Mackel

I have to go out and take photos of my fern that has the double treatment. Compost on the bottom and microbark on top and a drip line. The fern is in almost full sun, but never dries out. This fern Woodwardia fimbriata can live with more sun due to the system. I am sure this system will work. You may even risk over wetting and rotting the roots of plants that are not ferns.

How deep are you checking when you say it is dry? just looking at the top? Digging down 6 inches? 12 inches?

kimmsr forgot one also, what does the soil taste like?

;)

Round 3-

1. Humus is a meaningless word when it's percentage is not listed, so it has become a catch word used by merchants to put a voodoo spell on the consumer.

2. Earthgro contains -peat moss and horse poop- I've used it, it dries out the soil. They sell it at Lowes.

3. Peatmoss is the worst amendment in a droughty soil bar none. Hydrophobic as the bed dries out.

4. Manure in a -droughty and *untested*- soil is a double bad idea, because salts can quickly exceed healthy levels when there's not enough rainfall to leach it down.

5. All you had to do was google it, Kimmsr...

Man Up

Because you say that this is your first garden, to water properly you should apply enough water to wet the whole area of your plant roots and a little beyond, so they can grow roots deeper. To know how long to water, or how much water it takes to accomplish this, right after you water, dig a small hole with a hand trowel and see how far down it went. Different soils act differently, different plants have different depth of roots. Once you have watered deep enough, don't water again until the soil is dry at least half way down in the root zone. You can't know how long that takes without digging to see, and considering changes in weather. As your plants grow larger root systems how much water each time and how often changes! Most people do not water properly, so this exercise (and regularly digging around to see what's up) will give you a "green thumb", and your plants will be "drought tolerant" from deep roots. Once you have established your plants through proper watering, it becomes less important to do it correctly. Don't buy any kind of gadget to test the moisture... dig a hole.

What to add to the top of the soil? I recently moved from California, and I have found that garden products are not the same here. I am currently using a product from Wally World called "Earthgro Potting Mix" (might be the same thing that you used, or might not). It is about $3 per 1 cubic foot bag. The label fine print says it contains "regionally formulated compost, peat moss or forest products sand and perlite". In other words, they don't tell you what it is. It has a nice color and texture, smells like compost, and it holds moisture. There is very little sand and perlite in it. No other Earthro product that I tried had any good qualities about it, and they were full of sand (which is what I have too much of). There might be similar products sold in various brand names as "soil conditioner" or "seed topper" or "planting mix", and you need to be sure that what you are buying is not mostly sand with little brown bits and fertilizer pellets in it. It shouldn't smell like steer manure (even if it contains steer manure), so you will need to find some broken bags or purchase a variety of products to find something that is good in your area. Before I found this "potting mix" I liked best a Scotts product called "planting mix" (I think?) with fertilizer pellets in it (I think?) sold at Home Depot and Wal-Mart. I think it was .75 cubic feet for about $2, no smell at all, but it was soft fine wood chips and dark soil-like matter. You just want something that retains moisture, that's the main thing.

Don't lay it on too thick (like people who add 3 inches of some kind of mulch) or you might be burying your plants too deep. Don't pile it against stems or trunks of plants, which can cause rot. Add maybe an inch of it to the top. If you can work it into the soil lightly with a trowel that is better than just laying it on, but either way will help to slow down evaporation.

Many people use "mulch". Various colors of shredded rubber or wood bark chips. I personally don't like the way that looks, and it doesn't allow you to dig around unless you move that stuff to the side, etc. so it is better for permanent installations of shrubs than the kind of garden where you add new plants all the time or try to start things from seed. It does help to hold in moisture and reduce weeds, so it might be what you are looking for. I personally like to have plants growing in all of the soil, and low spreading plants can shade the ground under taller flowering plants or veggies. I "mulch" only with stuff that can be dug into the soil when I add new plants later, so that the soil is always getting more and more amendments.

You have options. Honestly, learning how to water properly is the most important thing. Seeing dry soil does not mean that your plants need water, but it might not look nice. If you water just the top inch, then the soil might look moist, and the plants are still not getting water where they need it (deep). If you don't dig holes to see what the moisture level is deep down, then you might over water, and the plants become sick. You can grow plants anywhere, in the worst soil if you learn how to water properly. As you improve soil more, it will hold moisture better, and you don't have to water as often. After plants have developed deep roots, you don't have to water as often. It is most difficult when you are starting a new garden, and it gets easier.

Mackel

Mackel, just get a tape recorder and speak into it saying "Im right and everyone else is wrong". You can play that back to yourself constantly for self encouragement...lol