this year.
The same to you also. THANK YOU.
Hi Mark, for some reason I wasn't getting notifications... Any I changed that lol. Thanks mate, your a great mentor / teacher. Stay safe!
Thanks 👍
I'm in Florida. I've had my 10 chickens in my greenhouse for a couple of years. I decided to take it back last fall and have been amending the sandy, chicken poopy, buggy soil. I have a wormbin on the side. Over the winter I planted wheat grass and too many Oxalis stricta, yellow wood sorrel. Only cause it's all over the surrounding grounds. I would add the earth worms to distribute but they all left where the rain would pour off the roof into the fallen leaves. The first and second time I planted the grass seed it would die no matter how much I watered. Then I got a drip hose and ran it over nite because it kept the couple of plants from freezing, including an avocado tree 3' tall. All the worms came back. No joke. I'm still amending. Fast rotting leaves in water buckets and adding it. Compost tea. I've got swiss chard longevity spinach and kale. Easy to grow things.
It's a 16' x 8' space and I'll expand it to it's full 16 x 16 this summer. 😊
@Nancy Fahey. My worms did the same thing. When Faye (the tropical storm) dumped all that rain on us. The worms just crawled out of their 55 gallon drum bed and left. From now on if we are going to have a lot of rain, I cover them temporarily with a tarp or plywood. Something to keep them from being flooded. That helps for sure.
So happy to see a new video from you! Your enthusiasm and genuine interest in helping others understand this valuable information really comes through in your videos! I have learned so much from watching your videos and I have been loving the results in my garden! Thank you!!
THANK YOU for letting me hear about your garden result. That is why I am here, Having fun also being a farmer
Mark, O.K. your vacation is over ..... now let's planting or prep for planting, it's good to see you, must be spring.
Will do a video on this, weather permitting next week. THANKS great to hear from you.
Hey Mark, welcome back. I'm on my 6th year of growing soil in my raised bed garden. I never till and cover crop every fall/winter. Another fantastic benefit of mimicking nature is water infiltration. Last summer I filled a 5 gallon bucket, poured it on an area of soil, and within seconds, it was GONE. No run off, no erosion. Every drop of rainfall that hits my soil is captured and retained for plant growth and soil biology proliferation. Growing soil has been one of the greatest joys of my life. Thanks Mark. Wish you a bountiful growing season
I am so very glad that you have walk down this amazing path. And seeing for your self how that water just very nicely filters in to your soil now. My friend you have done a fantastic work. THANK YOU and BRAVO.
You're absolutely correct - nature is amazing! Just starting my gardening journey, appreciate these vids!
Wonderful!
you are a great teacher mr thank you for sharing your wisdom
I appreciate that! Have a great year ahead. Happy gardening
Happy that you’re back you’re by far my favorite garden channel.
VERY HAPPY to hear from you. BRAVO
So glad to see you back. Every gardener needs to see this video:)
WOW, Nice to hear that. THANK YOU kindly.
You’re a ray of spring sunshine!! So fun to watch your great videos.
That is so very kind of you. You bring the same Sunshine. THANK YOU.
Incidentally I’m sooooo excited about starting a new garden this spring following your advice! I just purchased a home with a nice little area on the south side and I have built 2 boxes 4’x12’ and a giant pile of shredded leaves that has been composting for a year. Your voice is in my head as I gather cardboard, a little topsoil, and wood chips for the pathways.
Thank you so much for all your work. I love learning about the soil biome. I garden in Las Vegas and need all the help I can get!
Wonderful! Always here to help. THANK YOU.
I've been following your advice for several seasons now, and the soil has improved year after year. When we moved to this property, the old garden was compacted clay and extremely poorly drained after years, I presume, of roto-tilling and use of chemical fertilizer. I was just out there in the garden for the first time yesterday doing some very early (for us) cleanup. The soil is loose, dark black and very well drained. I did a light raking to remove some early season weeds and grass--I think I could dig a foot deep hole with just my hand and no effort if I wanted to.
VERY NICE. What a great feeling in your sole that you have seen and built this. THANK YOU so very much for sharing this with us all.
Welcome back Mark! So good to see you back. up and running. Has it been that long that you've been running? I think I've been with you from close to the beginning. And even like so many of your other subscribers, I'm a long time gardener; 60+ years. Yet, in spite of that I've learned so much from you and applied it to my small garden. Every year my clay packed norther Illinois garden gets better and better. Looking forward to seeing what you have planned for us this year. Happy spring time to you as well!
Good to see you again. THANK YOU so very much watch my channel for a very long time. I hope that I have help you also of the years. I am going everything in gardening is connected with each other in nature.
Thank you for posting this! Love your content sir!
I appreciate that! THANK YOU so very much.
Mark you would be pleased to see the soil in the rose bed. When digging out some weeds with a pitchfork yesterday I would find worms in every disturbance of the soil. I’ve been adding wood chips for years and now I understand soil biology. Happy Easter!
Now, that is some GREAT NEWS. Happy Easter.
How should I start a new garden on existing lawn where we want to add some more raised beds? We have a huge maple tree that shaded the entire side of our house. I’m sad to see it go but now we have an entirely new area to grow food! I have existing raised beds that I started 20 years ago by adding compost and soil. I’m excited to learn about becoming a soil farmer now. Grateful to hear there is a way to bring back the nutrients and minerals. Thank you from North Eastern PA.
Happy Spring, Mark! Hope all is well with you and your boys. Looking forward to the new growing season!
And a very Happy Spring to you also. Boys a doing great. Glad to hear from you. Hope al is well too? I think y=we are going to get a lot of topic storms again this year and very hot.
I have a five-pound bag of calcium nitrate I bought 6 or 7 years ago, and there's still about 4.9 pounds left in it LOL.
I agree completely, you just don't really need that kinda synthetic stuff. It's all about soil biology and letting the roots do their job.
The only fertilizers I ever use anymore come from right on my own property or from a neighbor's horses - compost and plant-based teas. Sometimes a little wood ash from burning brush. Stuff like that.
THANK YOU for sharing what you are going to do going forward.
@@iamorganicgardening thank you, friend. You've really helped me understand all this. Also I'm still using several raised beds made of cattle panels, I learned that from your videos too.
I appreciate your work and I look forward to upcoming videos.
I always question what did they do 100+years ago. There was no big box stores to go to. Makes sense God created the soil with everything already in it. The leaves fall from the trees in the winter protect the base of the tree and roots from the cold as they break down they feed the soil and the tree. Such a wonderful creation!!!!
The soil is a living part of our beautiful plant. With out it we would not be here.
Thanks Mark. Glad you are teaching and sharing again. My cover crops are growing and building soil. My worm count has increased in the last two years. Thanks for the great content.
That is fantastic new my friend. I am very happy for you. THANK YOU.
Very good information, thank you!
My pleasure to share with you all. THANK YOU.
Hiya Mark, I’ve missed you. This is the best “soil growing” tutorial I have seen
THANK YOU, missed to also. Glad to get my hands in the soil again.
Growing up dad would hand me a posthole digger and a spot to did. We would add the soil to the compost pile and use that compost next season during planting and top dressing of the garden. Since the property was the old bowling alley style I had plenty of holes to dig over the years as fencing got longer and longer.
Your DAD had great insight. Thanks for sharing
Heyyyy welcome back!!
Good to see and Hear from you. THANK YOU.
Do you have any videos on how to increase fungi and bacteria in the soil. I currently am reading about Jadam.
I will have one coming out in a week. The best way I know to the quickest way is to use a compost tea.
Thank you Mark you have taught me so much. I just love watching your videos. Thanks fom Australia.
Hello Australia. Great to hear from you. All here to help you and garden with you.
Thanks for the info, Mark. I’ve learned much from from you these last few years and happy spring
THANK YOU. Spring Time is the best Time. Happy Gardening
Thank you for sharing this great videos I am using grass and leaf compost for the garden
So great to hear... THANK YOU.
Hi.does comost work in dry and low water climate?
100 %.. compost hold moisture . Plus you need to mulch with something like wood chips. What you are having problems with is your lack of water. Water is your key to keep everything alive.
@@iamorganicgardening you mean i dont need to add fertiliser like amoniom solfate to soil?and whats wrong when we add it?
Yay! I’m so excited you are back❣️ Thank you for all your science lessons!!
THANK YOU. Lots more to share this year.
So great to see you with another great video! In all of CZcams land your channel is the one I trust for information and the science that is demonstrated in such a clear way! I plan to use a popular vertical container garden tower this spring - what would you suggest for the growing medium? For those of us who may be limited to container “gardening” - could u make a video with some best guidance tips for growing medium? There is a lot of information out there but I question how helpful it is to always rely on synthetic means for container gardening. Inquiring minds want to know!🤓
Thank you for taking time to always have such educational videos!
Yes, I can make a video on it. What is the name brand you are using? And how much soil do you need to fill the whole tower with ? Thanks
@@iamorganicgardening it is a green stalk vertical planter - it is 6 tiers and I believe it would require 6 cubic ft total. Thanks so much!
Thanks for sharing🥰 I’m a new to gardening & have been using potting mix for containers. I haven’t grown anything in the ground because of pests or use soil…..but it’s good to know if I decide to plant in ground🥰
THANK YOU for watching this. It is there and ready when you are.
Great job thank you
Great to hear, Thank You Kindly.
How do you bring the soil biology in dead soil
That will be in a new video soon. It is making a simple compost tea from organic matter in your area that you can pick up.
@@iamorganicgardening Oh okay
Best info!!!
THANK YOU so very much. Your the Best.
Hey Mark!
i have couple of questions:
1) You said you have like ~ 9 hectares (22 acres). How much of that surface do you plant cover crops on and put leaf mold on? i guess you would need a lot of organic matter to cover all of that.
2) Ever used charged biochar/charocal in soil? Do you have any thoughts on those amendments for soil?
About 5 acres of leaves, and the rest winter rye. It is not the organic matter that does the trick it is all about the living roots in the soil that makes it better. I have never tried biochar. The cover crops plants roots grow soil, meaning it builds soil aggerates while biochar does not.
For raised beds, where is the best source for the sand, silt, clay? I have bought top soil to try and mix in with manure/humus to start up my raised beds. But when I look at what is in the top soil, it looks like a lot of it is not actually soil but bits of organic matter.
I fully understand what you are saying. Can you dig up your own soil near your raised beds and replace it with wood chips?
Evergreen forest soil isn't as diverse as deciduous or river plain soil. i would like to know what i should be adding to flesh my mountain soil out. Rotted tree residue, lake side silt, maneuver, leaves, sawdust, ash? What suggestions might you have? Especially in a raised bed orientation.
---Thankx
You do not need add those thing. You need soil life ( biology ) and maybe a cover crop when you are not using your garden. To grow soil and feed the microbes. Compost tea is a way to do this.
I think I would use a "scattergun approach" and mix in some of all those things you mentioned. Maybe not too much sawdust; from what I've read woodchips or sawdust actually mixed into the soil can tie up nitrogen as they decompose slowly.
But everything else you mentioned contains all sorts of helpful things and breaks down pretty quickly.
@@dogslobbergardens6606
Thankx. You're right about chips.
Any suggestions for growing asparagus? I'm in NW Montana. Few things grow easily here.
@@fattyfat-fat6639 I don't have any experience with asparagus, sorry.
I would like to know about planting winter rye on my garden that was covered with leaves last fall what's the best way to plant the rye larry
Rake back the leaves to see the real soil at least 2 feet wide in next year veg planting area. Make rows that wide in all planting areas. Pathways need not be done. Then spread the seeds lightly on the surface and scratch in at least a half a inch deep. Do this before 4 weeks before your first frost in your area. DO NOT place fall leaves back on top of the winter rye seeds. ENJOY
I have hard clay , I’ve been tilling in dried water hyacinth, it’s the only material I have an abundance of .. do you have any tips or tricks
I fully understand what you are doing. It will get to a point that you have to stop tilling in. How do you know when this time is. When you can dig down one foot with your hand. Then leave it alone , not more tilling. And start make compost tea so you get get back your soil biology. New video on this coming soon.
@@flatsville1 I’m in 9b Arid area of south Texas and thank you, I’ll be doing this 🙂
Mark, good video. I am in Sussex County. What County is your farm in ? Ray Delbury
Nice video Mark. I am in zone 6b Morris County NJ. Can you give me some good potato varieties that grow well here?
They all do. NJ was a potatoes farms during WW2
Thank you . You are amazing teacher
WOW, THANK YOU so very much. And your a amazing garden.
You explained why this is important but did not get how to do this . What are we doing or adding to the soil?
I will explain in another video soon what to do. Here to help. My first goal was to explain what the soil needs ( biology ) THANKS for asking.
Look at Mark's library of videos. There is already a wealth of answers.
Likely more that you have yet to think about. ALL very well explained.
I live in Detroit where pollution is high and †he soil is really bad in spots. It's expensive to get the soil tested so I want to try the raised bed method. My main question to you is ...how can I get this soil relatively free of these pollutants so I can sow plants directly into the soil? I'm assuming cover crops or something to that effect. But am interested in your opinion regarding this type of issue. Also which cover crop would you recommend? Lead is the main problem, arsenic, & few others. I'm not sure what else could be in the soil. With the emissions of the Big 3 and many other plants in Detroit...it's hard to say what all could be there!
I appreciate your concern. There is no short cut to your answer . You need a valid soil test for your own health. Thanks
@@iamorganicgardening Ok. Thanks anyway!
What a great explanation of soil biology! A question for one of your next videos. I have mostly clay, gravel (thanks to previous owner), and 4"-20" basalt rocks, with small to large areas of this weird stuff that is pretty yellowish. This yellow stuff is mostly hard as a rock underground. As a matter of fact, my husband went after it with a pick axe to break off chunks of it. I actually thought it WAS rock at first, but when I used in a rock border, it started dissolving. Sometimes I can crush it in my hand and it turns into something sort of granular, then 'dust'. Sometimes is pretty gooey and adheres to the gravel to form what looks like a larger 'rock'. Usually it starts about 4-6" under the surface, and goes down various depths. Usually it's just in smallish areas - maybe 1-2' diameter. But as I was digging a gladiolus bed, I came across a very large patch. After digging out the top portion of it, it became very, very solid (hence, my husband and his pick axe). I poured a couple of gallons of water into the hole and although it finally did sink in, that was after several hours. Obviously no earthworms. I'm not sure that cover crop roots can even get through it... can they? Or... what to do?
I wish That I could help you. But have No Idea what that is. Try googling a picture of it.
Could the yellow rock stuff be some sort of limestone?
My plants aren’t taking up calcium because the ends of the tomatoes and peppers have rot. I believe that it’s a lack of calcium. So don’t I have to use a calcium fertilizer to help them stop rotting my fruit? Then also work on getting my soil healthy like you have been showing with cover crops?
It is due not from calcium but a lack of moister in the soil Watch this video on it : czcams.com/video/VNa_6CbTrRU/video.html .
What about container gardening? Do you add real soil to containers or fertilizer?
Real Soil & microbes Please. Thanks
What is the best green manure to plant or group of varieties. I’ve grown Austerian winter peas before. I live in Oklahoma zone 7
Over winter you can grow winter rye. Summer time sorghum Sudan grass
Every time my beginner gardening friends aak me that what kinda fertilizer they need for there plants i tell them that u need mulch, water and sunlight, and plant in the ground not in a pot; that s it 😅 for the most part its enough, and anyway if these things are not in order, the fertilizer wont help..
Yes, true. That is a great way to share the best advice. THANK YOU.
👍👍😊
👍
@@iamorganicgardening 😊
Mark, it’s spring here in the PNW, what to do with the thick bushy winter rye cover crop? Turn over, chop down to rot over winter, or cover with compost on top and start planting? I only have hand tools.
Chop down to soil level.
So is it the same deal with cannabis? I found out after years that I was not actually using "soil" but like you said "potting mix". Although I have moved away from those terrible bottled nutes. I have moved to doing no til and thr results have been amazing. They are so much more healthy. I take about 40% peat moss, 30 % pumice/lava rock, 20 % compost and 10% castings. I also added a few hands full of red wigglers. I do cover crop as well. So does the biology work the same way as it would in real soil? Do you by any chance know if it would grow better if it was in real soil?
YES, the same. Things to think about. What food is their available for the worms you add to eat ? I think none.
The yellow piece of paper shown in the video , do you have all those minerals on it ? from your mix.
Minerals in real soil or your mix needs soil life, Do you have bacteria and fungi at equal amounts? Do you have protozoa and nematodes to eat the bacteria and fungi to release plant available nutrients to you plants?
With 40 % peat, ( not soil ) it is hard for the microbes to live. You are better off with making you own compost and grow in.
I thought the worms would be eating the covercrop that is terminated as well as the compost and organic fertilizer that I use. It's called craft blend. It is a mix of kelp, alfalfa meal, fish meal, wild flax, crustacean, alfalfa,oyster shell... and a few more.
@@iamorganicgardening what do you mean making your own compost and grow in? Do you mean actually growing in the compost itself? I have tried composting a earlier this year and it was going well and then it rained and it got soaked and the smell was awful. I do utilize Rootwise which is an inocululum of beneficial microbes and mycorrhizae. And another rootwise product that helps feed them.
@@iamorganicgardening I have added beneficial nematodes about 4 months ago. Would I need to add more as it goes. I have been meaning to get a "soil" test done to find out what it is lacking. Although how do you find out how much fungi, bacteria, and protocol you have?
I have a question, a naive one, really. I live in VT on a property with several acres of woods (mostly hardwood trees) on a slope. The small flat portion is mostly clay, but in the woods there is a thick layer of what looks like 'soil': the kind of stuff you showed in this video, crumbly, light, very dark. Can I use that soil for my veggie garden? Over the last 3 years I have added woodchips and shredded leaves, but the results are still pretty disappointing.
Hi Mark. A quick question, if you have a moment.
In your experience, how long do your cover crop seeds remain viable? Seed prices are going to do nothing but go up in this economy, so I was curious if it's worth it to buy extra seed for winter rye and clover to use next year and perhaps after that.
Thanks for more schooling!
This is my idea going forward. Do you have chicken weed, henbit or purple dead nettle growing natural in you garden. If so it is a cover crop for free...
@@iamorganicgardening ha! I've been trying to eradicate the dead nettle for ages. I guess I'll let it go. I can find other pioneer plants too, nearby. Just have to research some of them more. I also have mullein growing that can propagate.
Now you've me thinking. I'll see what I can come up with.
Hi so what about if you dont have clay soil or leaves, grass or anything like that just soil what would you do would you have to buy the fetilizer to help the plants?
The main thing you need in soil is soil biology ( bacteria, fungi and then nematodes and protozoa that need to eat those bacteria and fungi to release plant available nutrients to the plant roots. ) So you would make a compost tea to grow those things and ad to your soil.
Hi I have lots of earth worms in my buckets that I use for growing things in , they must have come with the garden soil around the house. Should I get them out ?
No, not at all. They are the best thing to have. ENJOY them.
Mn is manganese and Mg is magnesium
I was testing everyone to see if they would catch that. YOUR the BEST. THANK YOU.
We live in Florida no clay just sand so what would you suggest for cover crops or helping the soil?
Sorghum Sudan grass. Lots of roots and green mulch, grows tall and loves heat and not much water.
@@iamorganicgardening Mark, what to do with the thick bushy cover crop once matured? Turn over, chop down to rot over winter, or cover with compost on top and start planting?
@@iamorganicgardening I will try this, 😊 thanks
Sand, clay and what??..
SILT
@@iamorganicgardening thanks
Mn is manganese, Mg is magnesium
I was testing to see if any one would see that. LOL
Manganese not magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray solid which bears a close physical resemblance to the other five .
@@iamorganicgardening okay I understand that but that list you had you had magnesium twice manganese is the other.
@@BlkJackStalks YES, you are so RIGHT. I do have it list twice under Mn also. THANK YOU
Thanks for making the videos.
Just an FYI and I am not trying to be a smart ass. Your element chart is not correct. MG is magnesium but MN is Manganese.
You are the 2nd person to say that . You are correct. THANK YOU kindly. Will Correct.
to bad most dont understand worldwide. God provides but we have killed the soil in so many places
God forgives. All Soils can be repaired & alive and healthy again
p̴r̴o̴m̴o̴s̴m̴ 😳
THANK YOU.