You’ve planted. Now you have to maintain – but “maintain” doesn’t mean the endless cycle of watering, fertilizing, and spraying that most gardeners accept as normal.
Chapter 20 redefines garden care for the sustainable landscaper. Owen Dell’s approach is proactive, not reactive.
Weeding is inevitable, but you can make it easier. Hand‑pull annual weeds when they’re small – a few minutes every week beats hours once a month. For perennial weeds (bindweed, quackgrass), dig out the entire root system. Dell recommends a hori‑hori knife (a Japanese weeding tool) as the best $25 you’ll spend.
Mulching is your best friend. Maintain a 2‑3 inch layer of organic mulch (wood chips, leaf mold, or compost) over all bare soil. Mulch suppresses weeds, retains moisture, moderates soil temperature, and feeds soil life. Replenish once or twice a year.
Fertilizing is rarely needed in a sustainable landscape. If you built healthy soil with compost, plants will get what they need. If a plant looks sickly yellow, test your soil first – the problem may be pH or drainage, not nutrients. When you do fertilize, use organic options: compost tea, fish emulsion, or slow‑release rock phosphate.
Pruning is an art. Remove dead, diseased, or crossing branches. Never “top” trees (cutting main leaders) – it creates weak, dangerous regrowth. Prune flowering shrubs right after they bloom, not before.
Cleanup – leave fallen leaves where they lie? Mostly yes. Leaves provide habitat for insects and slowly decompose into free fertilizer. Rake only from paths and lawns. Leave them under trees and shrubs.
Dell’s philosophy: “Observe more, do less.” A sustainable garden is a living system. Your job is to guide it, not control it.
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