The most important thing you can do, in my opinion, to grow a healthy, disease and pest-free garden is to build your soil. Therefore, the most important thing you can do to keep your garden pesticide and chemical fertilizer free is build your soil. And unfortunately, rototillers destroy soil rather than build it.
Soil is amazing and reflects the complexity of its Creator. It is so much more than weathered rock. Healthy soil also contains the decaying remains of dead plants and soil organisms, air, water and living organisms.
It is these living organisms in particular that bring health to your soil and are destroyed by rototilling. It is said that a teaspoon of soil can contain billions of organisms!
These organisms include fungi, bacteria, earthworms and anthropods. Listen to some of what these organisms do for your soil:
- they fix nitrogen from the atmosphere so that your plants can now use it
- they aerate the soil
- they break down toxins
- they suppress soil-borne diseases
- they decompose organic matter
- and some fungus even form symbiotic relationships with plant roots where each benefit from the other.
Ironically, we till to break up compacted soil, and in the end we compact it by tilling. Rototillers finely grind the soil killing the living organisms that are vital to soil health.
Because the particles are so fine, aeration is diminished and soil structure is destroyed. The nutrient content of the soil is now compromised making fertilization necessary.
Plants will be less healthy making them more prone to disease and pests. You can see how this downward spiral would make growing a garden organically more difficult.
If you are clearing a large area for a new garden and find it necessary to use a rototiller, try to make this the one and only time. Hand digging is preferred; although it may disrupt the soil organisms, it does not destroy them.
I prefer no dig methods of gardening such as lasagna gardening. This is a wonderful way to build a garden that builds soil, and eliminates the back breaking task of digging a garden.
To learn how to build a garden that builds healthy soil, be sure to check out my eBook The Art of Gardening: Building Your Soil.
You really can become a better gardener, and you really can grow healthy, nourishing produce. It’s all about the soil! Click here to buy now.
Another good resource is Healthy Soils for Sustainable Gardens, a Brooklyn Botanical Garden Guide edited by Niall Dunne. Also recommended is Lasagna Gardening by Patricia Lanza.
More Great Organic Gardening Posts
How to Grow, Harvest and Cure Garlic
The Ins and Outs of Using Manure in Your Garden
Growing Tomatoes: From Seed to Harvest
Using Wood Chip Mulch in a Vegetable Garden
Thank you for visiting Learning And Yearning. May "the LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." Num 6:24-26
Rosalyn says
Thanks for this post. I would like to practice no-till gardening as I am just starting really, with vegetable gardening, and will have to create a new gardening space this year. I am hoping to start a community garden in my neighbourhood and while I was hoping to establish raised beds, it might be cost-prohibitive and we’ll likely have regular garden patches formed from tilling up the soil. As we have a large number of areas to break up, I imagine we’ll have to use a rototiller as otherwise the work would be enormous. Do you think this is a bad way to start out? Should we just be hand-digging it?
learningandyearning says
First of all – Wow!!!!! What a fantastic goal. Your neighborhood will be blessed because of your efforts. I tried to be careful when I wrote this post to not make it a “thou shalt not” post. I wanted to share the best case scenario, but we all know that life is not that easy. Will you be the main decision maker for the garden, or will there be a board who makes decisions? Will each person have autonomy over their own plot, and to what extent? Is each person willing to hand dig his own plot, or better yet make a lasagna garden (see the link in my post)? Lasagna gardening can be done without the sides we normally think of as necessary in raised beds. If the decision is made that a rototiller needs to be used, my best recommendation is to do that the first year only. It would be wise for the size of the beds to be such that they can be worked without ever stepping into them so that the soil is not compacted. Then build on the beds each year with mulch, compost, rotted manure, etc. to build the soil. If you are careful about compaction and keep adding organic matter, you will not ever have to dig again. I look forward to following your journey!
Rosalyn says
I didn’t realize you had left a reply, sorry to take so long to check! Thanks very much! I am planning on forming a committee to make the decisions in the garden, but I have a feeling most of the responsibility will fall to me. I had read that you can do “raised bed” gardening without the sides, but I guess I hadn’t thought of doing it myself. It’s a good idea. I don’t like the idea of tramping down the rows and compacting the soil in the beds, and I do like the idea of long narrow beds, so I think your suggestion is a great one. I can just plan the beds the way I would have if I was going to build raised beds, and amend the soil accordingly, but not bother with the expensive sides. I’ll check out the lasagna gardening link you posted as I’ve read briefly about it but not in detail. As a conservation biologist, I love the idea of it. Our province is highly dependent on our agricultural industry and things like fall ploughing cause major issues with soil fertility, siltation of streams, wind-borne erosion, etc. So on a large scale some of the tilling practices really bother me–it only makes sense that I would try to avoid it in the garden we’re planning. Thanks so much for your advice! I’ll keep you posted on how it goes!
learningandyearning says
Rosalyn, I cannot wait to see your progress! After my first reply to you, I viewed a documentary that I think you will love. It’s called Back to Eden and it’s found here: http://backtoedenfilm.com/. I would like to implement this gardener’s ideas, although I think I would do it in raised beds. Either way, what an innovative person!
Rosalyn says
I just read a review for that documentary and I have it open in another tab to watch later this evening when my little ones go to bed! I’m looking forward to it. 🙂
learningandyearning says
Let me know what you think, ok?
Rosalyn says
OK I just came upstairs after finishing watching this documentary with my sister (who is not really into homesteading and I pretty much dragged her in to watch it with me) and we were both SO impressed. It’s funny because when I was working on forest inventory a couple of summers ago with our forestry department, part of my job was measuring woody debris (as an indicator of soil health) and I completely understood at the time why it was important to have it there, but I completely didn’t think of it in this way. I also liked the idea of mulching for weed suppression but didn’t really think past that. Now I SO wish I had asked the tree service guys for the wood chips that they mulched in my driveway last year when we had a tree cut down and others trimmed! I am hosting our first community garden committee meeting next week and will strongly suggest we take this approach. I also think that we will do it in raised beds. Thanks again for suggesting it. I am definitely a believer! And I’ve very much enjoyed our conversation about it!!
learningandyearning says
I’m glad you were inspired! Me, too. My husband, the lawn lover, wants to make our entire yard a garden now. Little by little. If you decide to go this way with the community garden will that delay planting for this year? I think the mulch will need to decompose for a while. What we have been doing for the past few years is similar, except that we use straw, leaves, compost, etc. Both methods are considered sheet composting. We have planted directly into our new “lasagna” beds with success. They do require more watering the first year because the water seems to run right out of them when new. I can’t wait for your new posts and to see the progress however your project goes!
Rosalyn says
I thought that if we put a thick layer of soil/compost under the wood chips, we’d still be able to plant. I am super excited about it! I’ll keep an eye on the water, I’m hoping to install a drip irrigation system, would that help? Thanks for all your advice and I’ll definitely keep you posted! And just in case I didn’t comment, I loved your lasagna gardening post and shared it with a friend who loved it as well. 🙂
learningandyearning says
Rosalyn, I don’t have any experience with drip irrigation and we ourselves are trying to make some decisions regarding it. I’m quite amazed by Paul’s garden in Back to Eden and how he only waters small plants. I think it may take years of building soil the way he does to get to that point. Another AMAZING farmer is Sepp Holzer in Austria. Are you familiar with him? Google him and watch his videos if you have a chance. He says that plants become dependent on the water we give them and then do not grow deep roots. I have a tendency to water every day in hot weather, but I understand that it is better to water very deeply only once a week. Some habits die hard, ya know?
minervasgardenwriter says
Well, your plants in the top picture certainly attest to the healthy soil in which they are growing, so well done! And I garden in raised beds, for vegetables, and I don’t use any wood for the sides–I just pile the dirt up where I want it, and it works fine. Of course, I garden in the Pacific Northwest, where there is a lot of clay in the soil, so don’t know if this would work in real sandy soil, but for me it works just fine.
minervasgardenwriter says
I’m having issues with leaving comments on wp.com blogs–here is a link to my blog: http://minervasgarden.com
learningandyearning says
Thanks for stopping by. Two of my 8 raised beds do not have sides – including the one in the photo above. Thanks for the link to your site. Funny, I tend to have problems commenting on blogger sites.
sandy says
I had no idea but I’ve not used one of those
machines.. I have always used my spade
to turn the soil… The first photo is amazing.
Thanks for sharing this info.
Nice garden
sandy
learningandyearning says
Thank you, Sandy, for the nice compliment!
Beth says
An interesting and informative post – literally ‘food for thought’. Thanks.
learningandyearning says
You’re comment is appreciated! Glad you found the post informative.
Tanya says
if that is your garden, i am jealous!
learningandyearning says
Lasagna gardening is my secret! http://learningandyearning.wordpress.com/2011/04/20/lasagna-gardening/. Thanks for visiting!
Lisa @ Two Bears Farm says
This is the first time I’ve heard of this. Very interesting. Ugh, I wish I had the time to hand dig mine, but with 3 boys I’m lucky just to get my seeds planted.
learningandyearning says
For a real time saver, try a no-till method like lasagna gardening. There is no digging at all, and almost no weeding!
Teresa says
This is really interesting. I have done strip-tilling for my garden before, but it is so labor intensive to not use the rototiller that I end up using it many times. We’ll see how this spring goes.
learningandyearning says
What I love about no-till gardening is that the labor is so minimal. No digging and virtually no weeding! I’m a lazy gardener at heart!
Nancy says
Now I just need to convince my hubby! He loves his tiller. 😉
learningandyearning says
HaHa! It’s a guy thing. My husband is not a tiller guy, but boy does he love his lawn! Little by little, we are turning it into garden, though.
Brian (@heyBJK) says
Beautiful flower bed, Susan! Gorgeous!
learningandyearning says
Why thank you! God’s creation always amazes!
Debbie says
First of all, your garden is beautiful! We also do not till our gardens, I just keep adding mulch and letting nature do her magic… when I plant I use a shovel. I too just learned of the Back to Eden Method of gardening and was instantly hooked! I’m starting a backyard flower farm enterprise this year comprised of 8 4×12 raised beds. The beds will be placed directly onto the lawn in a 30 by 25 foot area. The first layer will be cardboard to keep grass out of the beds. Then a layer of not entirely composed organic material, the next layer will be compost that has been scooped right out of our chicken run and the top layer will be chipped organic material to hold moisture and keep weeds at bay.. The beds will be 12 inches deep. i’ll be growing mostly cut flowers, herbs and possibly a few climbing beans on poses here and there for vertical interest in the garden. Thank you for sharing this post with the Farmgirls! I loved it!
learningandyearning says
Sometimes it’s hard to convince people that this is the easy way to garden, right? Hope your flower farm enterprise is a great success!
wendypchef says
Thanks for this. My soil is very rocky – I did the lasagna method, and when I grew carrots they were super stubby because the ground beneath wasn’t loose enough. I have an organic gardener coming to put in beds, and he advised rototilling, plus adding a lot of compost and worms to the top of them. So, I guess it comes down to knowing your soil. Once the initial beds are in we don’t anticipate needing to till ever again.
learningandyearning says
Hi! I had the same situation. My problem was that I didn’t make the lasagna beds deep enough. Your plan sounds good!
Lori Winter says
Fantastic post! My husband and I learned about the benefits of no-dig gardening (and the harmful aspects of tilling) while traveling in New Zealand working on permaculture farms. We’ve been hand digging a veggie garden in our new backyard now that we’re back home. Thanks for the concise explanation of why not tilling is the way to go!
learningandyearning says
Sounds like you had a fantastic experience. I’d love to hear some of what you learned.
Sheila says
I’ve started no-till gardening this year and it’s going really well! When I wanted to make new beds in the fall, I covered them with newspaper, cardboard, wood chips, and old leaves. Didn’t dig or do anything about the very thick, hard-to-kill grass. In the spring I lifted up the mulch and the ground beneath was grass-free, soft, and teeming with earthworms! I did find I had to remove the mulch and lightly cultivate with a hand rake in order to make a seed bed, but otherwise these beds have gotten no tilling at all! The beds I made in spring did need to be dug to get the sod off, but that’s all I did. They’re sitting under newspaper and leaves decomposing some more and waiting for tomato planting time. All I can say is, so far this is working much better than my compacted, hard-baked, earthworm-free beds of last year. We dug those by hand and broke up the soil as much as possible — only to find that they packed right back down with the first rain. So over the winter, I piled huge heaps of dead leaves on them and didn’t dig. Now the soil texture is SO much better, worms are living there, and I’m hopeful things will grow much better there this year.
learningandyearning says
WELL DONE!!!!!
My Journey With Parasites says
It’s a little late now, but we already tilled our garden. I might have to pile it with leaves this fall to keep the weeds from growing so much. I never thought of this.
learningandyearning says
Yes, you can certainly move forward this way. Covering your garden with mulch for the winter is always a good idea. If you make paths for walking and never walk where you plant, tilling becomes unnecessary, and gardening becomes easier!
Suburban Farm Girl says
I was fortunate, my oldest son made garden boxes for me to do raised gardening in. It was so nice not to have to dig or till the soil. Great article! Thanks!
Lynn
Susan says
Praise God for sons!!!
CE says
Thank you for this. This is our 4th year of gardening. My husband decided to invest in a rototiller last year thinking it would help our garden. At first I thought it was the excess compost we used, then the unusual heat, but as I read and read, I realized we had destroyed our soil. I let everything die and heal and rest for a few months. We started again in late Oct- Nov and now have a beautiful garden. We’re expanding and putting in more boxes where we had tilled. I can’t wait. This is something I wish I had known a year ago, but it was a hard lesson to learn.
Susan says
That’s part of life, CE. There are always lessons to learn, aren’t there? The point is that we remain learners and never think we’ve “arrived”.
Jenny says
I’m a huge fan of lasagna gardening and I loved this post; I chose this as one of the features for tomorrow’s hop. Have you seen the Back to Eden film? It is the same sort of concept. Thank you so much for sharing and hope to see you tomorrow evening.
http://blackfoxhomestead.com/the-homeacre-hop/the-homeacre-hop-10/
Susan says
Thanks, Jenny. Yes, I sure have seen Back to Eden! I even wrote a post about it.
Nan Sundgren says
Wow, Susan, I am so impressed with your site, blog, marketing (link work), and information. I can tell you really do live what you preach! I am out here on the short-mixed grass prairie (though in town, Hays, KS), and I had to take a minute to search for cover crops on your gardening site. I began a 4 page newsletter in August 2016 – knowing nothing about how to do it! Yet led by the Lord – the Prairie Growers Guide, to support the few (mostly NOT local) growers and producers selling at two farmers’ markets here. I want to see Hays surrounded by high tunnels / hoop houses (preferably regenerative growers and producers) and consumer knowledge of, and demand for nutritious, healthy food move from tiny to gigantic. If you knew our drought (though this year turned wet!) and water restrictions, high winds and fierce temperature extremes, you’d understand what a dream this is! I have felt led by the Lord to write my front page articles this year on our world’s critical ecological crises. So I’ve been learning about soil biology. [Please see my nascent website for Archive copies of the Guide.] In light of all that I’ve learned, I am experimenting for the first time this year with cover crops, and I have planted a few open areas in my “yardens” this year to them. [I am a permaculture wanna-be, so I inter-plant annuals between perennials, and I lost some big patches of mints this last winter to freaky temperature fluctuations / extremes and drought.] Since I will be 74 in October (and can not ‘garden with strength’ as I used to do), and I’d learned the major principles of regenerative farming (Disturb the soil as little as possible, or not at all.)I did not want to have to turn them over. So I am not going to. I have interplanted IN them, and I am feeling my way to how I will continue to keep cover crops in place as I go. It is an exciting journey. Enough for now. I just want to say to you, “Keep up your needful and great work!” I love your good information. Nan
Nan Sundgren says
Oh, and I meant to say too that I began this ‘ecological work in progress’ on my newly purchased 50′ X 125′ lot – with 1923 Bungalow – in 2009. Hard clay, alkaline soil with invasive Bermuda grass and little else growing was my starting point, and dozens of bottles of toxic insecticides and herbicides in the garage(from previous owner) and no pollinators in sight was my legacy for my gardens-to-be. I have changed all that with lasagna garden ‘islands’ over the years to shade out the Bermuda and then to plant into. I am a complete fan of lasagna gardening, and I now produce enough of my own biomass so that I do not have to ‘import’ any of it as I did in the beginning!
Susan Vinskofski says
Thanks for stopping by, Nan, and sharing your journey!