Don't Walk In The Wet Garden

By Phran Novelli

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Quit stomping around in the mud. No fooling! In early spring, as things are thawing, snowmelt and rain leave our yards soggy and it's not good to be walking around in squishy soil.

I'm not worried about your shoes or boots, you can clean them later, but your garden soil and plants will have much more trouble recovering.

When you walk in soft, muddy plant beds, the weight of your footsteps seriously compacts the soil. That presses the oxygen out of it, which makes it hard for plants to breath. It suffocates their roots.

Compacting the soil also makes it harder for water to drain, which can cause rot. Soil compaction is a key reason why many plants - including lawns - don't thrive and it's not easy to fix, so it's better to prevent the problem.

So, no matter how much you're itching to get out there, stay out of garden beds while they're wet. Just wait until you can take a step without feeling or hearing a 'smoosh' before you start walking, weeding, or digging in your yard.