What Do You Do After Tilling the Dirt?

Perform a Soil Test

• After tilling the soil, perform a soil test to determine the health of your soil, including its nutrients needs. You can purchase a soil test from a garden center or contact your local extension office for a low-cost soil analysis that's usually enexpensive. Most soil tests require you to take samples from several different areas of the soil. Mix the samples together and use a small sample for testing. The test can determine the pH of your soil and may recommend specific amendments to use.

Add Amendments

• After you have the soil test in hand, determine what amendments to add to your soil. You want to aim for a neutral pH. Apply lime for a low pH and sulfur to counteract a high pH. Most soils benefit from a 2-inch layer of compost, or more. The compost provides a wealth of nutrients to make any soil type healthier, and can help loosen the soil.

Re-Till the Dirt

• Once the amendments are added, re-till the soil to sufficiently add the amendments into the soil. Work down to a depth of at least 6 to 8 inches to completely incorporate the amendments. If the amendments are not completely mixed into the soil, they won't be as effective and may interfere with root growth.

Other Tips

• Smooth out the the top of the soil after tilling with a rake. Amendments may take several seasons to completely change the soil texture; give it time to see significant results. The National Gardening Association recommends adding a cover crop when the gardening season ends to help improve the soil's health; their recommendation for what cover crop to use varies by region. In the spring, you can till the crop back into the soil.