A Beginner's Guide: How to Prep Your Garden

Published May 7, 2020

New to gardening? Every expert starts somewhere. Levi Miller started in the garden as a 10-year-old boy, helping to spread compost. Now he is the manager of Keim’s Lawn and Garden Department. But not everyone grows up gardening. That’s why the staff in our Lawn and Garden Department have put together a few tips to set you up for gardening success.

A good place to start, is to test your soil. At Keim, you can find a Rapitest Soil Tester Kit, which will measure the pH, nitrogen, potash, and phosphorus in your soil.
“The food you grow is only as good as the soil you plant it in,” said Miller. The next step is to get the right additives. (Think of it like taking your vitamins.) If you want to raise the pH level of your garden, add lime. “Most things grow better in soil with a higher pH,” Miller said. Even if you don’t know exactly what you need, come to Keim and we’ll help you find what it takes to get your soil in tip, top shape.
Use compost. Dust to dust, right? If you make sure to feed yourself healthy food, doesn’t it also make sense to feed your soil the same? We’re not talking about a steak dinner. But potato peelings, eggshells, and dead leaves all break down to put the nutrients back in the soil. Or if you want a quicker fix, try spreading this Bull Country Compost on your garden and tell your soil bon appetite!
Till it. To make sure that the additives and compost are evenly distributed, you’ll want to till it before and after you add those nutrients to the soil. And not only does it look better tilled, it’s easier to weed and water. You can find a lot of tiller options at Keim, including brands like Makita, Milwaukee, and DeWalt. Come for a visit, and you can see them first-hand.

At Keim, we like to be humble. But we also like to share what we’ve learned from years and years of gardening. So be sure to stop in our store or give us a call. You can even look through our online catalog and place a phone order to have them delivered to your house. We’re happy to help your gardening needs.