Choosing the Right Vegetable Garden Soil Amendments

Amending your garden soil in early spring is key to having a healthy, productive tomato and vegetable crop this season. A good soil amendment will make your existing soil healthier and more fertile by improving soil texture, helping to lower pH (makes your soil more acidic) and encouraging worms and soil microbes to flourish. Healthy soil promotes deeper root systems and makes nutrients more available to your vegetables. When it comes to choosing soil amendments, it’s important to use Colorado-based products that are specifically designed to work in our clay-based soils. That’s why we recommend and sell locally-produced soil amendments and fertilizers from The Richlawn Company Organix Supply. 

For over forty years, The Richlawn Company has been crafting garden and lawn products specifically designed to work in our clay-heavy soils. Located in Platteville, Colorado the original EKO Compost was developed in 1977 for use in vegetable and flower gardens, new lawns and for planting trees and shrubs. From that beginning, Rich Lawn has continued to expand their facility to accommodate the growing demand for their organic products. 

Recent improvements included additional outside storage space for 7,500 pallets of bagged soils (375 truckloads).  They now have 3.3 acres of land that is used for outside soils storage. 

This is in addition to over 1,000 pallets of fertilizers that are stored inside warehouses. One of our favorites, Earth Essentials products were developed in response to consumer requests for quality products they could use to improve their garden soil organically. Rich in trace minerals, organic material and beneficial microbes, Earth Essential’s Cow and Compost and Sheep, Peat and Compost improves the soil’s physical and biological health, resulting in healthier tomato and vegetable plants and better yields. 

Both products are thoroughly composted, eliminating weed seeds.  When it comes to applying either Sheep, Peat and Compost or Cow and Compost to your garden, a good rule of thumb is to add about two inches at any one time. One bag of Sheep, Peat and Compost will cover ten square feet, two inches deep. You can use this as a basis for calculating how much you'll need to buy to amend your current bed or start a new vegetable bed.  For example: a one hundred square foot vegetable bed would require ten bags of Seep, Peat and Compost in order to cover the bed with two inches of compost. The same ratio would hold true if you’re amending a raised bed. An eight foot by four foot raised bed would require a little over three bags of Sheep, Peat and Compost or Cow and Compost in order to add two inches of amendments. If you have questions about which Earth Essentials products you should buy or how much you need for your vegetable garden or raised beds, please stop in. We’ll be glad to help you. While you’re in the store, we can tell you about the other great lawn and garden products made by Richlawn, including Pro Rich Lawn Fertilizers and Grow Rich Garden Fertilizer. One thing’s for certain.  When it comes to improving your vegetable garden soil health, fertility and structure, you can count on the quality, organic products produced locally by The Richlawn Company.  

 

 

 

How to Test Garden Soil and Why

 

 
The health and quality of your soil has a direct effect on everything you grow in your garden. The key elements affecting our soils are physical structure, including the amount of clay content, the pH and soil fertility. Testing your garden soil on a regular basis is important and can be accomplished at home using soil test kits or soil samples can be sent to a testing lab for analysis. If you decide to test your soils at home, it’s important to include a test that will measure the acid-alkaline balance, known as soil pH level. Soil pH affects the availability of nutrients to vegetable plants, as well as the microbial activity in your soil.  No matter the quality of the fertilizer or supplements you apply, tomato and vegetable plants can’t use them if the pH is too high.  Soil pH is a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a soil. On the pH scale, 7.0 is neutral, above 7 is alkaline, below 7 is acidic. Bleach for example is very alkaline. Lemon juice is very acidic. Most plants prefer a pH of between 6.5 and 7. Our soils are typically greater than 7.  

This soil check kit is an easy and quick way to check the pH levels of your garden soil. It will also measure the Nitrogen, Phosphate and Potash levels in your garden beds.  Stop in and let us explain how to use these testers. We also carry the soil test mailer should you choose to send a sample to CSU’s testing lab in Fort Collins. You can pick up a mailer and test instructions in the Hardgoods section of the store. The mailer is free, but you do pay a fee to CSU for the test. The basic test includes an analysis of soil structure, pH, salt content and nutrient levels in the soil. The lab will also share their interpretation of the test results. Whether you test your own soil or use the lab at CSU, bring us the results. We'll recommend the right amendments and fertilizers to make your garden soil healthier and more productive. In addition to pH and nutrient levels, the structure, physical makeup and organic content of your soil has a direct impact on your garden’s productivity. Whether you’re growing in a raised bed or an in-ground one, the quality of the soil affects everything from strong root development to flower and fruit production. 

The Jar Test is a quick, easy way to help you determine the structure and physical makeup of your soil. You’ll need a clean jar with a lid, in this case a peanut butter container. Put 4-5 ounces of soil in the bottom of the jar. Add enough water to fill the jar 2/3 full.  Add a drop or two of dishwasher soap. Put the lid on and shake well, then let the jar sit undisturbed for 24 hours. You’ll see that the soil has settled into layers. The first layer will be sand. The second layer will be silt, followed by clay, suspended clay, then a small amount of organic material, floating at the top.

 This is evident in the jar on the left. Typically, you’re going to see a small amount of sand and silt, a large percentage of clay and a small amount of organic material. As you add more organic material to your garden, your test results will look more like the jar in the middle. The jar on the right illustrates a well-amended garden soil: dark and rich, with more organic material suspended in with the clay. As a general rule, to improve your garden soil and lower the pH, you need to add more organic material in the form of peat moss, worm castings, sheep or dairy cow manure and organic compost. We recommend you add two to three inches of organic material to your garden at the beginning of each season and again in the fall, as you're putting the garden to bed.  

How to Grow Healthy Seedlings

  

Once your seeds have sprouted, there are three factors that will have a strong influence on how well your seedlings grow and develop: light, water and fertilizer. Of these three, adequate lighting is one of the most critical.  Seedlings grow best when they have the right amount of light. Most of the time the light coming through a bright, sunny window isn’t going to be enough for your seedlings. They will tend to stretch and get thin and spindly looking for light. Seedlings need a consistent source of the right light. You have several choices when it comes to selecting a grow light including fluorescent lights (CFLs), high-output T5s and LEDs. T5s are generally considered the best choice for seedling development, especially if space is a consideration; T5s can be placed closer to the seedlings then LEDS.  

Select a T5 in the 6400K spectrum, for best seedling growth. Plan to run your grow lights fourteen to sixteen hours per day. It’s also important that your light setup is adjustable, so that you can raise the lights as your plants grow. When your seedlings are small, place your lights five to six inches above the tops of the plants. As the seedlings grow and develop, move the lights up.  It’s also important to rotate your seedling trays every week.  Next to light, watering is most important. Check your seedlings every day and keep the soil moist, not soggy. Don't use water that is too cold (or too hot). Fill up your watering can and let it set out overnight. That way the water will be at room temperature when you water your seedlings. 

In order to develop strong stems and root structures, your seedlings need to be fed. Begin fertilizing once your plants have 3-4 sets of true leaves. The first set of leaves to emerge are the cotyledons, sometimes referred to as ‘seed leaves”. They are not “true leaves”. The next set of leaves and all subsequent leaves are true leaves.  Use a mild fertilizer such as fish and seaweed 2-3-1 or liquid Kelp. Liquid fertilizers are preferable at this stage, because it’s less likely you’ll damage the seedling’s roots than if you used a granular starter fertilizer. Plan to fertilize your seedlings every two weeks, at a concentration of one teaspoon or five milliliters per gallon of water.  Let your water sit out overnight in order to reach room temperature.  

Brush your starts several times a day. Plants, especially tomatoes need movement in order to develop strong stems. Brushing them a couple of times a day makes them stronger.  Or simply install a small fan and run it 5-10 minutes twice a day.  Doing these things will help ensure your seedlings are strong and healthy when it comes time to move them to your garden. 

4 Steps to a Great Lawn

 

In order for your lawn to look its best spring, summer and fall, it needs nutrients. The Flower Bin Lawn Care program is built on the idea that regular fertilization, along with aeration and good mowing and watering practices, is key to maintaining a strong, healthy lawn. A healthy lawn is more likely to have fewer weed and disease problems. The ferti•lome® brand of lawn and garden products is the mainstay of our program and includes four steps designed to keep your lawn healthy throughout the growing season. 

When you purchase all four bags of The Flower Bin Lawn Care program at once, you will save 20% of the cost of the program and you will continue to save 20% on every ferti•lome® product you purchase throughout the year, including a wide selection of garden fertilizers, insect and weed controls. Additionally, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you are applying the right product at the right time of the season, when it will benefit your lawn the most. 

The program begins with Step 1, ferti•lome’s® For All Seasons II fertilizer and weed preventer. One of the most effective ways to control weeds in your lawn is to prevent them from showing up in the first place and this product works to keep crabgrass and other weed seeds from germinating. Step 1 is applied between mid-March and mid-April. 

Step 2: Weed-Out Plus Lawn Fertilizer. This product works to control weeds you can see. It’s called a post-emergent. This is the product to apply for dandelions, mallow and other weeds you can see in your lawn. Weed-Out Plus also feeds your lawn and is applied around the first of June.  

Step 3: Lawn Food Plus Iron. Applied in early August, right when your lawn needs nitrogen and iron the most. 

Step 4: Winterizer. Applied around Halloween, when your grass is storing up energy for the winter weather ahead.  With ferti-lome Winterizer your lawn will green up faster, the following spring.  As a Flower Bin Lawn Care member, you’re entitled to borrow one of our fertilizer spreaders at no charge. In-store lawn and garden diagnostics are also available at no charge. Stop by and let our Lawn Experts discuss how to make your lawn thicker, healthier and more weed and disease resistant this season.   

  

 

 

 

Pruning Flowering Shrubs and Vines

 

 

Early March is the right time to prune many of the shrubs and climbers in your landscape. Pruning these flowering shrubs and vines isn’t difficult if you understand these general rules. General rule number one: prune spring flowering shrubs after they bloom and before they set seed. Spring blooming shrubs such as lilac, ninebark and weigela already have this spring's flower buds in place. These shrubs are said to bloom on “old wood” because soon after flowering last season, they began to set the buds for this season's blooms. If you prune these shrubs now, you'll remove most of the flower buds. The time to prune ornamental shrubs that flower in spring and early summer, is within two weeks after they stop blooming. 

General rule two: prune summer flowering shrubs such as butterfly bush, blue-mist spirea and hardy hibiscus in late winter or early spring, because they bloom on this year’s growth or “new wood”. Now’s the time to prune summer flowering shrubs. Summer flowering hardy hibiscus and butterfly bushes and blue mist spirea do best if you cut them hard to the ground now. You can use a lopper to cut the larger canes, a good set of pruners for the smaller canes.  

This is also the time to prune Group 3 Clematis. These varieties bloom on new wood in late June into August. They should be cut back to a living bud at about 24" from the ground in spring just as the buds begin to swell. If you don't prune, the flowers will tend to be only up at the top of the plant, with bare stems below. When to prune Clematis can be tricky depending on the bloom time and variety. If you’re not sure, don’t prune. General rule number three: Don’t prune. If you’re uncertain about the blooming habits of the shrubs and vines in your landscape, don’t prune until you’ve had time to observe each plant’s growth and bloom cycle. Then you can employ general rule one or general rule two, whichever is applicable. General rule number four: prune anytime there is a need to remove dead, damaged or diseased branches. When it comes to the health of trees, shrubs and vines in your landscape, it’s always the right time to prune.   If you have questions about pruning in general or how to prune a particular shrub, stop by our Diagnostic Center. We'll help you figure out what to do to keep your shrubs and vines healthy and blooming for many seasons.