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10 | The Tribune | Weekend Friday, September 10, 2021 gardening Rake and scrape

Imagine walking through the garden of lore, the garden utopia of dreams, and being part of a balanced and healthy world where all creatures are thriving, and all natural processes are taking place without human disruption.

When we get out of the city island of New Providence into our incredible chain of islands, one is reminded that life is far simpler than we choose to make it most of the time in the hamster wheel of city living. We can slow down and absorb the natural wonders of life and we can forget the endless tick of time and be present in a place of peace and serenity. Hold on though, we can also create this in our own backyards!

Although we humans have a particular way of disturbing the natural balance of the world around us with our mechanical methods and noise pollution, just as we are capable of sustaining places of peace and beauty where the natural world flourishes as it has been doing since the dawn of time. You may be aware of my dislike of lawn grass by now, even though in limited settings it is beautiful. Another peeve that grinds my gears is the excessive use of a rake. Such a simple tool when in the hands of someone who wishes to look busy is a destructive one. It’s all about the topsoil. The Dust Bowl of the American Depression of years past is slowly being recreated as farmland, is overused and scraped away, as much as it is blown away by the winds or washed away by floods. It is more than the natural cycles of the earth can sustain. The person on the rake is the guilty party in today’s discussion.

I deal with a lovely property in Eleuthera, and no matter what, I cannot get it through the head of the person responsible for the workers to stop raking and scraping everything away. The damage being done is that a large area of the property is consistently being raked to keep it free of leaf debris, but the person responsible does not realize or recognise that they are doing more harm than good to that garden bed. What is left on a weekly basis is consistently depleted amounts of topsoil, and nothing but a shallow sandy base that to some may look good, but it is a dead piece of ground. Dead. There is no life in it, nutrients are not being placed back into the soils, there is no debris for wildlife to shelter in or to consume and put back into the ground, the roots of the plant material is laid bare to the air and the sun, and the ground is infertile and depleted. This is destructive. This is not regenerative or beneficial. The plan is to replant the area with material that will cover the entire area and discourage the rake and scrape. I will add limited nutrients, and I will mulch the area heavily to allow decomposition and regeneration of the soil health. When leaf debris is left on the ground, it gives back to the ground.

The natural process of decomposition and regeneration will be sustained, the birds, the bees, the butterflies (and caterpillars!), the lizards and the earthworms will have a place to carry out their favours to us all.

Put down the rake, create a compost heap, use mulch, and let leaf debris remain to encourage the natural processes that plant material and creatures need to thrive. Now, it is getting to that time of year where gardeners are getting antsy and seeking to replant vegetable gardens. While for me it is a bit early yet, there are the go-hards who are well ahead of it and already tending to their veggie patch. I will be transplanting my first batches of vegetable plants in the next week or so. Now is the time to get into the garden and to clean up the veggie patch, turn the weeds back into the soil, and cover the ground with a groundcover fabric to sterilize it from weed seed prior to replanting. If you prefer growing in containers, then now is the time to prepare them. You may need to add some fresh potting media, or maybe turn the compost pile one more time before adding it to containers or to the garden patch. The veggie growing season is fast approaching and every week that we delay is another week without those gorgeous homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers! It is still a bit hot, so some shade is likely a benefit for the next several weeks. Use the shade of trees or set up a small area with shade cloth to help keep things a slight bit cooler until the nighttime temperatures start dipping a bit. As always, I wish you happy gardening! Put down the rake.

PUT down the rake, create compost heaps

• Adam Boorman is the nursery manager at the Fox Hill Nursery. You can contact him with any questions you may have, or topics you would like to see discussed, at gardening242@gmail.com.