Newbie in Japan

[ConnWin]

Hi all, just introducing myself on here!
I’m a Brit living in Kyoto, Japan.
Been gardening on my balcony for 5 years with varying success, and started an allotment last year, also to varying success).
Next week I’ll be moving to a house (still renting!) which will have a small amount of garden border space and will include access to a not very cared for field which I’ll be taking over to some as under undecided amount.
I’m mainly interested in growing veg, and have had good success with carrots. I’ve also grown broccoli, cabbage, parsnips, beetroot, kale, onions, garlic. All to varying success.
I’m hoping to get a lot more success next year but I’m unsure on how much space I’ll have so hard to really plan.
Plus I think the soil has been really abused (either from years of sprays, and/or years of multiple digging and tilling…it looks like really dry sand!).
I look forward to learning a lot from everyone here ^_^

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

Welcome to the forum @ConnWin ! That's a fair ways away from the home country.

That sounds like you've got an amazing future ahead of you. Any soil can be amended. You could potentially get some soil tests done (including, but not limited by PH, nitrogen, potash). This could give you a headstart on understanding your soil.
Sandy soil can be amended too. A good lot of fertiliser and compost can make a world of change. Plus, some plants prefer loose sandy soil; like carrots, radishes, asparagus, garlic and much more.
Another option are raised beds. These can significantly vary in height, to being an ankle-height border to waist-high. Raised beds allow you to start with a layer of good soil on top of soil that might need amending. This could give you a headstart by allowing you to grow some plants, whilst you slowly work your way to improving the lot.

Don't forget! In the meantime you could continue as you are. I have land to my disposal, but it needs work. So currently I only have a potted garden on the patio and in front of it. This allows me to move the plants as needed, and saves my back trying to work the ground. I'm planning on putting raised beds in, so I don't need to do too much to the ground below, other than maybe de-weeding it a little bit.

Once you are able to, feel free to share pictures. Sometimes this can really help out as well

I also recommend you watch this video by Mark:

 

[KIGardening]

Welcome to the forum @ConnWin. We are happy to help with you garden path. Start a thread and show photos of your soil so we can have a good peek in what your dealing with.

 

[ConnWin]

Sorry to the late reply.
It’s been a busy few weeks what with moving.
I’ll get some photos up over the next few days.

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

That's perfectly fine @ConnWin . We're here whenever you have some spare time

I look forward to your updates!

 

[ConnWin]

So this is the field I’m starting on.
for now I only have access to a small section then over the next few months it’s going to open up more.
So far I’ve cut back all the weeds and have made a little section for some seedlings I already had growing for a while in small pots.
Some broccoli and Chinese cabbage. I also sprinkled some lettuce and spinach seeds in to hopefully get some more stuff growing.
I put some cardboard down, put some year old leaves on top, some old potting soil over that, then some store bought compost on top of that to layer everything up.

Now I need to figure out a way to get as much soil/compost as possible for as cheap as possible.
I don’t really want to dig everything up, and currently done have the means to start raised beds (primarily a problem of filling them up, easier to mulch over with soil and compost directly for now I think).
I’ll take some more photos of the soil directly on Wednesday.

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

Looks like the soil is indeed quite depleted of nutrients. The little patch you do have looks really good! Sometimes a good start is all you need to get going. The soil can be amended over time.

As for filling raised beds, have you seen Mark's videos on the hugelkultur method? If not I'm happy to share a few links. It can be a cheap way to get started, and you can top it up over time as the material naturally composts down over months/years.
In the far back it looks like you got a large patch of pumpkins (or similar). Did you plant those yourself as well?

 

[ConnWin]

Yeah I figured the soil was bad. Unfortunately a lot of land for gardening/farming in Japan seems to be awful in my experience.

I’ve seen the hugelkultur video, but I just don’t have access to much material right now. I’m running on a budget as it is so having to buy/make stuff to fill it up is going to be a bit much for the time being.

The stuff at the back isn’t mine. But once they’ve been harvested (I believe they are some kind of courgette/zucchini), I will be given that plot of land as well.

I’m planning on making a load of compost from all the weeds and leaves and leftover plants etc.
need to source some pallets but think I can do that for free in the next couple of weeks.

Going to try and plant some garlic cloves, and possible kale seedlings I’ve had going for a month or 2 from my mini greenhouse.

I just need more soil/compost.

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

A lot of things can be used to make your own compost. A lot of people use loving their kitchen scraps and items that are no longer suitable to consumption. Just beware that using cooked meals might contain things that are harmful like sodium, which isn't good for the soil.

Once they rip up that patch, you could ask for the material and compost it down. The same can be done when you see people trimming their hedges, raking leaves, etc. There is a lot of organic waste that would, well, go to waste otherwise.

A lot of places often offer their used pallets up for free, as it saves them having to get them picked up. I'm not sure what they are made of in Japan, or if they have some sort of treatment. So do bear that in mind. Here in Australia they all have a code written on them, so they are easily recogniseable. Some companies/pallets might have treatments done on them that could be harmful to the garden, and in turn to the consumer. Please keep an eye out

Something to consider might be growing plants that provide nutrients to the soil. Green beans, for example, provide nitrogen. A good Google search term would be "green manure".

 

[ConnWin]

Yeah I’m definitely planning on getting all the “waste” material I can from the local area for composting.
Luckily in Japan everyone usually sweeps up their autumn leaves to just throw them away. I’m going to go around and ask if I can have them. That’ll be a super easy way to get stuff.

As for pallets I don’t know about treatment here but I’m sure that’ll be relatively easy to find out.
I don’t driver though so that’ll be the difficult part.

I’ve ordered a rake that’ll be delivered at the weekend, so my immediate plan is to try and cut back all the weeds in my current area, and then rake everything even as the ground currently is quite uneven.
That’ll give me a better look at the soil too.
Luckily I’ve got loads of cardboard boxes for covering to stop weeds as I’ve just recently loved house.
I just haven’t got the soil to go on top and can’t wait to compost everything down myself.

I’ll try to see if I can direct sow some garlic cloves into the current ground after I’ve raked it over.

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

Depending on your physical condition you could carry them, but it's very taxing on the body. Perhaps one of your neighbours has a pully cart that you could borrow? Or do you use a bicycle?

I reckon the rake is a good purchase, and will prove useful for years to come.
One thing people don't always realise is that things don't all need to be ready all at once. Work in sections, and build your way up over the next few months. And there are plants that still thrive even in "bad" soil. Though I think that growing plants classified as "green manure" could help you out a lot as well, and teach you about the land. Supposedly "Japanese Oats" are a good green manure plant.

 

[Grandmother Goose]

My little 2c worth is work on 1 square metre at a time (or 2, or 5, depending on your fitness level, time, and resources). Don't try to do too much all at once. Create one small garden bed. Instead of making a compost pile and waiting for it all to break down to add to the garden bed, compost it in the garden bed. Dig it in as deep as you can, at least 30cm deep, preferably churn up and dig in organic matter up to 60cm deep if you can. Once you have enough stuff dug into it to break down, cover it with mulch. Whilst you're waiting for that little garden bed to compost down, start digging organic matter into a second small garden bed. Repeat until you have 4 small garden beds to cycle and rotate crops between. Once you've got that set up, whilst you're waiting for it all to be safe to plant in as it breaks down the organics and cools down, work on all your non-garden bed sections. Lay out your paths, composting area, water tanks or ponds if you're going to have any, potting area, seating areas, all the stuff that isn't garden bed. Get that sorted out whilst you collect more organic matter and compost it. By the time you've got all that done, you'll have 4 garden beds ready to plant in, and will have collected and made enough compost to start making the garden beds in the rest of the yard.

 

[ConnWin]

So I would have done something like that however I think, unfortunately I’m going to have to dig to begin with.
Firstly the soil is quite compacted. However underneath it does look a bit better than I initially thought.
Secondly it is fully of unbelievable long, thick, chunky, gnarly looking roots!
I really think I’m going to need to dig as much of those out as possible, else I’ll just be constantly fighting them stopping them from strangling my stuff!
The rate was definitely worth the investment though, I cut up and pulled up as much of the weeds as possible from this area which involved a bit of digging and metres in metres of roots. Put the cardboard down and weigh it down, don’t have any soil or compost to put on top yet though, will possibly get some in the next few days.

Saw some neighbours cutting/pruning some trees of their leaves and tidying up someone else’s garden area, so also ask them for all of the cuttings to make compost

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

With the soil dug up, it doesn't look as bad as I at first thought. I reckon with a little bit of effort and compost, it'll be good in no-time.

Does anyone have animals near you? Be it chickens, goats, pigs, cows. Anything. You could ask for the manure and dig it into the soil as well.

 

[ConnWin]

Unfortunately no.
Although it looks like I’m in a rural area I’m actually in Kyoto city. So never even seen chickens or cows here unfortunately.
But yeah, I’m happy it’s not as bad as I thought.

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

That's fair enough. Grass clippings and the likes might be your best bet, especially if you don't drive.
What modes of transport do you generally use? Do you use a bicycle? Because you cut put racks on a bicycle, or look in to getting a cart to pull behind it. That'd allow you to go greater distances and pick up more/better materials. You would be surprised at the things I've managed to move on a bicycle

I figured also, that since someone else is able to grow some kind of squash mere meters from where you grow, it can't be too bad. Yes, it still needs work. It definitely looks like it needs improving on. Whether it's compost, fertiliser, organic waste, and the likes. But it's not "dead" soil.
I honestly am very positive about the grounds' future.

 

[Scottish_Maiden]

Unfortunately, there is no getting around the fact you will need to dig. Your soil looks sandy with a bit of clay, fairly sterile. Cardboard and grass clippings/leaves, alone, aren't going to rectify that problem. You need to nurture earthworms, soil microbes, and beneficial insects. I suggest you start a system of militantly composting your kitchen scraps, plus whatever scraps and organic matter you can scavenge from supportive neighbors. There are two methods of composting -- a regular pile which you turn regularly and water, which can begin to break down fairly quickly if you are diligent about how you mix it up, and the "lasagna" method where you dig things right into your soil and plant on top of it. Each method has pros and cons.

Invest in a full-spectrum soil test so you aren't dumping money into building nutrients that you don't need, while neglecting nutrients that you DO need. Test both macro-nutrients, soil acidity, and micronutrients. And then let "Mister Google" be your research buddy as you use keywords such as "how do I increase my soil's __________ levels using organic matter?" or "natural sources of XXX for the garden."

Once per week, I walk my dog down to a fairly close beach, and pick up seaweed and seashells to carry back and put into my compost pile. I needed calcium and some obscure micronutrients which those organic materials add for free. I've also started crushing and burying my chicken bones after making bone broth.

I also suggest you research "compost teas" as the weeds which spring up in your deficient soil are often plants which self-produce the very nutrients which your soil is deficient in (which is how they survive in deficient soil). Dig them up. Chop them into pieces. Put them in a plastic bucket with a lid. Fill with water. And let it ROT until it is stinky like a swamp. Then take it one stinky cup at a time and use it as liquid fertilizer. Don't do this with big knobby roots, but thin-roots, stems and leaves all make great compost tea.

 

[ConnWin]

I could do that with a bike however this bit of land is at the top of a small mountain, so getting up by bike is hard enough as it is! Ahah.
I have some friends who drive and one has a small truck so might be able to wrangle them into helping.

As for the soil, now you mention it, the few hours I was pulling up the weed roots yesterday, I didn’t see a single worm of any kind, nor any earthy bug of any kind to be honest. So that’s not a great sign in my opinion.
The squash over the back seems to be growing well but I have no idea how long it’s been growing or what the soil is like underneath.
My next plan is to dig up patches to pull out as much weed root material as possible, then making beds on top, with material both under and over the layer of cardboard to both block more weeds, and hopefully improve the soil, and to get growing faster in soil/compost on top.

 

[Mandy Onderwater]

I'd definitely recommend digging in kitchen scraps. I've found that banana peels and egg shells are VERY popular with worms in my garden. I hear from others that coffee ground do well too, plus they can repel certain pests.

 

[Scottish_Maiden]

There are all kinds of things you can dig into your soil to gradually increase soil fertility. I'm kind of militant about scavenging every possible compostable bit of organic matter to toss into my compost pile. In a timeline of "this spring, I'm going to plant X" it may feel a bit overwhelming -- its going to take TIME to cultivate soil critters and microbes -- but if you develop the habit of picking up bits and snippets of whatever you can get your hands on and then sticking it in your garden every day, over a period of several years you can do quite a bit of soil improvement for a very low cost.

I keep a "just in case" bag folded into the pocket of every sweatshirt and pair of jeans that I tend to throw on to go for my thrice-daily dog walk, and if I see something that I can forage for compost, it goes into the bag. Just one small ordinary plastic grocery bag. Just a couple of handfuls of "stuff." Every single day. Some seaweed. Some leaves. A couple of hands of grass clippings, wild nettles or borage. Some rotted bark. Not heavy. Not overly full. If I go for a longer walk (like my weekly seaweed/beach walk), I bring a backpack to shove the bag into. If you cultivate the habit of "a little bit every day", and have a small compost bin to easily throw it into your garden, you can accomplish quite a bit over a longer period of time.

Think backpack, not bicycle. Biking up a small mountain doesn't sound like a lot of fun. But a daily walk uphill to tend your garden and dump your kitchen scraps and "just in case" bag into your compost bin is good exercise and very mentally healthy. The best soil amendment is "farmer's feet in fields."