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I just recently tore down a shed that had been in my backyard for the last 20-30 years. I would like to use that spot to build my garden (vegetables, herbs, etc). The problem is that a combination of animals have been using it as their home. We discovered skunk and opossum scat and nests, and it smells awful.

Any recommendations on how to prep the soil for a garden to be planted next year?

Niall C.
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Jacqueline Jones
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  • Would you consider raised beds? Then you could start with fresh soil of your own creation and not worry about whatever is in the soil down there. – That Idiot May 20 '15 at 13:41

1 Answers1

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Add horse, sheep, chicken, rabbit or whatever other sort of additional animal manure you can easily get in quantity, as well as lawn clippings, hay, and similar materials. That is, compost right over it.

You can also plant something like buckwheat now, cut it down before it sets seed (green manure) and till it in. Then plant something like rye or vetch to grow over the winter and be turned under in spring.

Depending on the lenght of your season, you may also have time to put daikon radish in to help loosen the soil - needs time to grow before it's winterkilled - large roots help break up the soil.

Ecnerwal
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