00:00:30 It was still winter when we moved out of the city into our new house, and I remember how

00:00:44 I used to stand staring out across the fields, waiting for spring to come.

00:00:50 Jim used to tease me.

00:00:51 He'd say, if it arrives while I'm at the office, be sure and phone me, darling.

00:00:57 But actually, he was just as impatient for winter to end as I was, because now, as soon

00:01:01 as the snow melted, for the very first time, we were going to have a garden of our own.

00:01:08 And what a garden.

00:01:10 I could see it already in my mind's eye.

00:01:14 Spirea?

00:01:16 Cool white lilies?

00:01:21 Small tulips nodding in the sun.

00:01:32 And iris that would outdo an orchid.

00:01:38 Spring must have arrived while I stood there dreaming.

00:01:41 All of a sudden, everywhere you looked, buds began to swell and burst open.

00:01:54 Leaves unfolded and lay on their backs, looking up at the sky.

00:02:04 Every wind carried the smell of damp earth and the wet bark of trees drenched by soft

00:02:09 spring rain.

00:02:12 Now came the moment we'd waited for so long.

00:02:20 Out we went, gay as larks, wearing what the well-dressed gardener should wear, and trying

00:02:25 not to look self-conscious in our new robes.

00:02:30 Ah, what bright new tools, and what bright shining hopes we had.

00:02:43 Brand new gloves over our tender city hands.

00:02:49 The first trial full of earth was like a ceremony, a solemn dedication.

00:02:59 This was our earth, our very own, more wonderful than any other soil.

00:03:05 Miraculous in the hand, our land.

00:03:16 We really felt sorry for them.

00:03:18 One look was all we needed to tell us that this charming young couple didn't know which

00:03:23 end of a bulb was up.

00:03:25 Thought we'd be good neighbors.

00:03:27 Tell them what they're up against.

00:03:30 Give them a little friendly advice.

00:03:39 I broke the bad news gently.

00:03:41 Folks, I said, you've got about the worst soil of anybody this side of the Mississippi.

00:03:47 It's so full of clay you could make bricks out of it.

00:03:50 And I ought to know.

00:03:52 I watched those bulldozers scrape it up when your house was built.

00:03:59 Then I tried to explain why plants have such a hard time in clay or problem soil.

00:04:07 If you could look below the surface, you'd see that the particles of clay lie overlapping

00:04:11 each other.

00:04:12 When water strikes them, the particles begin to absorb it as fast as they can.

00:04:17 But the water expands them, makes them press more and more tightly together until the surface

00:04:22 is sealed almost shut.

00:04:27 The water has a hard time getting down, and the seedlings can't come up.

00:04:32 When the water evaporates under the heat of the sun, the particles shrink back to their

00:04:37 original size, and the shrinking causes cracks in the soil.

00:04:42 Water is lost even more quickly, and the surface becomes caked and dry.

00:04:48 If you cultivate soil like this, it doesn't solve the problem.

00:04:53 Cultivation will break up any soil into tiny aggregates and make the soil fine and porous.

00:05:00 But when the water strikes these clay aggregates, they disintegrate.

00:05:04 They revert to their original structure, and the trouble begins all over again.

00:05:09 Oh, that's what your plants are up against, I told them, bad soil structure.

00:05:14 Well, sir, the young lady got a funny little good look on her face, and her voice quavered.

00:05:21 Thanks very much, she said, but I think it's just lovely soil, and off she went.

00:05:27 What can you do?

00:05:29 Some people have to find out the hard way.

00:05:37 We were defiant, now.

00:05:39 We were going to show our good neighbors the Harringtons that our soil was as good as theirs any day.

00:05:45 What if it was sort of sticky and hard to spade up?

00:05:52 You can't have a garden without hard work, and Jim never let out a whimper.

00:05:57 He was game right after the last blister.

00:06:11 Finally, the soil was ready.

00:06:14 Carefully, oh, so carefully, I laid out each row of the seed bed.

00:06:19 Just the proper depth, the way the book said.

00:06:23 I took a last look to make sure I hadn't made any mistakes.

00:06:30 Then, the big moment, in went the seeds that were to become such beautiful flowers.

00:06:49 Meanwhile, in spite of our nosy neighbors, Jim was having a wonderful time taking plants out of pots and putting them into the ground.

00:06:56 He had never done anything like this before, and he was amazed to find out how good he was at it.

00:07:20 The weeks went by.

00:07:22 Never had there been such a perfect spring.

00:07:25 Flowers by the million, blooming everywhere, except in our own garden.

00:07:30 Even our most promising plants had turned brown and sickly.

00:07:35 Still, we did have one prize bloom, a lovely, lonely, brave little dahlia that we'd grown from seed.

00:07:46 And as though nature resented even this small victory, up came a storm.

00:08:04 That's when we found out that rain can be either a blessing or a catastrophe, depending on what your soil is like.

00:08:13 For us, it was a catastrophe.

00:08:40 When the storm finally stopped, we went out to see what the damage was.

00:08:45 The rain had torn deep gashes in our soil.

00:08:52 It had flooded the plants and stayed there in muddy puddles.

00:08:57 We walked like a funeral procession through a swamp.

00:09:26 The final blow was the dahlia.

00:09:35 The storm didn't seem to have bothered Mrs. Harrington at all.

00:09:38 She was out picking flowers.

00:09:49 Imagine my consternation when I found out they were for me.

00:09:55 I knew she meant well, but I didn't want her flowers.

00:09:59 I wanted my own.

00:10:05 After the ruinous rain, the earth slowly dried.

00:10:10 It hardened and cracked.

00:10:21 By now, we were completely disheartened.

00:10:24 It was obvious that we just couldn't grow anything at all.

00:10:27 While our neighbors could have beanstalks right up to heaven if they wanted.

00:10:37 How did they do it?

00:10:39 Well, why not ask them?

00:10:44 So over we went to get the advice we should have taken in the first place.

00:11:01 Well, up they came, sort of right around the ears, and told us their tale of woe.

00:11:21 When they got all through, I said, well, folks, don't get discouraged.

00:11:25 It takes a lot of things to make a garden grow,

00:11:28 and one of the most important is the physical structure of the soil itself.

00:11:32 Here's something you ought to try.

00:11:34 A new chemical soil conditioner called Krillium, made by Monsanto.

00:11:40 It'll really do a job on that miserable soil of yours.

00:11:44 I wish we'd had it ten years ago when we first started our garden.

00:11:48 It would have saved us a lot of time and a lot of...

00:11:52 Let me show you how simply it works.

00:12:10 You just sprinkle a little on the turned up earth and mix it in.

00:12:17 Plants thrive in Krillium treated soil, and I'll tell you why.

00:12:21 When Krillium enters into clay soil, a very remarkable thing happens,

00:12:26 because Krillium is made up of molecules that have a very special character.

00:12:31 Each molecule of Krillium is electrically charged,

00:12:34 and each molecule exerts a powerful attractive force.

00:12:39 When the soil is cultivated, the Krillium molecules become mixed in with the soil aggregates,

00:12:45 and they immediately go to work.

00:12:48 Their electrical charges cause them to be attracted toward each soil aggregate,

00:12:53 and they fasten themselves into the soil particles,

00:12:56 entangle themselves, and bind the particles together.

00:13:06 This action goes on all through the soil,

00:13:09 and the small aggregates join together to make larger ones.

00:13:17 Now when water strikes the soil, instead of disintegrating,

00:13:20 the Krillium-bound soil aggregates hold their structure.

00:13:24 The water is able to penetrate the porous soil easily.

00:13:28 Some of it is absorbed and held by the aggregates.

00:13:31 The rest moves down to the subsoil level as it should.

00:13:36 Held in this way by the aggregates, the water is evenly distributed and available for plant use.

00:13:49 Because the Krillium-treated aggregates lie loosely against each other instead of caking together,

00:13:54 fresh air can move down between them, furnishing oxygen,

00:13:58 and the carbon dioxide has a chance to escape.

00:14:01 The soil is able to breathe.

00:14:18 I took a handful of Krillium-treated earth from my flowerbed,

00:14:21 and I told the young lady to pick up a handful from her side of the fence.

00:14:32 Now watch what happens when we water these two samples, I said.

00:14:39 The Krillium-treated soil stays crumbly and porous.

00:14:43 Even when I squeeze it, the aggregates don't disintegrate.

00:14:48 Your soil turns to sticky clay mud.

00:14:52 No wonder your plants couldn't grow in it.

00:15:01 It wasn't too late to start all over again, and this time we were going to do it right.

00:15:06 We got the Krillium and read the instructions that come inside the container.

00:15:17 We waited until the soil was neither too wet nor too dry,

00:15:21 and then we laid out our flowerbed and spaded the earth to a depth of about six inches.

00:15:26 Mr. Harrington told us that would give us plenty of room for root development.

00:15:39 We sprinkled on the Krillium.

00:15:42 Not much, just dusting it on evenly and lightly,

00:15:46 using the proper amount for the size of the seedbed.

00:15:51 Next step, we turned the Krillium under, mixing it well down into the soil.

00:15:57 Mr. Harrington was careful to explain that Krillium is not a fertilizer,

00:16:01 it's purely a soil conditioner.

00:16:03 You have to put in whatever else your soil needs in the way of enrichment.

00:16:11 So after we had added the fertilizer, we fined the earth,

00:16:15 breaking it up well and raked it down smooth,

00:16:18 so that the little seedlings wouldn't have to knock their tender heads

00:16:21 against any big clods on the way up to the surface.

00:16:30 And now it was ready for planting.

00:16:32 I put in lilies, because after all our disappointments,

00:16:36 we really did want something proud and spectacular to make up for it.

00:16:45 And we just got in under the wire with some hardy late annuals.

00:16:49 We'd have a lot to show before frost.

00:16:56 We watered the seedbed lightly to start the Krillium working.

00:17:00 After a few hours, we'd water it thoroughly again.

00:17:04 Mr. Harrington did a little experiment.

00:17:06 He turned the hose on the untreated soil, and it slaked right down into mud.

00:17:11 Now that I knew a little bit about it, I was appalled to think

00:17:14 how many beautiful flowers we had condemned to death in that clayey soil

00:17:18 before we knew about Krillium.

00:17:22 The treated soil stayed crumbly and porous,

00:17:25 and I knew it was that way, right down to the bottom of the bed.

00:17:35 When fall came, the kids were ready for a front lawn.

00:17:38 They sure needed it.

00:17:41 They'd never put in a lawn before, and they had some misgivings.

00:17:49 They had a problem, all right.

00:17:51 It was quite a slope, and erosion had already gotten a bad start in some spots.

00:17:57 If they had let it go, their topsoil would have gradually run right off down the street.

00:18:02 Here was a job for Krillium to help with.

00:18:10 It was too big a stretch to work by hand, so I advised them to use a rotary tiller.

00:18:15 The soil was stony and hard-packed, and it wasn't long before they had it broken up well.

00:18:43 After they'd raked the area smooth, I told them to broadcast their seed,

00:18:50 and I showed them how to cross-sow the seed so they could be sure it was evenly distributed.

00:19:03 I smoothed out the overseeded spots, firmed down the seeds with an empty water roller,

00:19:14 and then on top of it all, I told them to apply the Krillium.

00:19:27 This surface application is wonderful for lawns,

00:19:31 particularly for slopes where there's danger of topsoil washing away.

00:19:35 When Krillium is sprinkled and left on the surface this way,

00:19:39 it forms a film which doesn't prevent the absorption of water,

00:19:43 but ties the surface particles of soil together so that the rain will not carry them off.

00:19:59 After the Krillium has been sprayed over the seeded lawn,

00:20:02 you spray it lightly, just enough to wet the surface.

00:20:05 This activates the Krillium.

00:20:31 From now on, you don't have to worry about your lawn getting washed out before it germinates.

00:20:37 You're all set.

00:20:42 Mr. Harrington showed us another way to use Krillium, for planting shrubs and such.

00:20:48 First, have your husband dig a fine, deep hole.

00:20:52 The exercise will keep him in good condition along with the soil.

00:20:56 Check moisture content of soil. See instructions.

00:21:03 Mix proper amount of Krillium into soil. Knead well.

00:21:22 Put about three inches of treated soil into the hole first, then set your shrub down on top of it.

00:21:33 Fill partway with treated soil.

00:21:46 Trample down so there are no air pockets.

00:21:53 Now, female ingenuity needed for this.

00:21:56 Turn on hose and water lightly to activate the Krillium molecules.

00:22:05 Have husband put in more soil.

00:22:22 Sprinkle lightly, and remember to let the Krillium work for eight hours before you water again thoroughly.

00:22:31 Then, call neighbors to admire.

00:22:36 We tried Krillium with soil for our window boxes, too.

00:22:40 The directions are on the container, you can't go wrong.

00:22:44 Just mix it into the earth well.

00:22:54 Put in your seeds.

00:23:07 Sprinkle.

00:23:15 And put the box in the window.

00:23:21 You know what? We have a lawn.

00:23:25 You know what? We have flowers in our window box.

00:23:30 And slowly but surely, the garden I dreamed of has become a reality.

00:23:36 The hard, disheartening earth that resisted all our efforts has become friendly, workable soil,

00:23:41 yielding new miracles with every changing season.

00:24:11 Year after year, our garden grows more beautiful.

00:24:23 And every year, I observe a very personal anniversary.

00:24:27 On this day, I pick an extra lavish bouquet and give it to my neighbor.

00:24:33 Both in thanks and in memory of a certain bouquet she once gave me.

00:24:39 Before I was garden-wise.