One of the first things you need to think about when starting a garden is what kind of soil are you going to use. The soil you use is going to be determined by the location of your garden and the type of plants you are growing. One of my favorite strategies for beginning a garden is called the Lasagna method.
The Lasagna method involves creating layers of different materials to grow you food in. It’s super effective if you want to be planting directly in the ground but are unable to till. It also allows for great discussions about compost and soil composition. This method works great for growing vegetables. For all these reasons, lasagna gardening is a great choice for school gardens. Here is a link to a website with more information on how you can create a lasagna garden.
For this garden project I want to be growing succulents. These plants need a lot of drainage since long exposure to water is damaging for them. I will also be growing in a small space. For these reasons I am not going to choice lasagna gardening this time. I have bought a premixed succulent and cactus soil. This soil is made up of potting mix and sand. Potting mix is a high nutrient soil that is great for seed starting and potted plants. Sand is able to drain very quickly. You can buy this soil premixed, or you can make it yourself by mixing potting mix and sand. Remember that if you are harvesting sand from the beach sustainable forging rules apply. I’ve filled my old fire pit with this soil and the next step is going to be gathering non-living garden features (like rocks) to add to the structure.
