How To Revitalising Your Soil

Rest the ground and feed it for next year, says Ruth

- Ruth Hayes

Like a marathon runner crossing the finishing line, your garden soil needs sustaining after a long summer of growing, and autumn is the perfect time to do so.

There are several ways to revitalise soil after a busy summer. You can feed it with a general-purpose fertiliser, though this is an expensive option, sow it with green manures, dig in lots of well-rotted manure or cover cleared ground with a generous layer of compost.

I tend to favour using green manures and mulching using homemade compost that is a combination of green kitchen peelings and well-mixed garden waste including grass cuttings, chopped prunings and other cuttings.

Spread over the borders and around perennials now, it will break down through winter and be dragged under by worms, feeding soil and nurturing the plant roots as well.

As we have thin, chalky soil, the manure will also give it more body and help it retain water, reducing the risk of nutrients being washed away in heavy winter rains.