The Practical Guide to Soil Health (For Gardeners)

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[@FTFAllotment]

So basically, we now have billions of tiny pets to look after? Awesome! 😁

[@BritInvLvr]

😂

[@mikemorton954]

I'll never remember their names 😮

[@Strutt111]

I had this exact revelation this morning at the plot. I've followed everyone's advice and kept committed over the cold period. Now I have thousands of worms and other bugs just below the surface of all my beds. The only area I've diverted from is transferring my compost to beds about ½ way through the process as I just wanted all of the wash off from rain to keep the good stuff where I want it 😊

[@cherylmosher6026]

Yes but don’t have to pick up after them 😉 😂

[@cherilynne1946]

😂

[@lotusladyogini]

This was the absolute best video I've seen on soil health. I've studied for countless hours, the science, the composting for dummies, the elaborate descriptive videos. All of it, but this one is absolute gold. It's the perfect balance between the knowledge and the practicality. Thank you Huw. Providing us, once again, with another banger.

[@HuwRichards]

Well all I can say is thank you! This is exactly why I made this video. It really is too often overcomplicated as a subject and so I thought to offer a more realistic perspective.

[@Mikkmurray]

Great video Huw, good to talk about the soil health 😊 Our motto on the market garden is healthy soil, healthy plants, healthy people 🌱

[@HuwRichards]

A fantastic motto to have!

[@UllricLex]

Great motto 🙂 and so true.

[@Atimatimukti]

You mentioned my biggest mistake. I came to the farm where I live now, nortwest of Portugal, 9 years ago. The farm has 5300m2 ( a bit more than one acre) and decided to cultivate the entire land. Of course, nothing was growing good, i simple couldn't make enough compost. Now i do a lot of cover crops to cut and incorporate and the land is thriving

[@flatsville9343]

Cover cropping, particularly winter kill, is cheap & easy compared to buying or making loads of compost. I now only use compost in a thin band layer or spot place when direct seeding The whole bed then gets leaf mould when seedling emerge. All seedlings get a vermicompost extract soak or drench before planting. Direct seeds get vermicompost slurry in the row.

[@ohiogardener4019]

I love my Microbes! Feed the soil so that the soil can feed the plants, and the plants can feed us.

[@nickthegardener.1120]

Great comment, looked at your channel and subbed. I was making and charging Bio char a few weeks ago too.👌👍💪

[@ohiogardener4019]

@@nickthegardener.1120 Thanks!

[@user-qt2um5ru2c]

Thank you for the frankness and the no nonsenses approach it is really refreshing to hear someone explain and give example's with out feeling guilty or doing it wrong

[@johnbuyers8095]

I’ve found that just raking leaves off the lawn on to beds in the autumn works really well. No need to go through the ‘formal’ composting routine, just let nature go for it. Worms can get through 6-8 inches of garden waste during the late autumn/ winter, and you’ve got a great start to Spring planting

[@yeastybeastie]

Damn right. I barely chopped and messily dropped the allotment detritus into the pathways this last autumn, and 90% of it is invisible now!

[@LoriSavingWild]

You have the most healthy and gorgeous veg patch Ive ever seen. Best on the whole of KZbin.Thanks

[@darinbennett3638]

Professor Richards...as always, thanks for the insights and for relieving us of the pressure of having to have full knowledge of everything taking place in our soil. It can be overwhelming to think I have to master my understanding of soil before I am able to take my first step towards improving soil health. We just moved to a new home and so we're starting from scratch with our vegetable and flower gardens...it's a blank canvas which is exciting! Thanks, Huw. (KY, USA)

[@suepowlesland8541]

Thank you for your comments on small space+healthy soil. I have four beds but no room for expansion due to building shade. And after this video I finally realize... that's ok😊. Thanks to leaves and yard waste from friendly neighbors I now make enough compost for my garden. I'm also in my second year of cover crops and what a difference that has made! I have a small but mighty space.❤

[@ninemoonplanet]

You may have a way to grow vertically, trellis, bamboo, netting on a support, arches, it could be great fun playing with ideas to get sun on everything and still have green (or other colours) running up.

[@suepowlesland8541]

@@ninemoonplanet All wonderful ideas, thank you! I have netting, a trellis, and an arch, and will be experimenting with winter cover crops in my paths. Making every inch count😉

[@tavanasibgatullah]

I love how you always simplify all the steps! I love learning new things from your videos. This year is my 4th year of gardening, I live in the New York City, and I have a tiny-ish garden, a super busy life, very limited tools and minimum access to compost. I can't make compost at home because of racoons and other animals in the neighborhood, and lack of space. Although I hope someday, I will be able to dedicate a tiny space for composting, I follow some of your amazing ideas such as chop & drop. I chop & drop all the extra leaves and stems during the growing season, and throughout the winter. I know they dont breakdown as much as in a compost bin, but at least I am returning the nutrients in the soil back, instead of wasting them. One thing I am struggling with is, every year I have to add a little more soil on my beds to compensate the lost matters, but I am still looking for ways for not needing extra soil to buy anymore.

[@mscd6174]

I love this. A breath of fresh air and enthusiasm thank you.! Note to self. Reduce the patch I’m trying to grow from and invest my time energy and compost in that. Every year I bite off more than I can chew and become disheartened so this is a top tip!

[@doradukes6263]

Useful and calming video to watch, as always!

[@HuwRichards]

Thank you very much!

[@judyreynolds305]

I am 64 , not as strong as I use to be…..so I just RECYCLE saved PAPER feed sacks! 🐓. Poke 4 holes! Sit 8 sacks 2 across, 4 long( rolled down top half before filling ) with WOOD CHIPS BOTTOM 1-2”, raised bed soil and sack is stabilized). As sacks decomposed and soil settles plants grow; you will end up with a slightly raised permanent garden bed! Free start,low work kills weeds underneath sack!!

[@andersonomo597]

'Grounded : how soil shapes the games we play, the lives we make and the graves we lie in'' is a really terrific book by Alisa Bryce, who is a soil scientist. In each chapter she isolates one topic, such as 'terroir', graves, playing fields, crimes, tunnel digging and war - and shows the links back to soil and it's incredible complexity and importance. It's very well researched but absolutely not a hard dry read - I highly recommend it to anyone interested in gardening and understanding soil. Cheers from Oz!

[@anapaulacrawford5837]

Hi Huw , I have 17 beds which I have been working on for two years, they're producing quite well now . I personally never a video of yours that ever you use commercial fertilizer or even another . Thank you for awesome teaching in this video. 😊

[@Jade-yq1et]

Thanks Huw. Love the different methods simplified

[@paulajones4999]

Thank you , I knew instinctively that you have to keep adding organic material/compost to get good soil but it’s good for someone to reaffirm this fact. You know you have got good soil when there’s loads of worms in it.

[@gardenboydon]

Great video! "Under fertilizing" is always better than over fertilizing" less is more

[@jaebee9308]

Whenever money has been tight and/or we've moved and don't yet have a good compost going at a new place- I've just bought compost in Spring and used it only in the holes I'm planting in, and a bit around each plant. It gets the nutrients on the plants without having to spend so much $ on amending the entire garden bed as a whole, until I'm later able to.

[@nikkireigns]

Smart!

[@jennifersimmons1552]

Exactly what i did. Worked beautifully for several years until I built compost piles right in the garden- sheet composting.

[@shabamflam]

So smart! I'm definitely going to try this.

[@AmirsAllotment]

Thanks Huw, makes sense what we need to focus on to promote all that goodness. I really appreciate your videos, perfect time for me to take notes and prepare for season ahead 😊👍🌱

[@HuwRichards]

My pleasure! Thank you so much Amir!

[@rostislavpareto7629]

Organic matter could be added also to the soil at the end of the season by putting the rests of vegetables on top of the beds with no conflicts in vegetables. I have experimented past year and happy with results now.

[@justindavis9137]

Just preordered your book! I’m across the pond & an avid watcher of David the Good. I love your stuff, man. So comforting to watch and inspiring too! Keep it coming 😄

[@HuwRichards]

I love David the Good's channel! Thank you so much for watching and your pre-order!

[@kathyritscher9459]

I have had a wonderful three days in the garden going through some large tubs I had grown in for three years. I have to move them out now as they are deteriorating. However the soil in them is wonderful. Worms have found them and the mycelium is all throughout the tubs. I started with sawdust, woodchips (I know, I know). Then I had some potting soil on top. That was three years ago. Now it is crumbly, rich looking, and full of life. I am putting this wonderful soil into better pots for this year’s garden. So good getting my hands into the soil again. Central California.

[@abitnajs9479]

I just love your video Huw. Thank you!

[@HuwRichards]

Thank you!

[@flatsville9343]

A fall planted, winter kill covercrop is the easiest way to add organic matter & feed earthworms. If you have a mild winter & the CC persists, weed wack it close to the ground, cover with shredded leaves & block light with cardboard or black tarp. Come spring, you only need to dig a bit to plant seedlings or lay down a thin band of compost for direct seeding. It can cut your compost dependency & costs significantly. This works best on beds that aren't too tall. I've found that tall, filled raised beds are not earthworm friendly as they like to burrow down into actual dirt as their DNA instructs (endogeic & anecic.) If you want true composting worms for a tall, filled raised bed, you need red wigglers (epigeic.) Wigglers will die off when temps drop below 40 degrees.

[@juliewolvey6209]

I'm looking forward to this year’s growing season. I've tried many times to have a productive kitchen garden but time and money always thwart me. I've pre-ordered your book and am determined this year to have another go...wish me luck!

[@anneobrien3878]

Love the no nonsense, cut to the quick approach Huw. You give us enough info to whet the appetite but enough to get going too! Thank you as always

[@GARDENER42]

I've become an absolute compost fanatic but as you say, it takes dedication to produce enough to add 3cm a year to the surface of every bed. I need 3.25 cubic metres of compost annually to achieve that & despite bringing in 300m² of lawn clippings, soft trimmings from 60m of hedge, 200kg of shredded cardboard & everything else I can find, I only just make it every year (I'm off down the shore for more seaweed tomorrow...). I went 'no till' (I consider 'no dig' a misnomer) five years ago & there IS a fall in yield in years three & four due to the time it takes for organic matter to replace nutrients from fertilisers, be they Growmore or organic such as blood, fish & bonemeal. To combat this, I opted to use 30g/m³ of either applied in early spring to boost nutrient levels & this seems to have worked. I'll do it again in 2024 but will cease the extra feed in 2025 & monitor the results. Having said that, the transformation in the texture of the top 10cm of soil has been spectacular, to the point i no longer fret over walking on my beds, as there's no way they can be compacted any more.

[@RawLondonGardener]

Excellent composting advice, key tips are fantastic for us newbies 👍

[@Silvereagledude]

Good stuff, Huw

[@cheaputhyvan4705]

Great job 🏞️🍓

[@Karen-ew9zn]

This is perfect! I will be starting on my small garden this fall and now I know how to prep the soil for next spring. Thank you Huw !

[@aprilnicolae9359]

I jist pre-ordered your book. Very excited for it!

[@marievtbxviiii]

I love the chop & drop method! So efficient!

[@bernardplaisted9139]

thank you great info

[@theirishcailin333]

Hi Huw from Ireland. Looking forward to watching as always, cant wait to get started, laid up at the minute with a bad back though😢

[@kimberleychapman8416]

This is so helpful! Thank you so much ☺️

[@HuwRichards]

You're most welcome!

[@derekmorris7128]

Great content, thanks! Also that backdrop with the blue leeks, yellowish cabbage(?), and kale is stunning.

[@carolinethomson1297]

As ever Huw, this information is invaluable. Thank you

[@HuwRichards]

I really appreciate that - thank you Caroline!

[@charlesbale8376]

Wonderful tips and information...Enjoyed the video.

[@HuwRichards]

Thank you very much

[@joannc147]

Thank you! Oh, I’ve taken a bunch of garden classes and yup, all about the “science” as chemistry of the soil…..but what about the Biology and the Structure (Tilth) of the soil? I’m delighted that you speak so eloquently about all 3 points. I have sandy soil with lots of tress -> leaves and enough microbes and insects to support my free-range hens. 👍🏻 My hens don’t care for the comm’l feed when they can eat bugs instead. 🤣

[@invokalink162]

Great vid, very well simplified. I found that the education of soil health just as fascinating as the planting/growing last year. It's been an interesting journey, discovering what works in the soil in my allotment (new last year). I've enjoyed trying various techniques to improve the land, from a variety of mulches - manure, seaweed, grass cuttings, ash, to picking suitable varieties of veg for specific spots. Corn did very well in the poor soil for example. And of course religiously and proudly building my compost pile. Can't wait to see how much better the soil is this year! I have high hopes. :)

[@9FatraBbits]

You made it sound easy! 🐇💚

[@HuwRichards]

Because it is!!☺️

[@mariamerigold]

Diolch Huw, perfect timing. I've been curious about soil health recently 🥰

[@HuwRichards]

Croeso! I'm glad you enjoyed ☺️

[@AndyMaden]

Hi Huw. Amazing video. I thought you were walking with me in my garden and highlighting all my problems with my heavy clay soil. Hi have followed some of your advice with looking after the soil and my raised beds are looking good. I am feeding my new pets, Mr worms and they pay me back. Needs to work more on one area of soil very exposed to the elements. I have horses manure and shop bought compost plus home made compost to help. 😊

[@BlessingsfromNorthIdaho]

Thanks for another great video. It seems the more I learn about the soil and composting the more I realize how little I know.😬. TeresaSue

[@RealBradMiller]

Learn something new every day!!

[@sunitashastry5270]

Great video, Well explained a very important topic. It will help for you to cover why nonorganic fertilizers are not good for your soil

[@suehunter5024]

Huw, thank you for a brilliant run-down of what a healthy soil is. Not sure if youve already done it but could you give us some info on the tunnels behind you please? They look very smart.

[@nickthegardener.1120]

Hi Hew I've been adding bio char as well as compost to my beds👍👌💪🙏

[@HuwRichards]

Fantastic stuff!

[@Jeffipookins]

Too often growers are told that compost is a prerequisite for success. For 90% this quantity of compost is not realistic or the quality of compost brought in is detrimental to soil health. Thank you for recognizing this. There is far too much emphasis placed on bringing in compost. Raising the organic matter content of heavy clay soils can take a while.

[@ThatBritishHomestead]

Love your videos they are like arr

[@JaneDoe-ft8sz]

I mixed cheap store bought topsoil with sawdust in my 4in high raised beds in the fall and it's February and I have worms!! Soil is so rich.

[@barrybridgeford530]

My raised beds' soil PH has been dropping over the past few years from all my added compost. I'm going to add some dolomitic limestone in order to add some calcium & magnesium and to raise it's PH a bit. I'm also exploring a nominal addition of silicon dioxide (diatomaceous earth) so to add a bit of silica to the soil, to help reduce the impact of downy mildew on my squash and cucumber vines. Have you done (or will you do) a video on soil PH and amendments? Thanks.

[@JLE27]

Hi Huw, Thank you for all this information and sharing your experience. It’s very inspiring. Do you have one or more solutions to prevent cats from dropping in the vegetable garden while still allowing them to move around? PS: sorry for my english,i'm french😊

[@UkuleleBoy46]

Thanks for the great and helpful video! I've heard comfrey can take over a garden. Is this true, and how do I prevent this?

[@andrewhopkins7334]

Great video and very informative. I have a dumb question basically about the difference between compost and feeds such as manure. When should we use manure?I have tended to add chicken manure to my beds not sure I sould?

[@lofm6213]

I am a fan of biochar (permanent compost). Also, planting giant carrots in the ground and leaving them there for the worms to eat. It breaks up clay soils and put a large amount of organic material into the ground.

[@jennifersimmons1552]

Turnips and radishes too.

[@nancyrawson132]

Great information. Practical and useful. I have a question: I garden in my backyard in town, in Canada. Of necessity, our roads and sidewalks are salted several times most winters. Would you have a suggestion (or 2) for building soil health when there is salty run off in the spring?

[@jimerskineart]

Huw. Thanks for this. Which soil test kit would you recommend please?

[@savelinafilemoni8656]

Great info 👩‍💻👍 but do miss the showing, you doing so we know how or what of the show and tell part. Do you deal with rodents of any kind, like squirrels or any? I have holes everywhere and dont know how to get started with that. Any help or thoughts would be great! Thank you.

[@henrikolsen5]

The annual maintenance layer of compost, could/should that go on top of leafs left from autumn/winter still on the beds, or would you remove those first? Perhaps leaving them, gets distributing the new layer of compost too difficult to even out.

[@John-un9wb]

With your talking about the soil food web and fungi ... i am thinking you are using some form of compost tea ? Have you looked into this ? .. your videos are great !

[@jamesdivall64]

Hello Huw, great video's again, will your new book be available at Waterstones Aberystwyth?

[@CWorgen5732]

Huw, what are your thoughts on bio-available silica for plants? I just watched Gardening in Canada (Ashley) talk about it and I'm very intrigued. More specifically, perhaps, how one can make sure they have enough silica in their raised beds besides using a purchased supplement. Whether it's worth focusing on, or whether you just need to add some native soil to the beds.

[@lorriewatson7423]

Quick question: what is the best way to incorporate tree bark into my veggie raised beds? I base layer my compost with pine chips and manure from my chicken coop, dressed with lime to "sweeten" it. I use seasoned hardwood to heat my home, so I also get a lot of shed bark.

[@HuwRichards]

I would compost it first with chicken manure for at least a year and then use that mixture to top-dress the beds :)

[@chili.Hawaii]

Daaang that compost was BEA😢UTIFUL

[@markmcguinness953]

Have ordered your book Self-Sufficiency Garden, any chance it might be available before May 15th?.....I live in Maine and want to get my garden plan for 2024 started as quick as possible and want to use your book as a guide this year. Love your YT site.

[@ponytaclub5539]

Can you have a living soil in containers? I see a lot of advice that you need to fertilize containers a lot because there are no nutrients in them besides fertilizer, and that you don’t need to add organic matter to containers because there’s no much soil life to feed. It sounds weird to me. I grew veggie garden almost in 100% homemade compost in containers last year, I relied completely on the soil food web, I added no fertilizer, and I had a decent harvest. Please tell what would be the difference in maintaining soil health in container garden if any. P.S. Appreciate your hints for wet areas - hugging you from a slugs kingdom in Pennsylvania US wetlands 🤗

[@traceykenning1744]

So with your raised beds, do you remove some soil in order to add compost? Because wouldn't it overflow if you keep adding soil?

[@jawadad73]

"you've already lived 1/10th of 2024..." wow, great way to get my stress levels up Huw...

[@HuwRichards]

I'll get my scripts looked over by sensitivity readers next time sorry! 😉

[@jawadad73]

had to go to one of Dowdings' vids to relax again...on the other hand, did find enough scraps to get my free hoop on🌱@@HuwRichards

[@jf1274]

I have raspberries / blackberries in-ground. All mature 2-3 year old plants, all very large. Im going to put a raised bed in those places. (currently flat ground). I want to keep these plants. These beds would be for my raspberries / blackberries. I know theyre invasive. Can I just put the raised beds / dirt above them (4-5ft of each plant would still be above ground, it would bury the bottom 1ft)? Do I need to dig up all the plants / roots and replant them in the raised beds? Thanks!

[@FeniaMM]

🌏☀️♥️ #savesoil There is also Bokashi

[@jhaugh01]

Hi Huw, what about seaweed?

[@alijoyce1081]

Do you ever add blood fish and bonemeal?

[@alexstewart7652]

All growing starts and finishes with soil health

[@foxy7674.]

Hi,I am new to vegetable allotments.I live in Asturais,spain.I have clay soil,can you advise me what to do,

[@stephb1748]

How do you recommend spreading on compost around perennials? Do you cover them or just leave a hole where they are? Ex: rhubarb, sorrel, flowers that are dormant.

[@HuwRichards]

You can cover them lightly or best to just mulch thickly around each plant :)

[@dovinhgarden05]

Tuyệt vời

[@beckymartinez9926]

My raised beds are sitting on 100% sand so I’ve had to create my own soil the best I can.

[@jpennturner]

Hi, my garden has flooded four times this year, is it time to dig? Any advice welcomed

[@ohiogardener4019]

Because of perpetually damp, heavy clay soil, I went to 18" high raised beds that can maintain good soil health without always being wet.

[@anne-mariewileman7799]

Who would you go to for bulk organic compost whilst building your own compost

[@HuwRichards]

MD Recycling Cardigan

[@anne-mariewileman7799]

@@HuwRichards thank you

[@jasonsmith8167]

Will there be a digital version of the book?

[@HuwRichards]

It's on Kindle yes☺️

[@r3sistxwampa685]

Don't buy compost! Just ask around local gardencenters uf you can have theyr weasteplants. At least in my region they throw away whole plants with the soil on them. That makes for great compost.

[@rorydonovan7140]

I can’t take on the responsibility of looking after all those organisms. I think I’ll put mine up for adoption.

[@HuwRichards]

microbes4u.com

[@bankyankerdude]

Can I get the book in the US?

[@mariongeib821]

I pre ordered mine from Amazon.

[@bankyankerdude]

@@mariongeib821 thank you

[@lindseymarch7081]

Chop and drop?

[@dankeener3307]

If you cut something in the garden you let it there. Old leaves and branches from pruning. I do it in my whole yard. Now it looks more like a forest floor around my trees. This method saves time and energy. No need to carry it somewhere to decompose and then carry it back. The more you chop it up the quicker it decomposes like Huy did with the vegetable leaves in the garden. It’s like slow release fertilizer as it naturally breaks down.

[@cherylhowker1792]

Confused 😕 Good thing I use my worms to may better soil health- and understand it differently

[@HuwRichards]

Confused about what sorry?

[@cherylhowker1792]

@@HuwRichards about how it’s ment to be simple but I didn’t understand. I understand add compost but the starting bit was confusing to myself.

[@HuwRichards]

Sorry to hear that Cheryl! I recommend watching the video back in shorter sections on a slower speed. Or revisiting it again tomorrow🌿 I really have kept it as simple as possible

[@quantafitness6088]

No, we do not need to know about soil web and all that happens in a healthy soil. It is like human health. We need to know about the importance of physical activity, healthy food etc but we must not know the citric acid cycle. Just do what experienced gardeners say and all will be Good. 😊

[@dantapaws8395]

Sadly have had to unsubscribe from your channel. In recent months/years you've become more of a promoter rather than a gardener. Sad really, habe followed you for many years and enjoyed your videos when it was just about the growing and not about making the £££

[@HuwRichards]

Goodbye and farewell 👋 I wish you the best of luck with your growing season🌿

[@gagehindle210]

Why can’t someone monetize their knowledge? 95% of this video was just Huw giving great advise for home gardeners.

[@bob.fagg-bois657]

These days there is little need for books as the worlds largest library is at our fingertips.