Two of the simplest soil-amendment practices are sheet composting and green manure, prime techniques for those of you who lack the space or the willingness to maintain a conventional compost pile.
Sheet composting is a method of spreading undecomposed organic matter over the soil and allowing it to compost where it sits, rather than piling it up, waiting several weeks or months for it to decompose, then spreading the finished compost over the soil. Add shredded leaves or grass clippings or straw on top of your growing beds to a depth of about two inches (figure A). This practice is often referred to as no-till gardening, and the beauty of it is that the soil is never disturbed. What's more, the organic matter serves as a soil amendment and a mulch, and you save a lot of time and effort. As one crop is harvested, simply add another two-inch layer of organic matter and plant again. In only a few seasons, your soil will be incredibly rich and full of biological activity.
Another form of sheet composting is similar to methods developed by ancient cultures, notably Native Americans. Dig a shallow trench--six to eight inches deep--down the length of your garden bed. Fill the trench roughly halfway with whatever organic matter you have on hand, up to and including kitchen scraps (figure B), and like the Native Americans, even fish heads and various other fish parts. Then cover the trench with soil and plant whatever you want to grow on either side of the trench.
Although this method works great, it does have one drawback: Rotting fish parts may attract a few of our four-legged friends--cats, dogs, raccoons and rodents. If you have such animals around your garden, skip the fish and stick with nonanimal sources of organic matter.
My favorite form of sheet composting is one that I've developed over the years using the most wasted space in any garden: the paths between rows or between raised beds. Throughout the year, I add a thick layer of shredded leaves, grass clippings and hay or straw, sometimes alone, sometimes in combination, down the length of each of my vegetable-garden paths (figure C). Then I sprinkle a cup or two of high-nitrogen fertilizer--like blood meal or cottonseed meal--water well and basically leave everything alone for several weeks.
Occasionally, I'll turn the pile to make sure it gets plenty of oxygen, which hastens decomposition. Once it's rotted sufficiently, I scoop it on top of my growing beds and start the process all over again. In addition to providing the soil with a dynamite source of compost organic matter, this practice also enables me to walk on my paths without getting my shoes all muddy, and it prevents soil-borne diseases from splashing onto nearby plants when it rains or when I water.
If you don't have a compost pile, don't have access to animal manures and don't really want to take the time to sheet compost, then try growing a green manure crop to improve your soil. A green manure crop, sometimes called a cover crop, is merely a plant that's grown for use as a soil amendment. Last year I prepared a bed by removing the sod and building a raised-bed form of treated two-by-eights. I then loosened the subsoil, filled the bed with compost and last fall sowed both winter rye and Austrian peas, both of which are annual green manure crops capable of surviving harsh winters. Both crops came up within a week or so and continued to grow during the fall and winter. Now I'll simply incorporate them into the soil by turning it with a pitchfork--yes, you could also use a Rototiller--and let them sit there for about three weeks to decompose.
It's important to let the green manure rot a while before planting, because certain green manure crops such as rye release chemicals as they decompose that may inhibit seed germination. If you were to plant immediately after working the rye into the soil, you might wind up with a crop failure. In time, your green manure crop will increase your soil's organic matter content, improve its drainage and stimulate all kinds of biological activity.
Which plants make good green manures? Some are annuals, some are perennials, some are legumes which provide the most amount of nitrogen to the soil, and some aren't, and some are best sown in the spring, others in summer, still others in early fall. Most are available from feed stores, nurseries or from catalogs, and all are easy to plant.
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