#1. I was reading, but should have been practicing what I was reading a long time ago! When I decided to switch to raised beds at the end of last season I tilled, dug, and shaped a couple areas with no real plan. Once I shaped the beds how I wanted I covered them with a few layers of news paper and then covered that with just a little wood chips, and then covered everything with hay. When I was digging this area up today to finish my garden, I noticed that there were a ridiculous amount more worms in this area. And that's after only about 3 or 4 months! And not only that, but the soil was much much healthier looking. Needless to say this settled the decision of how I will top my beds this year! Newspaper and hay all the way!
#2. Blood meal stinks. Literally. I thought it may be a good idea to add a bit to a bottle of water and let it dissolve and then water my seedlings with it once they have gotten a few true leaves. Well the first problem is it doesn't dissolve that quickly. The second issue is that it clogs up a spray bottle with a quickness. And thirdly, it STINKS! Once it has dissolved a good bit, It smells just like a dead rotting carcass. I will not be doing that again.
lessons learned!
