Soils and vegetation have a reciprocal relationship. Fertile soil encourages plant growth by providing plants with nutrients, acting as a water holding tank, and serving as the substrate to which plants anchor their roots.

A soil surface devoid of any plant material.

Make It Mulch If you’re not sure what your future landscape plans may be, cover the bare soil with a 4-inch layer of mulch, such as shredded bark or wood chips. A layer of recycled cardboard under the mulch works nearly as well as landscape cloth and will slowly decompose to enrich the soil.

Heap any beds that will remain empty over winter with compost and cover them with an old blanket or cloth. This will moderate how much moisture seeps into the soil and reduces compaction from rainfall, so your soil retains its good structure.

Here are five ways to use the winter season to improve the soil in your organic garden.

1. Wait to cultivate.
2. Use winter mulch.
3. Grow winter cover crops.
4. Tolerate winter weeds.
5. Compost under cover.

One reason is that soil protects plant roots, animals, and microbes from freezing in the winter. If a lot of snow falls on the ground early in the winter, it can serve as a blanket for the soil underneath. Organic matter plays a role in insulating soil, holding in heat stored below ground during the warmer months.

Store for the winter. Store your tubs in any dry place like a shed, a garage, or a basement. We have a covered carport where all of our out-of-season garden supplies are stored — if you have a carport, be sure to store your items far enough under the eaves so nothing gets wet during inclement weather!

That potting soil is worn out because the peat moss has decomposed. That peat moss can decompose even if you never take it out of the bag. If your potting soil has been sitting in your shed since last year in an opened bag and it’s gotten wet, toss it. If it somehow stayed bone dry, it should be OK to use.

6 Ways to Reuse Old Potting Mix

1. Refresh Old Potting Mix with New Ingredients. You can add pre-soaked coir (coconut husk fibre which helps retain moisture).
2. Use Refreshed Potting Mix to Top up Other Pots.
3. Top Dress your Lawn.
4. Make a Raised Garden Bed.
5. Add to Your Compost.
6. Add to Clay Soils.

How Often to Replace the Soil. It really depends on the plant, says Myers. “Faster-growing houseplants like pothos and African violets will benefit from annual repotting [with fresh soil]. Slower-growing plants like cacti and sansevieria, or mother-in-law’s tongue, can be repotted every one-and-a-half to two years.”

It’s generally fine to reuse potting soil if whatever you were growing in it was healthy. But even if your plants seemed problem-free, or if you did notice pests or diseases popping up, it’s best to sterilize the mix before reusing in it to avoid infecting next year’s plants.

The easiest way to reuse old potting mix? Simply remove old plants from their containers, fluff up the soil and replant. If you’ve reused the same soil for several years or it’s developed a white surface crust, you may have to cut it with 50 percent new potting soil and/or apply fertilizer.

Grasp the plant by the stem lightly near the base of the plant, and shake it gently to remove any remaining excess soil. If the roots are badly bound, cut through the outer roots with a clean knife two to four times to loosen them.

four to five years

If I cut a root, will the tree die? Removing large tree roots can make the tree unstable or unhealthy later on. If large roots are removed, the tree may not be able to get enough nutrients and water. Also, don’t remove roots close or fused to the trunk since these are critical to the tree’s structure.

Once the tree has been cut, the roots cannot grow anymore because the leaves are necessary to provide the food to fuel root growth. The sprouts may be removed manually by cutting them just below the soil surface, digging to remove them and a piece of the root to which they are attached, or by use of herbicides.

Leaving A Tree Stump In The Ground If you leave a tree stump in the ground, and it’s roots, it will decay. It may take a decade or more, but eventually, it’ll decay. During that time, however, it becomes home to a number of pests, organisms, fungi, and even diseases.

Prevent further damage with these tips:

1. Install root barriers before planting trees. These barriers deflect roots deeper into the ground and away from foundations, pavement, plumbing, and more.
2. Cut the offending roots.
3. Cut down the entire tree and remove as much of the root system as possible.