Garden Help

[fuzzyred]

So, my dad recently helped me dig a new patch in my garden, and I planted a rose bush in there. It was a Valentine's gift from my mom and spent a couple months in the house. Part of it is green and healthy, but a lot of the stems are brown and dead looking. I don't know what to do to save it. Do I leave the dead parts there? Or do I trim them down the ground in hopes of making the healthy parts stronger? I don't do much gardening, and I'm sure sure how to keep roses healthy, so any advice is greatly appreciated.

Comments

[wyld_dandelyon]

Autumn leaves that have overwintered as mulch melt into compost (in a pit or in situ) pretty quickly, especially if mixed with some green leaves. Be careful not to put whole weeds into the ground like that, of course. You can also add ash if your campfire was all untreated wood.

I do those things purposefully but haphazardly. It is possible to research what nutrients each of those things provide, test the soil, and amend with a more scientific outlook.

Oh, and if you're in the city or near a big road, bone meal is an amendment that can bind to lead and make it less available to the plants growing in a plot, so long as the lead isn't too high. Well, it will bind if the lead content is too high, but not enough. I lucked into a lead testing and amending study associated with a nearby college, and was happily told that the lead content of my garden area isn't too high for food gardening. The alternate plan would have been to seal off the existing dirt and build raised beds over it and buy soil. I was glad not to have to do that!

[fuzzyred]

>>Autumn leaves that have overwintered as mulch melt into compost (in a pit or in situ) pretty quickly, especially if mixed with some green leaves. Be careful not to put whole weeds into the ground like that, of course. You can also add ash if your campfire was all untreated wood.<<

This is excellent information to have, thank you!

>>Oh, and if you're in the city or near a big road, bone meal is an amendment that can bind to lead and make it less available to the plants growing in a plot, so long as the lead isn't too high.<<

This is also extremely fascinating, though I don't believe I have a lead problem in my area. (Although I'm not certain. There might be one.)

>>Oh, and if you're in the city or near a big road, bone meal is an amendment that can bind to lead and make it less available to the plants growing in a plot, so long as the lead isn't too high.<<

Yay for being able to plant food directly into the ground!