Soil Amendments For Clay
slipperypencil
8 years ago
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grubby_AZ Tucson Z9
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agokimmq
8 years agoRelated Discussions
I don't think compost can help this clay soil
Comments (16)I gardened in SF clay for decades so I know what you're talking about. You cannot work California clay in January. That is the rainiest month, and right now you've gotten huge amounts of rain even for January. Wet clay should not and cannot be worked. I never planted anything in the ground (pots only) in December or January - the clay is too wet and too cold. A planter box should have purchased soil mix in it. Not clay. The comment about using plastic is to protect soil about to be planted in from getting excessively wet. Not for the whole yard. I would instruct my clients to tarp the area they wanted me to plant fruit trees in so it would be workable. Once clay is wet, you have to wait for it to drain a few days before you can work it. (Hence the tarping beforehand.) Squeeze a bit in your hand. If it squeezes through your fingers and remains in one piece with ribbons sticking out where it came through your fingers, it's too wet. It should crumble at least a little bit before you try to work it. When it's dry enough, compost is the best thing. Gypsum does not work in California clay. You will not transform it overnight, or even in a year or two. It will always be clay, and that's not a bad thing - I miss clay. Here I'm gardening in dirty gravel, with no water retention or nutrient retention or any measurable organic matter. Most trees and shrubs will grow in clay just fine, with annual additions of a little compost. Lettuce and other vegies are a different story, they need a looser soil. That's where mounding up amended soil comes in. Dig up the clay, add some compost and maybe some purchased topsoil, and mix it all together and heap it up above grade. Don't just lay stuff on top of the clay and then plant in it, as water will sit on top of the clay and the plants' roots will then be sitting in water. Mix it up so it grades from amended soil to the native clay. Compost helps any soil, clay or sand. You just can't work clay soil after all that rain you've gotten. You'll have to wait for it to dry a bit....See MoreFruiting banana for zone 7
Comments (2)You might want to consider trying your luck with the fast fruiting variety. This means you have to play with time a little here. You can grow a banana and grow it indoor until it's too big for the pot. At the first sign of warm weather in late Spring or early Summer, bring the plant out and plant it in the ground in a sunny spot. Water, feed it regularly and mulch the soil to promote maximum growth in that growing season. Some bananas I have planted that have fruited quickly are Rajapuri, Apple Banana and Praying Hands. However, both Apple Banana and Praying Hands are large plants. Only Rajapuri is a small variety--up to 8 ft tall. I know the Dwarf Cavendish is a smaller variety too, but I'm not able to get it to fruit after three years even in FL. There might be some other smaller and fast fruiters. Maybe some others here who have experience with them can post. There's a likelihood you might get fruit in the first growing season outdoor, but again with bananas, there's no guarantee. My Rajapuri has for the past couple of years been consistently throwing out fruit every six months....See MoreSoil amendments: clay soil, fully planted beds
Comments (16)My first garden was created 5 years ago...we took off the sod, amended with compost, tilled and planted and mulched. It was a nightmare. I probably needed 60 times more compost, and never could have afforded it. The following two years I hated working in the garden because it was such hard work with the clay and many plants didn't thrive. I replanted areas many times and each time I would add more compost/mulch, whatever I could get my hands on. I also added a soil conditioner that was very expensive but works like gypsum...breaks down clay. (Who knows, maybe it WAS gypsum with a bigger price tag.) It's 6 years later now and I have to tell you that the garden is just a delight to work in now. I plan to spread gypsum a couple of times each year and continue mulching the beds, but I'm sure I'll never have to do all that double-digging like I did before....just keep on piling on the stuff like everyone wrote above, and before you know it, your beds will be as you need them to be. I also highly recommend that you search out plants that LIKE clay, so that your plantings will be successful. I spent many, many dollars buying plants that needed more drainage than I had and would die...and I wondered why. Some of those plants might do ok for me now in the same garden, but I think it's important to plant things that actually LIKE the ground that they are in today. Good Luck!...See MoreHelp!! Amending Clay Soil
Comments (24)The ('dug out') in-ground 'raised' beds are what I use. I too have clay (although I don't have the pH issues you have,) but I've been planning my beds for a long time. I've been throwing small amounts of my grass clippings into the space I turned into this year's garden for about 3-4 years. Clay, aside from its horrible tilth issues, is usually very nutritious. Therefore, why not take advantage of the free resources. Basically, I just tilled the soil, mulched heavily, then planted. In the fall the mulch will get tilled in, and I'm already preparing the organic matter to add for next year. The more compost and organics you add, the more 'raised' they will become. If you have fairly good drainage, and this is just my opinion - everyone will have their own reasons for their decisions - the only reasons to box in and 'lift' your beds are for organization, esthetics. and for those who have difficulty bending down low. Here's what my beds look like... When I was younger, I used to work all my beds (a lot of them!) by hand. Breaking new ground with a pick ax and a digging fork. Turning-in organics with the fork. Now, lol... not so much. I borrowed a relative's tiller and after the ground was broken well, I worked the soil by handling the tiller from the side. That way, in the final passes, there was no walking on the freshly tilled ground. Now that the hard work for these beds are done, I'll add a couple new ones each year as my sunlight allows (I need to top a few trees on the south.) Anyway, sounds like you have the beginnings of a plan. There's a lot of good advice on this site, take a little of this, and little of that, and find what works for your situation. There are people who have a lot more knowledge than I. When something comes along that is better - whether it be knowledge or tools... upgrade!...See Morewayne_5 zone 6a Central Indiana
8 years agoHappy Hill Farm
8 years agopeter_6
8 years agoEmbothrium
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agokimmq
8 years agowayne_5 zone 6a Central Indiana
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoJon Biddenback
8 years agoEmbothrium
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agokimmq
8 years agoJon Biddenback
8 years agowayne_5 zone 6a Central Indiana
8 years ago
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