There is definitely joy for many gardeners who work the soil. The smell of fresh soil excites even the weekend gardener. But with high fuel prices and families being crunched for time there is another alternative. How about a no-till garden? That's right you do not need to plow or till the soil for this garden planting. "How do I do this you asked?"

You start with vegetable transplants such as tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers or squash. Dig an 8- inch by 6-inch hole approximately 30-36 inches apart for these crops. Place the removed soil into a wheel barrow or basket. You can add two tablespoons of a complete fertilizer in each hole like 6-24-24. This will insure the plants get off to a good start. Next lay over the holes even the weeds and grass that is around the area a sheet of black plastic. Locate the hole and cut an X over the hole and place the transplant into it. Now fill the remainder of the hole with soil and lay the X cut plastic back around the planted plant. The result is a garden covered with black plastic which will need little if any weeding. The tomato maybe staked or allowed to vine. If you chose to allow them to vine, cover the plastic with some straw to reduce heat reflection from the sun.

This garden will require less attention but the results will still yield fresh vegetables. Plants can still be watered but the plastic will conserve moisture. So who needs to buy gas for their tiller not the no-till gardener?

This technique can even be used for seeded crops but the ground will have to be worked under the plastic. This practice will reduce weed pulling for the summer. You can plant seeds by making a slit into the plastic and then push the seeds into the soil. The newly emerging seeds will fill the slit and prevent most weed emergence through that opening.

Source: Ed Billingsley, County Extension Director, Williamson County and Interim County Extension Director, Jackson County, edb@uiuc.edu