If you want to plant your garden in May, you don't necessarily have to buy new soil. With a few tricks, the soil from the previous year can be prepared again.
Kassel – The merry month of May brings the first sunny days with summer temperatures and many bushes and trees are already spreading their scent. This makes many plant lovers want to beautify their balcony or garden. May is particularly suitable for this, because flowers and vegetables can already be sown. However, if there are still pots of soil from last year, one question often arises: Can the soil be used again?
In order to be able to use the soil from the previous year for fresh plants, it must be enriched. (Symbolic image) © Imago
Sustainable in the garden – with a few tricks, last year's soil can be recycled
To grow, plants need light and water, but also nutrients. These are pulled out of the soil by the plants, which is why the soil from the previous year is usually already used up. However, this is not necessarily a reason to have to buy new soil, because with a few tricks it can be recycled. The science magazine Geo recommends loosening the soil first and freeing it from old roots and root balls. Subsequently, the remaining soil is enriched. This can be done in different ways:
- The old soil can be mixed with fresh potting soil in a one-to-one ratio, this variant benefits from additional fertilization - for this you can use coffee grounds, for example.
- Compost can also be used to recycle stale soil. In this case, you mix the old soil with the compost in a ratio of one to three – for every three parts of soil, there is one part of compost.
- Biochar binds nutrients and is therefore suitable for making old soil nutrient-rich again. Depending on which product you buy, however, it must first be activated, but then four liters of biochar are enough to upgrade 100 liters of soil.
Sustainable in the garden – it is not always possible to recycle last year's soil
However, the soil from the previous year is not always easily usable. For example, if potting soil has been stored outside, there is a risk that it has been attacked by pests or fungi, informs the consumer magazine Ökotest. In this case, the old earth should be thrown away.
On the other hand, the situation is different if the used soil is crisscrossed by many roots. In this case, it can be composted, so it becomes nutrient-rich soil for the next year. (Kiba)
