Hey, Reader!
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I finally planted the remaining potatoes this week!

Rows of them, in what we in permaculture call Zone 1, the area closest to your home, the kitchen garden.
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And every time we put something in the ground in April, I think about the invisible work happening beneath the surface, the thing no one talks about at the garden center, the thing that determines whether your plants thrive or just survive. The life in the soil. Unbeknownst to me for many years, the life in the soil actually changes what happens to the soil profile, what nutrients get distributed and even what the soil pH.
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When they get transplanted somewhere, they try to make their new home as accommodating as possible. That way they have a better chance at growing. They can amend it to some extent but not change it drastically and some plants and microbes may prefer certain types of soil.
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The pH of your soil controls what your plants can actually access, not what's in the soil, but what's available to the roots. You can amend until you're exhausted, add compost every season, do everything right, and still wonder why your tomatoes look sad or your blueberries won't produce. Often, the answer is sitting quietly in the pH.

Different plants want different things. Blueberries and potatoes like it acidic. Brassicas prefer it closer to neutral. Edible flowers, which I'm desperately trying to get into my beds right now, have their own preferences too.

We built a tool to help you see this clearly, at a glance, without needing a degree in soil science.

It maps common edible plants across the pH range so you can see exactly where your garden wants to be, and what might be getting in the way.

April is exactly the right moment to look at this. Before you plant. While you still can.

Grow abundantly,
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Nicky
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PS. We're opening the farm to visitors on May 16–17 for the Loudoun Spring Farm Tour. If you're in the DMV (that's DC, Maryland and VA) or even farther, come see these beds, and the soil, in person. Reserve your spot here.​