I would go ahead and plant the spot and use some fertilizer. Most likely, things will grow. Then, each year, add any amendments you have -- homemade compost, leaves, seaweed, cover crops, whatever is available free. The more organic matter, the better is my philosophy. Some of the most vigorous vegetables have been grown on top of compost piles.

Jim

Thanks I will do that! I have a raised garden bed, but man, I would love to try an in ground bed just to see what it is like, and if it is cheaper...

ez-
Did your soil test come with instructions on how to fix any deficiencies? Start there and then pile on the organics as Jim suggested. Nitrogen gets burned up quickly. i usually amend with organics between plantings and apply chicken manure or a dusting of blood meal as a side dressing once the plants are up and growing.

my raised bed was a gateway garden ; ) Some things still grow better in the raised beds but lots of other things that take up space grow just fine in the ground. What are you growing?

If you want to doit ORGANIc, amend your soil with cow/horse manure.
They are both rich enough in nitrogen, with steady slow release. Or you can add just nitrogen fertilizer (29-0-0)
or similar.

The soil test did come with instructions, but I lost the paper! I just remember that it had no nitrogen, that's terrible I know. (I cringe as I type that :) ) I am working on learning how to do things organic, but for now until I learn more I am willing to use the fake stuff, miracle grow and what not. I want to put my larger plants in ground, like my indeterminate tomatoes, snow peas, etc. If this works, I may tear up more ground and put more in....

I would not consider using 12-10-10 to be "amending" the soil. What high potency, concentrated fertilizers do is rapidly deplete the organic matter in the soil as well as lead to a buildup of salts to toxic levels. Exercise with care, because you are not "amending" you are "fertilizing".

Another idea - try planting peas and other legumes that fix nitrogen from the air. They won't mind the soil deficiency so much, and they will actually leave more nitrogen in the soil that it started with!

Related questions - I'm getting my garden started too. The soil pH is 7.0 - not bad, but I'd like to get it a bit lower.

From what I read, compost would be ideal, but where do I get it? Would leaf mulch work?

Will my neighbors hate me if I get manure? And are the "Timberline Composted manure" or steer manure from Home Depot/Lowe's sufficient, or is there a better source?

Thanks for the help! Feel free to steer me to a website that has the answers.

dcgrrrl1979 - don't worry about pH. Worrying about pH is a really common symptom of a problem that shouldn't really cause concern. Unless you pH is way off, or you need to make very specific and drastic alterations (for blueberries for instance), pH doesn't play as much of a factor as some would have you believe. [As an aside, the concern regarding pH is that some nutrients and minerals become unavailable to plants at some pH levels. However, unless your fertility levels are razor thin, this usually doesn't provide a problem].

Compost, where do you get it? Well, most landscape companies utilize a triple mix soil (that would be soil, compost and sand) so most of them will have a bulk source locally. Contact your garden centre and ask about bulk compost sources from them, or in the area. Local farmers (especially livestock farmers) will have manure that they can make available to you for a price. What you are looking for is composted manure or well aged/rotted manure. This manure will not have a manure smell, it will have more of a musty, sweet smell. Composted manure available in bags is an option, but poorly made compost is much more common than good compost. If you go the bagged compost route, get a range of types, i.e. steer, horse, sheep, mushroom, etc.

Leaf mulch: there is a qualitative difference between leaves spread out over the top of the soil and left to decay (i.e. leaf mulch), and leaves left to rot slowly in a pile (i.e. leaf mould). Leaf mould is the ideal; it is organic matter in an easily 'digested' form that worms and microbes go crazy for. It is the waste from this consumption that provides the nutrients for your vegetables. Leaf mulch, as it breaks down on the surface, ties up certain nutrients and makes them unavailable to the plants.

Leaf mould is wonderful stuff. You can make it by just piling up leaves. If the leaves are not chopped up it can take up to a couple of years for them to decompose. If you put them through a shredder/chipper or if you run over them with a rotary mower or if you use a mulching mower with a grass catcher, the leaves will decompose in less than a year. That's my experience anyway.

Some of us have been known to snag other people's leaves when they are put out by the road for collection. :-)

If you have a riding stable nearby, they will most likely be happy to have you haul away as much manure as possible at no charge. Manure is just a disposal problem for them. Manure layered in with the leaves in your compost pile will help the composting process.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with using moderate amounts of granular fertilizers along with as much compost as I can get my hands on. Compost amends the soil, providing for its long term health while granular fertilizer provides for immediate nutritional needs of your plants.

Jim