Have you ever seen land that has been scraped by a “Bobcat?” (or a bulldozer, to me who knows nothing of heavy equipment…) It is the ultimate definition of barren. With no leaf & plant material, the soil rivals the Sahara Desert, with clumps. This is what we build upon, what we fill with trucked-in top soil, and where we grow our food. There has to be a better way. Nutrients from naturally-composting leaves, branches and roots are Nature’s way of taking care of us. LEAVE the LEAVES and rake gently, as late in Spring as possible; and keep the dirt when you can.
The soil below is in good shape, and it appears the roots are pretty well broken up. But I went through and deep-raked, removing as much of the roots as possible. My quandary: I do know that raking is ill-advised when using this method of removal, due to old seed banks. But I also know that roots from Honeysuckle and Privet may grow. But what seed was here before was surely better than what was here recently. So I am taking the chance in this area.
The soil definitely needs to be amended, and I am going to try hardwood and leaf material.
The poor condition of the soil wasn’t obvious until we hit a dry spell. I tried my hand at some homemade mulch; twice mowing piles of leaves. It’s better, but not enough.
In the meantime, the baby Tulip Poplar is taking off, in spite of surrounding Walnut trees, and we’re making a dent in the Privet and Honeysuckle roots that need to be burned.
Planting Plan for Area 3 – It looks pretty sparce though. I’m awaiting guidance.
