Hi, I have had a garden spot for the last 20 years in the same spot. I have been burying compost (kitchen veggie remains etc) there and seeing it disolve. There are worms in the garden. The last 5 years my tomatoes have been getting smaller and less plentiful. I suspect that the garden is missing something. does anyone have any suggeston?
Try some good general fertilizer such as blood and bone (bone meal|) or some of commercial animal manures available. We have dry cow and chicken here in large bags. Could you plant a green crop over winter and dig it in in spring? This of course might not be possible if winters are too cold. See ist www below seems there is a UBC thread on yr area. http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=9223 http://www.greenharvest.com.au/seeds/green_manure.html http://www.organicexchange.com.au/all/fcmmgm00.htm You might have to test the soil too to see if it is too acid or alkaline. Also make sure you rotate crops don't plant tomatos in same spot year after year. Liz
I'd say manure and blood-and-bone as well, and if you can bear to garden in containers for a year, planting for one summer in alfalfa or something similar and tilling in in the fall, will greatly help the garden area.
Have the plants checked for pests and diseases as well. Some (e.g. Potato Cyst Nematode Globodera, which also attacks tomatoes) can persist for several years in the soil.
Don't apply any additional nutrient sources without having some idea what may be needed. Choosing fertilizer without a soil test report or other indicator is a haphazard approach. You may add more of something that is already excessive or nearly so, as may be likely with phosphorus in particular, and not add enough of something that is deficient (commonly nitrogen in our region).
tomato takes a lot out of the soil. i never grow tomato two years in a row due to that (i have limited space for them and can only really put them in one spot). either take a break for a couple years or put them somewhere else for the next couple and give that spot some time to replenish itself.
As mentioned nitrogen is often limiting in our soils, especially for good veggie yields. My soil test showed very high natural levels of potassium, so that adding many manure based organic fertilizers would actually worsen my soil. Also calcium is usually deficient in this area (regardless of the pH). Only a soil test will definitely resolve these kind of questions, tho in a tiny garden you may wish to just guess and add things like others have suggested...the cost of a test may be more than makes sense on a very small scale...?
Compost, Compost, Compost!! Thick layers of hay, leaves raked up in fall, or anything like that, let it sit over winter 6 inches, or more, thick and till in come Spring. I had some really rotten, heavy clay soil where I wanted to put my veggie garden at the house I recently moved from (Hurricanes Rita & Ike pretty much forced us to move out of the house). For a couple of years I did that and then the soil was absolutely wonderful. Rich, easy to work and produced an abundance of veggies. Planting legumes (clover...) will help draw up & 'fix' the nitrogen in your soil. The info here about cover crops tilled in is good advice. Horse (well dried) or Rabbit manure is good stuff and high in nitrogen. Good luck with your soil. Sherry
