ANow that the weather is warming up, it is time to think about the garden spot and what it needs for another growing season.  After all, what you want is full-flavored, nutrient-rich produce.  That isn’t going to happen if your soil is depleted.  Not only that, but your plants will grow more slowly, giving the weeds a head start.  Weeds further deplete the soil of nutrients and moisture, and also shade the plants you are trying to grow.  Because of that, you will reap much smaller quantities of food.  So the first thing you will want to do is build up your soil as much as you can.

Soil can be tested to check the ph, balance of nutrients, and so forth.  It can give information on what nutrients are in short supply and what soil additives will help the most.  We haven’t done that, even though we know it would be a good idea.  Instead, we keep a good eye on our plants, and can see what the worst deficiencies are.  It’s true that having a soil test would be better, but this is at least a reasonable alternative.

Peat moss - Lightens heavy soils and adds nutrients.  But it can be pricey if you have a lot of space to cover.

Manure - This is probably the best thing to add to your garden.  There is a lot of information out there about the benefits and concerns about the manure from different animals.  As a general rule, chicken manure is very “hot”, meaning very high in nitrogen.  Spread it thinly.