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We are all Gardeners of Planet Earth
by Liz Brown Morgan
There is no ignoring anymore, that the entire Earth is one giant human garden. While wilderness, in a sort of watered down version, still exists, untouched wilderness does not. We have the power to tend this planet-garden in whatever way we humans decide. We can rip down trees and dam rivers. We can poison the bugs and let the soil blow away. Or we can choose to tend it like Agrarians, creating the conditions, not just for sustaining what currently exists, but creating the conditions for ever more rejuvenated ecosystems.
Nature has a pulse that wants to flourish and a natural instinct to be diverse and beautiful. We human gardeners can learn to understand how this works, and in our gardening endeavors, actually improve the nature in our own yards. Ultimately, if we each do this, if we each become agrarians, our local ecosystems will improve, our mind-sets about what is important will transform, and we will save the world. Some tips:
Nature has a pulse that wants to flourish and a natural instinct to be diverse and beautiful. We human gardeners can learn to understand how this works, and in our gardening endeavors, actually improve the nature in our own yards. Ultimately, if we each do this, if we each become agrarians, our local ecosystems will improve, our mind-sets about what is important will transform, and we will save the world. Some tips:
- Appreciate the bugs in your garden
- Don't cut down "dead" flowers. Instead leave them standing for bird food through the winter
- Mulch heavily - use weeds, fallen branches, compost or whatever you find
- Learn about soil life
- Do Not poison anything!
- Do Not use Weed Fabric!
- Allow diversity to creep on in
- Experiment
- Listen
Combating Hunger - Climate Change - Pollinator Collapse with Ecological Gardens
Saving the planet, one backyard at a time
All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today.- Chinese Proverb
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My perennial garden knows just the right pace, at which to emerge, in order to keep me, completely tantalized.
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My perennial garden knows just the right pace, at which to emerge, in order to keep me, completely tantalized.
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How To: GARDEN
Just Get Started
A wild mountain version of Geranium
loving the loose sandy soil.
loving the loose sandy soil.
In gardening, nothing beats experience, so the best way to become a gardener is just to start. Plant something. See what happens. Notice when it rains and how that effects the thing you planted. Notice what happens when it is sunny, cold, windy. Observe and the truth will emerge.
By way of getting started, prepare the soil. If you have trouble digging into it, then plants will have trouble growing in it. Follow the tips below to prepare your soil. Then, plant your seeds or little started plants. Mulch heavily. Mulch is usually wood chips, but you can use anything - grass clippings, weeds, pine needles, etc. Mulch helps the soil retain water so that the roots stay more evenly moist, and so that the seeds can germinate. You should always give a good thick layer of mulch. Use organic natural materials that will eventually decompose and become part of the soil ecosystem. Do not use the stupid toxic dyed colored mulch.
Water in your new seeds or starts. Everything needs a good drink of water to get established. Every day, take a look at your garden. Stick your finger in the soil. If it is dry, water it. If it is wet, don't. If the soil seems to dry out frequently, then add a thicker layer of mulch or water more deeply next time. Notice when it rains and don't water. Many perennials will need far less water once established after year one or two.
Not all plants do well in every location. As you become a more experienced gardener, you will notice that some plants love the hot western side or your house, while other shrivel and die in that intense heat. Some do just fine in windy conditions while others need protection and calm. Some plants love shade and lots of water, while others need lots of sun and can survive dryer conditions. There are millions of species of plants and each one is unique. You will learn what does well where in your garden and you can always dig a plant up and move it somewhere else once you understand its personality and needs.
As your plants reach the end of their yearly growing season, many will flower and produce seeds. Seeds should be left for birds and critters to eat! Enjoy watching this all winter long. You can also harvest the seeds (or some, it is always good to leave some for the birds), and plant them for next year's harvest. Some seeds are best to plant in fall while others prefer you wait until spring.
As a new gardener, it is always good to label things, plants and seeds. That way, even if you forget the name, you can refer to the label and do some research about best care, planting and find out whether the plant is edible and which part is edible.
Learning to garden will literally open up an entirely new world. Welcome aboard! This is planet earth and you are part of it.
By way of getting started, prepare the soil. If you have trouble digging into it, then plants will have trouble growing in it. Follow the tips below to prepare your soil. Then, plant your seeds or little started plants. Mulch heavily. Mulch is usually wood chips, but you can use anything - grass clippings, weeds, pine needles, etc. Mulch helps the soil retain water so that the roots stay more evenly moist, and so that the seeds can germinate. You should always give a good thick layer of mulch. Use organic natural materials that will eventually decompose and become part of the soil ecosystem. Do not use the stupid toxic dyed colored mulch.
Water in your new seeds or starts. Everything needs a good drink of water to get established. Every day, take a look at your garden. Stick your finger in the soil. If it is dry, water it. If it is wet, don't. If the soil seems to dry out frequently, then add a thicker layer of mulch or water more deeply next time. Notice when it rains and don't water. Many perennials will need far less water once established after year one or two.
Not all plants do well in every location. As you become a more experienced gardener, you will notice that some plants love the hot western side or your house, while other shrivel and die in that intense heat. Some do just fine in windy conditions while others need protection and calm. Some plants love shade and lots of water, while others need lots of sun and can survive dryer conditions. There are millions of species of plants and each one is unique. You will learn what does well where in your garden and you can always dig a plant up and move it somewhere else once you understand its personality and needs.
As your plants reach the end of their yearly growing season, many will flower and produce seeds. Seeds should be left for birds and critters to eat! Enjoy watching this all winter long. You can also harvest the seeds (or some, it is always good to leave some for the birds), and plant them for next year's harvest. Some seeds are best to plant in fall while others prefer you wait until spring.
As a new gardener, it is always good to label things, plants and seeds. That way, even if you forget the name, you can refer to the label and do some research about best care, planting and find out whether the plant is edible and which part is edible.
Learning to garden will literally open up an entirely new world. Welcome aboard! This is planet earth and you are part of it.
Soil Preparation: Starting from the ground up
Just Say No To Weed Cloth
 Weed cloth hidden under layers of decomposed matter. I almost planted bulbs right on top! It was so deep I didn't even know it was there. Worms and other creatures need to come up towards the surface to help the decomposition process, to eat and mix the nutrients and organic matter, and to help the soil building process. By preventing nature from doing its thing, many home gardeners significantly stall the natural soil enrichment process.
If you have had trouble gardening in the past, it may very well be due to poor soil conditions. Remove your weed cloth and you will be on your way to freeing your soil, creating a happy habitat and building your very own easy to manage eco friendly garden!  The layers of new topsoil should be mixing into the soil but is prevented from improving what's below because of the weed cloth. Worms, microbes and proper interface are blocked. The soil below becomes packed and depleted. | Step one in creating a healthy garden, especially in most established suburban gardens, is to remove the weed cloth.
In the picture to the left, you can see what happens after just a few years after installing weed fabric. The weed fabric is buried several inches below the surface of the soil. Because dust settles, plants die and soil builds itself as part of the natural processes of the earth, this weed cloth has become covered in dirt and is now a breeding ground for, you guessed it, weeds. Weed cloth just doesn't work! Weed seeds will settle on top of weed fabric and will take root even in the smallest covering of new soil. At the same time, it prevents your plants from growing proper roots, your soil from being healthy, and you from planting new plants without removing it or cutting holes in it.  This is what weed fabric looks like when you first install it. Mulch will be placed over in an attempt to hide it, but will constantly slide off the slippery weed cloth.  More weed fabric hidden under layers of dust, debris, and years of decomposed mulch. |
Building Soil: One Method is Sheet Mulching
Image courtesy of Instructables.
It is not absolutely necessary to sheet mulch. You could also just add a lot of organic matter like compost, composted manure and biodegradable mulch like wood chips or dried leaves. Many permaculturalists swear by sheet mulching because with low cost ingredients it builds extremely rich lush soil, smothers weeds, encourages worms and creates a exceptional soil ecosystem as the foundation of your garden.
Here's how:
Sheet Mulching, sometimes called "Lasagna Gardening," is a permaculture approach to building rich soil. It's also one of the most gentle and effective ways for turning a lawn into a garden - the easy way. Without tilling and destroying the soil ecosystem below, sheet mulching draws worms up, nutrients down, smothers and composts the grass, and creates the perfect environment for rich soil loving garden plants.
Sheet mulching is basically a method for composting place rather than in a compost bin. If you don't have exactly the items or amounts listed below - that's ok. This is just a guide to get you started. Here's How:
1) Put down a layer of cardboard (or newspaper) to kill grass and weeds. Overlap the edges and water until soggy.2) Toss food scraps or manure on top to entice worms up through the cardboard. 3) Build up a layer of yard waste, straw, leaves, grass clippings, wood chips, whatever you can find. This layer should be 4-12 Inches high. Water thoroughly.
4) Cover with a few inches of finished compost or ocmpost/soil mixture for lanting a cover crop. Water this layer too.
5) Top off with 2 inches of heavy mulch such as wood chips to hold it all together. 6) Wait 6 months to a year and plant. More information on Colorado Permaculture events Vist: Colorado Permaculture
Here's how:
Sheet Mulching, sometimes called "Lasagna Gardening," is a permaculture approach to building rich soil. It's also one of the most gentle and effective ways for turning a lawn into a garden - the easy way. Without tilling and destroying the soil ecosystem below, sheet mulching draws worms up, nutrients down, smothers and composts the grass, and creates the perfect environment for rich soil loving garden plants.
Sheet mulching is basically a method for composting place rather than in a compost bin. If you don't have exactly the items or amounts listed below - that's ok. This is just a guide to get you started. Here's How:
1) Put down a layer of cardboard (or newspaper) to kill grass and weeds. Overlap the edges and water until soggy.2) Toss food scraps or manure on top to entice worms up through the cardboard. 3) Build up a layer of yard waste, straw, leaves, grass clippings, wood chips, whatever you can find. This layer should be 4-12 Inches high. Water thoroughly.
4) Cover with a few inches of finished compost or ocmpost/soil mixture for lanting a cover crop. Water this layer too.
5) Top off with 2 inches of heavy mulch such as wood chips to hold it all together. 6) Wait 6 months to a year and plant. More information on Colorado Permaculture events Vist: Colorado Permaculture
 Image courtesy of Farm Your City. |  Image courtesy of Farm Your City. |
Planting: Deciding What to Plant
The next part is deciding what to plant. Your local greenhouses will often have great selection of plants that grow well in your area. There are also numerous high quality mail order catalogues with exceptional descriptions and selections. Perennials are great because they come back year after year and often require less work that annuals. Perennials should be the foundation of any garden because they maintain soil integrity, soil ecosystems and above-ground habitat.
PERENNIAL EDIBLESA perennial edible garden is the highest expression of eco friendly when it comes to edible gardens. Plants come back year after year with no tilling and no soil erosion. You have to do very little work to have a prolific garden and the plants have deep deep roots that break down hidden soil nutrients and help create their own healthy habitat. Perennials are also significantly better at carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas mitigation than annuals because of their deep and complex roots systems.
Consider planting fruit trees, berry bushes, asparagus, rhubarb or any number of the less known perennial vegetable varieties. | Perennial Vegetables
The industry leader in perennial vegetable research. Perennial Vegetables: From Artichokes to Zuiki Taro, A Gardener’s Guide to Over 100 Delicious, Easy-to-Grow, by Eric Toensmeier. Buy the book.
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