7 Ways to Get A Jump on Spring Soil Prep in November
Want to get ahead of the busy spring gardening season? Then start with soil prep! Farmer Briana Yablonski shares seven ways you can get your soil ready for spring right now.
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While we may think late fall is a time to rest, don’t step away from your garden just yet. Spending a few extra hours with your hands in the soil now allows you to save hours of work during the springtime flurry of planting and weeding. Plus, preparing your beds in the fall helps the dirt stay healthy over the winter.
Some gardeners are worried that if they prep their soil in the fall, they’ll have to do it all over again in the spring. However, that’s not always the case. Completing the following soil prep steps in November will help keep your garden healthy and allow you to save time next spring.
Conduct a Soil Test
Before you add compost, fertilizer, or garden lime, I always recommend conducting a soil test. This test will let you know your pH, the percent of organic matter, and the type and amount of essential plant nutrients. Once you have this in, you can add the proper nutrients and adjust the pH. Plus, fall is the perfect time to conduct a soil test!
Conducting a test is simple. The end goal is to end up with a sample that represents your entire garden. Therefore, you should collect multiple samples from around your garden, mix them together, and then analyze a portion of this mixture. Following this method will prevent you from ending up with an extra-sandy sample or dirt from a place where you just applied fertilizer.
When sampling, aim to collect from the upper six inches. This layer is where plants access most of their nutrients. You can use a special soil probe to collect samples or utilize a shovel or trowel. After you gather your samples, mix them in a plastic bucket (metal can add nutrients), then separate a cup or two of dirt for analysis.
Most county extension offices provide soil testing services and can deliver results within a few weeks. You can also send your sample to a private lab for testing. Another option is to use a soil testing kit that makes it easy to collect and send away your samples.
Once you have your results, spend some time looking them over. While reading tests can take some practice, most result sheets make it easy to see the pH, percent of organic matter, and whether plant nutrients are high or low.
Adjust the pH as Necessary
With your test results in hand, you can look at the soil pH. Most crops thrive at a pH between 6.0 and 7.0, so this is the range you’re aiming for. A pH below 6.0 is too acidic for most crops, and a pH above 7.0 is too basic. The exception is plants that like alkaline or acidic ground.
When the pH is out of the ideal range, plants have a difficult time taking up essential nutrients. Even if you add fertilizer, your plants may not be able to access the nutrients. So, instead of throwing away fertilizer, spend time adjusting the pH. Since it takes time for the pH to change, starting this process in November helps prep your soil for spring planting.
A pH below 6.0 is too acidic for most crops, with the exception of acid-loving plants like blueberries, cranberries, and azaleas. If you want to raise the pH, adding garden lime is one of the best options. This organic material is made from crushed limestone and naturally interacts with soil ions to raise the pH.
You can use this helpful calculator to figure out how much lime you need to add. In general, you’ll need to add around three pounds of garden lime to raise the pH of a 1,000-foot garden by 1.0. Make sure to mix the lime into the top six inches after adding it to the garden.
If your pH is above 7.0, it means it’s too basic for most plants to thrive. Adding garden sulfur is the best way to lower the pH organically. This material takes multiple months to adjust the soil pH, so adding it in the fall is better than waiting until the spring.
The amount of sulfur you’ll need to apply depends on the current pH, the target pH, and the soil type. Clay requires more sulfur than sand in order to obtain a one-point drop in pH. For example, if you want to drop silty loam from 7.5 to 6.5, you should add 13.8 pounds of sulfur per 1,000 square feet. However, if you want to drop clay soil the same amount, you’ll need to add double the amount of sulfur.
Sprinkle Fertilizer
If your garden is deficient in any macronutrients, secondary nutrients, or micronutrients, you can fertilize in the fall. If you’re adding organic fertilizers like bone meal, feather meal, or rock phosphate, the nutrients will largely remain unavailable to plants while the weather is cool and microbes are inactive. However, when warm, moist spring days arrive, the nutrients will become available for plant uptake.
When you’re applying fertilizer, it’s best to follow your test results. Using your results as a guide allows you to provide the amount of nutrients plants need without adding an unnecessary amount. Not only does this save you money, but it limits nutrient runoff and overfertilization.
Some gardeners may be worried that nutrients will leach out during the winter. While this isn’t impossible, it’s not a huge concern if you’re applying organic fertilizers. Nitrogen is the element that’s most susceptible to leaching, but only certain forms of nitrogen (mainly nitrate) can break free from underground particles. Since organic nitrogen sources consist of large, complex particles, they’re unlikely to leach into waterways.
With that said, you can always wait until the spring to apply nitrogen fertilizer. However, you can still apply potassium and phosphorus in the fall since these aren’t susceptible to leaching.
Add Compost
Most soils can benefit from a sprinkle to a few inches of compost. A good compost is not only rich in organic matter, but it also supplies the bed with a boost of beneficial microbes. These microbes work to make nutrients more available to plants, help plants fight off disease, and improve plants’ abilities to handle stress. Since microbe populations will grow over time, even a light dusting of compost will inoculate the soil with life!
Adding an inch or more of compost can significantly increase the percentage of soil organic matter. As this increases, so does the water retention, nutrient retention, structure, and drainage. In short, increased organic matter is great for plants.
Adding a thicker layer of compost to the top will also allow the material to serve as mulch. This will help prevent weeds from germinating and limit erosion during winter rain and wind.
While compost is generally filled with positives, there are a few things you should watch out for. First, check to see that the compost isn’t contaminated with residual herbicides that can harm your future plants. Next, be aware that lots of compost is high in phosphorus. If you plan to apply compost regularly, keep an eye on the phosphorus levels.
Aerate
Along with adding nutrients to the soil, you should also think about soil structure. While it’s difficult to change the amount of sand, silt, and clay present in your beds, you can improve its physical structure. Aerating improves gas exchange in plant roots and allows water to better enter in and flow through the soil.
There are many different ways you can aerate the soil, but I recommend simple methods if you’re working on a garden scale. A single-handle digging fork or a broadfork allows you to easily lift the soil and create air pockets. No matter which tool you’re working with, the process is easy. Just insert the tines of the fork all the way into the ground, pull the handles back until the ground cracks, and remove the tines from the ground. There’s no need to lift or flip.
Completing the process in the fall allows you to skip the hassle of trying to complete it in wet, spring soil. Plus, if you aerate the soil as part of your November prep, the ground will likely dry out quicker in the spring.
Cover with a Tarp or Cardboard
One of the golden rules of no-till growing is to keep the soil covered as much as possible. While growing cover crops over the winter is ideal, November is too late to plant these seeds in most areas. If you missed the window to sow cover crops, it doesn’t mean you have to leave your beds bare throughout the winter.
Another option is to cover the ground with a tarp. A UV-resistant silage tarp is best since it won’t break down when exposed to light. However, you can use other types of tarps or sheets of cardboard if you’re in a pinch. The most important part is to ensure all the ground is covered with an opaque material.
The tarp or cardboard will provide numerous benefits throughout the winter. First, they will prevent rain from splashing on the bed and, therefore, limit erosion. These materials will also prevent weeds from germinating and growing.
If you aerate, add the necessary amendments, and then cover it with a tarp, springtime is easy! All you have to do is peel back the tarp, lightly rake, and start planting.
Add a Layer of Mulch
While tarping is great for large garden areas and raised beds, it doesn’t make sense for every area. If your garden includes fruit trees and shrubs, add mulching to your November soil prep list. Adding a layer of wood chips, straw, or leaves will provide many benefits to the bed over the winter.
Mulch limits erosion, prevents dirt from splashing up onto plant foliage, improves water retention, and limits weed seed germination. It also protects plant roots from sudden changes in temperature and cold air. Some plants ‘heave’ their roots due to freeze-thaw cycles, and these roots become exposed to the air. Adding mulch provides an insulating layer that limits cold damage.
If you planned on mulching in the spring, there’s no reason you can’t do it in the fall instead. Completing this task now frees up your time in the spring so you can focus on tasks like planting, seeding, and harvesting.
If the materials break down over the winter, don’t worry! This will only add organic matter. You can always add more mulch in the spring if you need to.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I Till the Soil in the Fall?
Intensive tilling in the fall is generally discouraged unless you plan to plant a cover crop. Tillage leaves the soil susceptible to erosion, especially if the soil is left bare.
When Should You Start Preparing a Garden for Fall?
To grow a fall garden, prepare the soil in late summer or early fall. Adding fertilizer, amending with compost, and installing irrigation are key steps.
Should I Clean Up Fall Debris?
Cleaning up diseased plants and weeds can help improve your spring garden. However, you can leave healthy plant residue and leaves in place.
