Improving your soil : a practical guide to soil management for the serious home gardener / Keith Reid.

Contents

Introduction:Seasons of the soil
1. Getting started : what type of soil do you have?
2. What is soil, and why is it important?
3. Different soils, different challenges
4. Soil texture : the bones of your soil
5. Soil structure : the skeleton of your soil
6. Soil water
7. Irrigation basics for gardens
8. A little bit of soil chemistry
9. How soil holds nutrients
10. Soil life and soil organic matter
11. Harnessing biological cycles for our benefit
12. Feeding your plants
13. Sustaining the land
Glossary of soil terms
Appendix I. Selected laboratories for testing garden soils
Appendix II. Agricultural and horticultural extension resources
Appendix III. Chemical symbols and formulas.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Intended for both small and medium-size gardens, Improving Your Soil reveals the steps to take to achieve the perfect soil base in which to grow plants. With directions on amending poor soil, modifying mediocre earth, aerating compacted topsoil and substrates, and testing pH levels, this book enables gardeners to nurture their plants and promote more abundant growth. The features of good soil include proper structure and nutrients that encourage healthy plant growth. Soil in "good tilth" is loamy, nutrient-rich and friable because it has an optimal mixture of sand, clay and organic matter that prevents severe compaction. Improving Your Soil shows gardeners how to improve the soil in their garden to encourage good seed bedding and a strong root system for proper nutrient disbursement throughout various soil depths.-- Source other than Library of Congress.