My Dad added half dump truck load of manure, half of sand, got some bottom land topsoil, tilled it in our shale clay soil. We had a very impressive garden. Added this and that each year.
Best explanation of why I should hesitate to add sand yet and I've watched a lot. Very informative! At 54, I find myself wishing I had gone for higher learning all about soil when I was younger. It's just fascinating!
I added about 8 yards of compost to my 30x30 front yard garden. if you have clay soil adding lots of compost helps, but the soil is still pretty mushy. Adding 10-20% sand together with the compost really helps the soil's friability/breaks up easily. the problem most people have is they like to break down what they hear into simple facts, when actually in nature it's typically more complex.
Sand by itself won't really work. You do need other things that will help loosen the structure. I added sand, gypsum, peat moss, and sawdust. It worked fairly well. The following year I added composted leaves and that made it almost perfect.
I have land with clay and either sand or silt and it sets up like concrete when it gets dry, had to use a pick axe to harvest the tiny yams this fall. Plan to till in sawdust and wood chip mulch with a sprinkling of chicken and cow dung.
@@frederickwolf8413 had rocklike clay from subsoil. Mixed in sawdust and gypsum which after a few weeks of weather loosened it up and then added sand and compost which was a big improvement.
we live on a clay flat by the ocean and the clay itself turns into cement in the summer, so agree that adding just sand does seems like one step closer to actual cement! I've added a lot of wood chip mulch over the years and it's amazing how the clay just absorbs it. but the yard does get a little less sticky every year. we're probably down from 80% clay to only 65% hah
Thank you for this video! Very well explained. I am a professional gardener and have been looking how to explain to people more precisely why I don't like adding sand to clay. I use manure, compost, wood chip and have transformed my clay soils with this organic matter!
I have been adding manure and used animal bedding and wood chips for YEARS and still have rock hard clay soil. I'm adding sand and Pete moss this year to see if I can get it improved.
I have the opposite problem of too much sand. I have decided to increase the clay from about zero to five percent or so. I obtained a red clay of about 30% clay that I am using to mix with my sand in a 1:5 ratio, that is one part clay to five parts of soil. Think of 2"" of clay on top of soil you are prepared to work 12" deep. Do this and you have mixed the clay with 10" of soil below. The soil diagram works much better going from sand to some clay than it does the other way around. The properties of a nearly pure sand get neutralized pretty quickly with the increase in clay. From there it's just biology. I have found it's the pure sand that burns up the organic matter. I have a theory that the soil microbiome depends on the clay as well as organic residues to form soil crumb structure.
Nice to hear you talking about soil biology and soil health! Thanks Fraser. And thank you for talking about your methods for rose propagation, I am enjoying experimenting with semi ripe cuttings
I added about 10% sand to my heavy clay garden and it seems to work just fine. And I found out that more than 20% sand made the soil harder and concrete like.
I have a medium sized English garden that was built on marsh land so it is very heavy clay soil i have just started gardening here this year 2019 and so far i have used loads of sand which helps a lot .gypsum which has not done a thing that i can see and compost . What i have been doing is digging small holes in all our beds and adding all kitchen waste to them this seems to working out the best i am getting loads of really fat worms which i had only skinny black ones in the beginning . Thank you for sharing your videos they are so helpful
And thanks for sharing your experience Joanna. At least you'll probably have lots of organic matter in your soil from the marsh land. How's the drainage now?
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Not great, when it rains the water just sits on top then comes down to the patio area then i open the drains up to let the water drain away .
I've been thinking of doing this exact same thing to try to improve my soil among my existing flowerbed (in-ground composting). May i ask you a couple of questions... just how deep and wide are the holes you are digging? When you bury scraps in one hole, do you ever return to that same hole to add more? Are you only adding kitchen scraps? (Such as dried leaves, grass clippings, compost.)
@@K_Woods Hiya I am only adding kitchen waste peelings coffee and tea bags etc I dig any size hole and any depth to suit the amount of scraps I have I then bury them and next time I move on to another place it could be cm from the last hole or a totally new border. I have noticed a big difference in the texture of the soil since I posted on here four months ago. I now have a large compost bin but I still bury some scraps I buried a pigeon that was dead on my patio and there is no sign of it now .I have noticed the drainage is getting better too
Jason - great!!!! I've been using Charles Dowding techniques - developed for the market garden - on all of my plantings starting last year. At risk of veering from the topic at hand... I'm having fun with an experimental wildflower garden using the No Dig technique. The planting is just coming into it's own after planting out too late on June 1. So much less labor, sweat, time, plastic - and it seems to have worked. I covered a blackcap & raspberry bed, after scything, with cardboard, then added a mix of soil, manure, composted wood chips. I should have started it in the fall because of the watering regimen it needed this summer. Otherwise, it seems to be a success. This fall I'll try planting using the same technique- allowing the seeds to stratify over winter. Warmest regards! Jennie
Thanks much for your video. I've been struggling in North TX, near Fort Worth, for at least 6 years, living in this residential area for 15 years now. Since I was here from the day the house was built forward, I've seen the whole life span of my Bermuda grass sodded yard. The soil is at least 30 to 40% clay, very clumpy. The builders here choose to level some and then dump yards of Sandy Loam on top to the tune of about 2 inches worth. Then they lay the sod on top. Mostly what I read about that technique is, it's a bad idea. Because the sod likes the soft loam and roots in a shallow way in the loam an mostly ignores the tougher clay to some degree. Also, the first few years the underlying weeds from Mars came through the sod and I finally had to hire a pro lawn service TruGreen to whip and chain the weeds for a few years and they finally got under control. So for about 8 years my lawn looked very healthy with TruGreen coming out every year to do the weeding and fertilizing and such. Turn the page and around 2012, we had 3 years of drought. (And yes, I have an irrigation system). I started noticing dead circles in my front yard at one end. And over the years, in spite of bringing in pros to analyze the problem, with mixed opinions and fungus treatments, my front lawn truly looks more sick with more areas that are troublesome. I even dug up 6 inches of soil/sod in the dead areas, put in new soil and new sod, and a year later, it died again. As if the soil has gone bad and just has some poor health now. At least 30% of the front yard looks sick. The backyard looks twice as healthy and grows thicker and green. Although it too has about a 1 yard area in one part that is struggling where again, I replaced the soil/sod and it still struggles. This year I tried taking about 600 lbs of sandy loam and just trowled it over the unhealthy areas in an effort to do the "comeover" technique of side growth. It's still early so time will tell if that helps. I was tempted to top coat the whole front yard with about an inch or so of sandy loam (and I see many videos about doing things like this to level out a yard). I'm running out of ideas and it's pretty frustrating. And usually by the time July/August hits, it gets so hot and dry here that the sick spots simply can't stand up to the strain. Any thoughts?
Thanks Jeffrey - it can be a tough thing to overcome the initial soil prep. I'm not so much a lawn guy, but I do wonder if a topdressing with organic matter along with overseeding a grass blend might be an approach. I've remediated a compacted area in our yard this way, but much different climate!
I'm in Flower Mound and yesterday I tried using an 3 inch auger in my backyard. The auger managed to dig about 6 to 8 inches and then hit solid ground. The soil is so compact that the auger just spins and doesn't penetrate the compact soil. I had to add water to soften the soil. In the past, I broke 2 forks due to the hard clay soil.
Thanks for referring me to this video. Much to think about - also know as "brain mulch." I think I have a lot to do with my clay soil before I can get close to a "steady state" of no or low till situation. But we do need somewhere to put leaves, grass clipping and such, and based on your other soil video, I will now add wood chips. I do find it beneficial to try to get in a cover crop at the end of the season (e.g., winter rye and maybe clover) and till or disc that is at some point. Also, I find that crop rotation can help some. Unfortunately, I live in the middle of hay fields so I have been using plastic otherwise I can't keep up with the weeds. I am starting to shift to something more permeable so that I can expose the soil to the air.
Hi Vincent - thanks for your input. My situation is pretty manageable (on a relatively small scale) but if I were trying to make change on a larger property or more difficult clay, I'd probably focus on the crop cover mixes as well. Did you see this article? : agfaxweedsolutions.com/2017/03/24/north-dakota-farmer-successfully-manages-heavy-clay-soils-cover-crops-no-till-dtn/ Interesting the kind of success they see with a seed mix and no tillage.
I think the correct point is that the cost you described is correct. A lot of people say that mixing Sand with a clay soil will get you concrete and that frankly doesn't make much sense.
another great video, thank you. agree that approx. 9 yards of sand for a 20' x 20' veggie plot isn't impossible. I've added over 20 yards of gravel by hand to our gardens by now just for structure / paths. it's amazing how big 3 yards looks at first but then it hardly makes a dent in the yard! the delivery fees are worse than the materials cost, so the intel in this video would be good for someone so they could order 10 yards at once
p.s. agree that taking a few years to layer mulch on top seems a better strategy than strip mining 2' and then putting in a gelatinous puree of sand, silt and compost. we've seen a few episodes about Dowding's no dig method on Gardeners' World and it does make sense that all the networks in living soil are important for bio-chemical processes. loved the pastry analogy, thanks, that was a new one!
The discussion of whether or not adding sand as an amendment for clay is a catastrophic change or cost (beginning at the 6:50 mark) understates the issue if a person has to go to the high side (250 cubic feet of sand) in order to amend their clay soil. At 60 cubic feet (the low end of the presenter's estimate) it is not significant. But at the upper end of the estimate, it is significant. Consider that the 20X20X2 foot volume discussed as being amended works at to 800 cubic feet. Adding 250 cubic feet of sand represents adding just short of 1/3rd the volume of dirt to get just a 10% amendment in soil that started out at 40% clay. For many places, the clay soils could easily be more than 40% clay. For example, the country where I live has soil ranging from almost 40% clay in the southern & central parts closer to the sea, but up to 70% clay in the northeast where I live. I won't be considering sand as an amendment for the soil here.
You should do a garden tour. I would like to know what the white flower behind you is? Off subject. I saw another TH-cam video of someone who advised to plant your rose bushes deep to promote roots from the stems? Is this good advice?
Thanks Lori - and the white flower is cleome. It's been in bloom forever! I'm going to withhold any definitive judgement on deep planting for a bit. I've always favored the crown at soil level when transplanting almost anything - perennials, shrubs, trees. It seems the most natural placement to me, and because the crown (or bud union) is an important and vulnerable spot on the rose, I like to have it where I can check on it. I know that Paul Zimmerman (a real rose guy who I respect a lot) has written in favor of deep planting - but not because of adventitious rooting. He advises it because the buried stems will provide more stability against wind rock. My take on wind rock is that it's often associated with roses planted in a planting hole that's too large, to generously amended with organic matter, and with too loose a soil. Once firmly established in the native soil, my roses no longer "rock" in the wind. The additional rooting is an interesting angle - I wonder if the advice is intended for own-root or grafted - presumably the grafted roses were bought on the idea that the rootstock provides additional benefit, so the rooting of the scion variety would be undesirable? Finally, I do hear from those in cold climates that deep planting is helpful for winter protection. I'm not convinced. If you're dealing with a truly hardy variety to your climate, depth should offer no benefit, and a tender variety - good luck either way!
You didn't mention gypsum as a clay soil amendment. I learned my soil structures as a kid from Queen Victoria's gardener. An old, old book. Tilth, loam, composting. Layers and soil structure. Natural drainage and water retention and the importance of worms....
Thanks John. Sounds like a good book that stand the test of time. I'm not so sure about gypsum - the same expert I quoted about sand put out this info sheet on gypsum for clay soils: s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/403/2015/03/gypsum.pdf A bit of a mixed bag for gypsum - probably improving sodic soil, but also adjusting soil chemistry in a number of other (not always positive) ways.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Thanks for the heads up. Your topics and points line up with a lot of stuff I have read as well. Especially the high nitrogen greens like comfry.
Thanks, this seems like good advice. I was thinking the same thing about adding sand, seems like it will just mix with the clay and not be very beneficial.
I think a big thing is people get stuck thinking that only one thing is best without having a good look. I am in Melbourne, Aus (Mornington Peninsula area) and we have clay loam soil, even tho I am closer to the cost (less than 10km's) we still have a lot of clay, but not solid. The thing is I would never think about trying to change it. The simple reason is a more loamy soil would actually make it worse. We have had if you are lucky 80-100mls of rain in our area over the 2 1/2 months of summer. Its been a pretty dry and moderate summer. When I do a deep irrigation on the orchard we built in the front yard last year, I can go 2-3 weeks before needing it again, just because the soil can hold onto that water. The plants love it and saves us water. A more loam or sandy loam would lose too much water. That said I am building the soil with organics, even tho it was filled with worms etc when I took out the grass, it was a lawn for 30 years with no nutrients put in, so thick sugar cane mulch for organics, top dressing with compost etc.
I can't say for sure , but I think my soil is mostly clay and rocks. Grass has a hard time growing. The yard is bumpy to the point it is hard to walk. I am thinking of tiling it just to smooth it out and hope that softens the soil so plants can grow better. Any ideas?
Very informative video, thanks a lot for sharing. People say putting brewed coffee grounds into native soil can improve the quality of the soil. Is it true? And what is the proper way of adding it to the soil, just putting it on the top layer or digging a hole and put the coffee grounds in then back filling the hole? Thank you for your input.
What I'm trying to do is engineer the flow of water to dry crop but the crops will need cool soil instead of warm. But the soil in Puerto rico is btw both.
We have just moved to a newly-build house in Scotland. We have a small garden that is about 100 m sq. The construction company provided about 10-15 cm of topsoil. It is of very poor quality, very heavy and clayish. But most of all I am concerned about the waterlogging, because beneath that topsoil are layers of red clay (seems like pure clay, with a structure of plasticine). I tried to dig down and it seems that that clay goes down for at least 1 meter. I've done a "drainage test", I dug a hole and filled it with 10 liters of water to mark for how long it will drain. It's been 48 hours and counting, and the water is just standing there. Given that it wasn't raining, I am very concerned with the drainage. Any advice?
That sounds challenging - I did another video focused on drainage (link: th-cam.com/video/g6A5XnpxkFc/w-d-xo.html ) but the short version is that you may have to consider strategies like slopes, ditches or drains to carry excess water away from your cultivated garden beds (or to avoid pooling in inconvenient places).
What if you have an area of heavily compacted clay (from machinery) with no top soil left? What can sustainably be done to enable appropriate plants to grow in it? Thanks! ( it's land around a reservoir in Essex- a dry region in UK)
The fast answer to get growing in one season is to use a raised bed or bottomless container. Compacted soil can be a slow, tough thing to correct. Some cover crops are good at addressing compaction: Oilseed radish, red clover, oats, rapeseed (or a wide mix of various cover crops). I don't know how free you would be to do a more disruptive adjustment (tilling organic matter or sand deeply) - but even modest additions of organic matter over a longer timeframe can help.
Thank you for this video. I have been wondering for a long time and hesitating if I should try masonry sand or not in my lawn after watching so many youtube videos. my lawn is high in clay. Last year I mixed sand with compost and topsoil (higher rate than sand) in some areas. I need to put down more in the future to level my lawn. I spoke with a local landscape owner who has different types of soil. He suggested to try sand/clay soil mix (he made his own) mixing with screened soil that have high in nutrients. it's a learn and Hoping that this mix will work for both levelling and toodressing..
Best of luck - I hope it works the way you want it to. I've been topping up in places with a garden mix (with a decent percentage of sand), and where it eventually works its way down into the soil, I've been happy with the results.
@love•horses I don't seeich of huge improvement yet. Due to lack of physical ability, time, and space, I am applying small amount of sand & soil mix at a time. so I know it will be a long run for me. Wherever I had spread sand&soil mix thicker, grass came through just fine. I am planning to aerate and spread sand each year to improve clay.
Cover crops help amend soil. My radish are growing nicely. Sunn Hemp a legume is growing nicely too. The worms enjoy the cover crop roots and as a result aerate the soil. I have a few surviving oats that I broadcast. Oats should not be broadcast. I love my Barley. It has broader leaves than Sudex and Millet. I am growing all (3) Crimson Clover and Annual Rye make a nice root system. I have these planted as well.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Cover crops are so much fun and variable. I left some Crimson Clover in my (200) cell trary and was amazed at the root structure! They were as plentiful as crabgrass. I've been spreading my bag de oyster shell around. I still have my (12) end de sale roses to plant. I have bags de coffee grounds layed out to use them in my back Southern yard. I am collecting Swamp Milkweed seeds. I have to get some parasite treatment for my new PetSmart black mollies. They are nocturnal. I am looking forward to their every (30) day fry.
aggregation is way more important than the ingedients of the Soil. As a Farmer i can say that feeding your soil and all that lives in there with organic matter will improve your soil over time a lot more than adding sand. Even a not draining clay soil can get much better with the right treatment. Sorry for bad english.
I built structure using small trees and trenches of a out 3 to 5 inch deep they need to be 16 inches deep and waves around the trenches because of the down pours.
My 23 ft X 4 ft bed has a clay base below the soil. The surface soil is heavily peppered with limestone gravel. Does the gravel need to be removed for soil amendment success? I want to amend the soil with a top dressing of organic matter, compost, grass to eventually break up the clay soil so I can plant flower or shrubs that will thrive. Please advise.
Puerto Rico has Akaline soil its mud clay dirt soil with high ph level of 80 since precipitation is around 70 percent and sun radius is 5.5 and cloudy.
Thanks Azam - not necessarily. Annual tilling is still common for some kinds of crops, but many farmers are working to reduce it because of concerns about erosion and soil structure. In perennial and mixed gardens like mine, I don't dig more than I need to.
I wish I would’ve seen this video before I messed up my yard. I just dug up a stump and mixed up all the soil and clay before I put it back in the hole
Builder's sand - The correct term you want to look for is "Sharp" sand The clay will fill spaces in both - The sharp sand will leave more spaces where the hard angles grate against each leaving larger gaps yo fill resisting heavy compaction and allow water through soft sands will create more impermeable layers as the sand will pack densely with the clay acting like a cementing bond
@@lovehorses2669 yes, though I would say from experience to include a health amount of composting material as well - it helps keep the soil from trying to bind as much
Hi Brendan. There are advantages and disadvantages to tilling in sand or other amendments. You have to pick what works for you. My preference is to maintain and improve soil structure if I can, but if I were faced with a very stubborn thick soil, I wouldn't take any option off the table. One difference to container growing is that I would generally fill entirely with a potting mix chosen for superior water/air balance and drainage qualities. When working with a natural soil you won't have the same opportunity to "engineer" these qualities (unless you intend to replace the entire bed with something new, and even then, it's not quite the same in-ground). The improvement in texture by amendment may be partially or fully offset by losing soil structure. YMMV
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Okay. I only started gardening a few years ago. Mostly in containers as my soil is clay. I did throw down a lot of leaves, hay and wood chips last year. The mound without wooden borders technique. Hope it works.
Wonderful video,... i just needed my dog to stop turning white to pink and was wondering if sand will hurt the soils... this gives me more options. Thanks!
If you start with a clay pan (for example once the top soil is scraped off and a house built) then instead of mixing sand or organic matter in then simply replacing the topsoil with more friable loamy, mixes of garden soil can work. So add 20-30cm on top of the clay (topsoil) and leaving the clay as it probably once was (the subsoil). Plants should thrive. Organic matter will also help. The clay will hold moisture and nutrients and release it to the plants as needed but you can control what mix of topsoil you’d like, then you can always mulch that too with arborist mulches. Like a layered cake.
So I have clay soil in my yard, and I dug a plot of land down like 18 or 20 inches or so and Im filling it with compost and perlite, not sand. Is this going to be aerated enough, and will I be ok on drainage? will it be a good starting growing medium? will I run into the problems mentioned here about disrupting the soils natural systems? Brand new to gardening!
Hi Nick. I think you're right to be concerned about the drainage - that's the first thing you need to solve. Compost and perlite can be nice additions to the soil, but it will take some for the soil to settle and develop structure again.
I have a very shallow water table about 15 inches, with very silty low permeabilty. It is a back yard that was designed to flood sacrificially (instead of flooding my house). I want to short circuit stormwater to the water table. I was going to till sand into it, but i was worried about ruining the root structure as you said. Is it better to stab the soil with a pitchfork to aerate and just sprinkle sand over top. Is Pete moss necessary?
It's hard to know what will work with such overall slow drainage. Sure you could try and see if aerating or breaking up some of the surface layer will help, but I tend to think any new "drains" will silt up again pretty quickly. Another thought is to look into cover crops that break up compaction, like oilseed radish, rye or sudangrass - of course, you'd have to do a little research into what grows well and is available in your climate and what season to try it for.
Hi Jason how are you. Hope all is well. I know I had asked you before about miniature Rose's. I'm really having trouble. They seem to die on me in a couple of days. I potted 4 in an adequate container put them in part sun part shade. Picked up another one "obviously there was a sale" and the blooms went brown and it also looks like it's dying. I didn't even have the chance to water it because it was already very wet. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Have a great day. Thanks
Great video! You're not one of these "anti-sand" guys. I trust that soil triangle with my life. I trust the soil scientists that recommend about 15% organic matter. Sure you might need to add a lot of sand if you are doing commercial farming. But if you dig a hole for your plant in your backyard garden, and you backfill that hole with 40% sand, that hole will have great drainage which might be just enough to let the core roots breathe and prevent the worst excesses of flooding. That of course depends on the size and scale of the hole. In any event, understanding the three particle sizes and their respective pros and cons, it really liberates a gardener and allows them to think outside of organic solutions. I think inorganic solutions (meaning particle sizes) are just as important if not more important. Hydroponics takes inorganic farming to its furthest logical endpoint. Hydroponics is successful and conserves water and fertilizer resources. That's not to say organic matter is entirely useless, but organic matter is easy to come by and obvious to most gardeners. But I think most gardeners don't understand the three particle sizes and the soil triangle. One last thing I want to express is that, if you don't have sand at your disposal because it's too expensive and not local to the area, I would be interested to see a study where clay is taken from the local soil, superheated in a fireplace or kiln, turned into hardened clay, pulverized into large sand-like particles, and reintroduced to the garden to improve drainage. Because once clay is superheated, it cannot return to its former state. In other words, you cannot sculpt clay pottery with clay that has already been heated. So I hypothesize that clay could actually improve soil drainage if super heated and turned into sand-sizes spheres. This is an experiment I want to try because sand is fairly expensive to buy compared to simply heating local clay. Although the latter is more labor intensive.
Thanks Trevor for your insights. My quite silty soil behaves rather like clay. One spot in the garden must have been an old sandbox - and I have to say that the blended soil around that area is quite a pleasure to work with. I might not go to the trouble and expense of adding sand in bulk, but I'm happy to use what's there!
i guess Im randomly asking but does someone know of a way to log back into an Instagram account?? I was dumb lost the account password. I appreciate any assistance you can give me.
@Leroy Jase Thanks so much for your reply. I found the site through google and im in the hacking process now. Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will reply here later with my results.
Have you thought about developing an online course about some of these topics you've covered over the years? Online courses and on site courses are very popular with the permaculture crowd. Maybe something to think about developing during the slower winter months.
Haha. “Or rude remarks”. Thank you for this video. I have red clay (prob 100%) and wanted to try and grow these artichoke seeds I bought but then read they prefer sandy loam. I was like, “I guess I’ll just add some sand”. Now, I don’t know what to do 😂
Yeah - tough call. But at least it's a blank slate of sorts. I've seen blends of cover crops (including large-rooted daikon radish) that are good at breaking up clay
I had a small tree stump removed from my garden recently. I removed all the wood chips left from the stump grinding and then filled in the hole with miracle grow garden soil and regular bagged soil. Now I am having drainage issues which is killing some of my perennials. What can I do to fix this mess I have made. It is retaining water, has insects and a slight oil like odor. 😳
my garden is all new compost and all the clay was removed for 12 inches down. Its an amazing garden, im not sure why keeping the structure would have helped my garden. My compost is loaded with healthy bacteria and I added a compost tea. Idk maybe you mean just sand?
Here's a crazy question... I'm trying to plant some roses in super heavy clay soil. Just now saw your video, after attempting to amend about a foot down, with peat moss and soil conditioner. I don't have sand, but I do have a bag of crushed quartz that's about the same consistency as sand. I won't use much, but would this be a worse idea than using sand? Also, what are your thoughts on gypsum?
Hi Kathleen. The quartz would be about the same as sand for its properties. Gypsum only helps in sodic soils, so you'd want to know the chemistry of the soil a bit before you hit it with gypsum.
Wonder if you're still reading/replying? I have a heavy clay lawn. I'm hoping that simply top dressing with compost 1-2 times per year will eventually improve the soil. Worms dragging it down, aerating the soil, then bacteria and funghi feeding on it etc.
Hi Peter. I think if I were aiming to improve a lawn over clay soil, I might also use a plug aerator and add some sand with the organic matter. I guess it depends on how much effort you want to put into it, but the slow addition of both organic matter and sand (distributed by soil critters) will definitely improve a heavy clay over time.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Thanks! I am thinking of creating holes with an auger drill and filling those with compost too. Maybe a sand top dress to finish it off :)
In the situation of having to amend the garden soil of a new construction, where you have to dig out a serious compromised layer, how would you recommend the new layers to be? A base of gravel for drainage and sand maybe? And then the top soil? How thick would you say the gravel layer has to be? Thanks!
Depends on how warm and how much water you have - the gravel alone does nothing without somewhere for it to go Eg: if you had a french drain nearby then any layer would need to be an inch or so only if graded properly
In general organic matter helps, but don't go overboard in the planting hole - they tend to compact down over time, and that undermines the support of the roots.
I live on a sloped yard. Half my yard has lost all the top layers of dirt, due to erosion and water runoff - I’m down to clay/rock base layer. is there a way to add material to make it a grassy yard again or should I just pave it?!
Hi Jacquie. That's a tough situation. I used to have quite a sloped yard, and I delt with it by adding terraces using some of the natural stone - which I guess is the fairly traditional treatment. It's a lot of work through. There are plants that can be useful for stabilizing slopes too.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm thank you for replying. I’ve been adding terraces to the side of my “hill”, but the front was a grassy driveway…now it’s just sand and rock at the top, grass and sand at the bottom. We’ve had so much rain during the winter when the grass was dead, all the good dirt washed down to the bottom. Every time it rains, more sand flows to the end of the driveway
I'm about to go forward with my experiment. Everything that rots at the bottom of the hill is caught by logs and stuff. I'm scooping that up, mixing it with sharp washed sand, a touch of gypsum and perlite, plugging (aerating) the piss out of the soil, THEN filling with that mix.
In other words, if you added a bunch of sand to your clay soil, expect to wait years, if not decades, for the soil biology to re-bake the cake and make that new soil texture become the new soil structure. However, if you added a little bit of sand, plus organic matter/compost, every year, you could get closer to a decent sand incorporation into the clay, and improving that structure, faster than adding it all at once.
I have clay soil and currently dealing with fungi that’s killing anything that I grow in it. Tried compost. Tried soil amendments like Humic acid. Since in Ontario I can’t use fungicide any suggestions
Yes! CD is great and the no dig method! You should watch Morag Gamble- She has a wealth of information, similar to CD in some respects, but also using permaculture techniques. Great information!
You sure can rake in manure and a light application of sand each year to gradually improve organic matter, so long as you have reasonable drainage to begin with.
just seen video . we have a foot of soil then clay . have started digging 10 feet deep and mixing in cow manure. will also build up ground level 4 or 5 feet. this will be a 50 by 80 foot plot goal it a orchard. any thoughts . we have material and a hoe. we have started but now snow. will carry on in spring will give a year for it to settle before tree planting
You'll be in a better position to see how the site reacts to all this digging - I've seen some landscapes turn into a wasteland if there's any moisture in the clay when you work it.
at 76 my aim is to quickly improve drainage and get rid of standing water after even the lightest shower. We have a small but neglected / compacted clay garden plot so I conclude that given my limitations of time etc I will double dig and include as much organic matter i can get but will include sand as well as gypsum. Any contradiction welcome 🙂
Charcoal is a long-lasting soil amendment, and I apply wood ash (with charcoal bits in it) regularly to my garden both for nutrients and soil improvement. The "bio" part I'm a bit more skeptical about - not that I think it'll do any harm, just in wondering if it's worth the effort.
I can answer general gardening questions here in the comments of my videos (so all the viewers can benefit from the conversation). I'm sorry I just can't budget the time to answer them individually.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Ok, thank you. Sorry, I will add the question. I want to use wood chips to improve the clay in my garden. Do I just need to cover the soil? Can it not be mixed with soil, because I have noticed many comments that wood chips and soil will compete with plants for nitrogen when mixed, so can I grow annual vegetables in soil mixed with wood chips?
Thanks - I did a video on the topic of wood chips and nitrogen: th-cam.com/video/JjIfIEPzFAo/w-d-xo.html The effect of wood chips is highest where the soil is in direct contact. If you put them on the surface, only very shallow-rooted plants would see a reduction in nitrogen. If you mix it, the chips will break down faster, and pull nitrogen from a larger area. Either way, it's relatively easy to add supplemental nitrogen to compensate. Liquid fish fertilizer is a decent choice, as would be alfalfa pellets.
Sand didn't help my at all, in fact it is worse. My tiller will barely break the surface when it's dry. It went from heavy/muddy to basically concrete.
@@lovehorses2669 The consistency is better, but it took a ton of leaves, grass clippings, food waste and elbow grease to break it up. We'll see how things go over the next couple years.
I mixed some of my clay with sand the other day in a pot, going to see what happens. Half and half by volume. I also mixed one with half clay and half shredded leaf bits. Last year I mixed half clay with half grass clippings in a container and I guess it turned into okay potting soil. Didn't keep track of which five gallon bucket was which.
@@harsh939 That's why I did it in a pot. I'm afraid to put it in the ground. I heard the guy who lived in this house before me dumped truck loads of sand in the yard but it must have washed away or sank through the mud and disappeared.
@@watermelonlalala I wish u the best buddy. I just wonder how cool we are. We have turned this environment plants friendly haha. Lots of CO2 in the air.
My Dad added half dump truck load of manure, half of sand, got some bottom land topsoil, tilled it in our shale clay soil. We had a very impressive garden. Added this and that each year.
Best explanation of why I should hesitate to add sand yet and I've watched a lot. Very informative!
At 54, I find myself wishing I had gone for higher learning all about soil when I was younger. It's just fascinating!
I added about 8 yards of compost to my 30x30 front yard garden. if you have clay soil adding lots of compost helps, but the soil is still pretty mushy. Adding 10-20% sand together with the compost really helps the soil's friability/breaks up easily. the problem most people have is they like to break down what they hear into simple facts, when actually in nature it's typically more complex.
Sand by itself won't really work. You do need other things that will help loosen the structure. I added sand, gypsum, peat moss, and sawdust. It worked fairly well. The following year I added composted leaves and that made it almost perfect.
I have land with clay and either sand or silt and it sets up like concrete when it gets dry, had to use a pick axe to harvest the tiny yams this fall. Plan to till in sawdust and wood chip mulch with a sprinkling of chicken and cow dung.
@@frederickwolf8413 had rocklike clay from subsoil. Mixed in sawdust and gypsum which after a few weeks of weather loosened it up and then added sand and compost which was a big improvement.
we live on a clay flat by the ocean and the clay itself turns into cement in the summer, so agree that adding just sand does seems like one step closer to actual cement! I've added a lot of wood chip mulch over the years and it's amazing how the clay just absorbs it. but the yard does get a little less sticky every year. we're probably down from 80% clay to only 65% hah
@@frederickwolf8413 compost your leaves. Add grass clippings or some blood meal to the leaves
under rated video. great video and audio quality, lots of helpful facts. i wonder why it only has 390+ likes.
Thank you for this video! Very well explained. I am a professional gardener and have been looking how to explain to people more precisely why I don't like adding sand to clay. I use manure, compost, wood chip and have transformed my clay soils with this organic matter!
Thanks Debs
I have been adding manure and used animal bedding and wood chips for YEARS and still have rock hard clay soil. I'm adding sand and Pete moss this year to see if I can get it improved.
Exactly the same reason why I am here! Thank you
@@mommadramapreps8668I agree. Organic matter seems to disappear over time
I have the opposite problem of too much sand. I have decided to increase the clay from about zero to five percent or so. I obtained a red clay of about 30% clay that I am using to mix with my sand in a 1:5 ratio, that is one part clay to five parts of soil. Think of 2"" of clay on top of soil you are prepared to work 12" deep. Do this and you have mixed the clay with 10" of soil below. The soil diagram works much better going from sand to some clay than it does the other way around. The properties of a nearly pure sand get neutralized pretty quickly with the increase in clay. From there it's just biology.
I have found it's the pure sand that burns up the organic matter. I have a theory that the soil microbiome depends on the clay as well as organic residues to form soil crumb structure.
Nice to hear you talking about soil biology and soil health! Thanks Fraser. And thank you for talking about your methods for rose propagation, I am enjoying experimenting with semi ripe cuttings
Thanks Robert!
I added about 10% sand to my heavy clay garden and it seems to work just fine. And I found out that more than 20% sand made the soil harder and concrete like.
Thanks for sharing your results.
A very simple and clear talking, I am very enjoying it, but i prefer to see a garden tour, too.
I have a medium sized English garden that was built on marsh land so it is very heavy clay soil i have just started gardening here this year 2019 and so far i have used loads of sand which helps a lot .gypsum which has not done a thing that i can see and compost . What i have been doing is digging small holes in all our beds and adding all kitchen waste to them this seems to working out the best i am getting loads of really fat worms which i had only skinny black ones in the beginning . Thank you for sharing your videos they are so helpful
And thanks for sharing your experience Joanna. At least you'll probably have lots of organic matter in your soil from the marsh land. How's the drainage now?
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Not great, when it rains the water just sits on top then comes down to the patio area then i open the drains up to let the water drain away .
I've been thinking of doing this exact same thing to try to improve my soil among my existing flowerbed (in-ground composting). May i ask you a couple of questions... just how deep and wide are the holes you are digging? When you bury scraps in one hole, do you ever return to that same hole to add more? Are you only adding kitchen scraps? (Such as dried leaves, grass clippings, compost.)
@@K_Woods Hiya I am only adding kitchen waste peelings coffee and tea bags etc I dig any size hole and any depth to suit the amount of scraps I have I then bury them and next time I move on to another place it could be cm from the last hole or a totally new border. I have noticed a big difference in the texture of the soil since I posted on here four months ago. I now have a large compost bin but I still bury some scraps I buried a pigeon that was dead on my patio and there is no sign of it now .I have noticed the drainage is getting better too
@@joannapocock6055 thank you for your reply!
Jason - great!!!! I've been using Charles Dowding techniques - developed for the market garden - on all of my plantings starting last year.
At risk of veering from the topic at hand...
I'm having fun with an experimental wildflower garden using the No Dig technique. The planting is just coming into it's own after planting out too late on June 1. So much less labor, sweat, time, plastic - and it seems to have worked. I covered a blackcap & raspberry bed, after scything, with cardboard, then added a mix of soil, manure, composted wood chips.
I should have started it in the fall because of the watering regimen it needed this summer. Otherwise, it seems to be a success. This fall I'll try planting using the same technique- allowing the seeds to stratify over winter.
Warmest regards!
Jennie
Thanks Jennie. So many of my gardening ideas begin with a reluctance to do extra (perhaps unnecessary) work. I appreciate you sharing your experience.
Talking about the cost helps me to think more about getting the soil right and leaving it alone.
Thanks much for your video. I've been struggling in North TX, near Fort Worth, for at least 6 years, living in this residential area for 15 years now. Since I was here from the day the house was built forward, I've seen the whole life span of my Bermuda grass sodded yard. The soil is at least 30 to 40% clay, very clumpy. The builders here choose to level some and then dump yards of Sandy Loam on top to the tune of about 2 inches worth. Then they lay the sod on top. Mostly what I read about that technique is, it's a bad idea. Because the sod likes the soft loam and roots in a shallow way in the loam an mostly ignores the tougher clay to some degree. Also, the first few years the underlying weeds from Mars came through the sod and I finally had to hire a pro lawn service TruGreen to whip and chain the weeds for a few years and they finally got under control. So for about 8 years my lawn looked very healthy with TruGreen coming out every year to do the weeding and fertilizing and such.
Turn the page and around 2012, we had 3 years of drought. (And yes, I have an irrigation system). I started noticing dead circles in my front yard at one end. And over the years, in spite of bringing in pros to analyze the problem, with mixed opinions and fungus treatments, my front lawn truly looks more sick with more areas that are troublesome. I even dug up 6 inches of soil/sod in the dead areas, put in new soil and new sod, and a year later, it died again. As if the soil has gone bad and just has some poor health now. At least 30% of the front yard looks sick. The backyard looks twice as healthy and grows thicker and green. Although it too has about a 1 yard area in one part that is struggling where again, I replaced the soil/sod and it still struggles. This year I tried taking about 600 lbs of sandy loam and just trowled it over the unhealthy areas in an effort to do the "comeover" technique of side growth. It's still early so time will tell if that helps. I was tempted to top coat the whole front yard with about an inch or so of sandy loam (and I see many videos about doing things like this to level out a yard). I'm running out of ideas and it's pretty frustrating. And usually by the time July/August hits, it gets so hot and dry here that the sick spots simply can't stand up to the strain. Any thoughts?
Thanks Jeffrey - it can be a tough thing to overcome the initial soil prep. I'm not so much a lawn guy, but I do wonder if a topdressing with organic matter along with overseeding a grass blend might be an approach. I've remediated a compacted area in our yard this way, but much different climate!
I'm in Flower Mound and yesterday I tried using an 3 inch auger in my backyard. The auger managed to dig about 6 to 8 inches and then hit solid ground. The soil is so compact that the auger just spins and doesn't penetrate the compact soil. I had to add water to soften the soil. In the past, I broke 2 forks due to the hard clay soil.
Thanks for referring me to this video. Much to think about - also know as "brain mulch." I think I have a lot to do with my clay soil before I can get close to a "steady state" of no or low till situation. But we do need somewhere to put leaves, grass clipping and such, and based on your other soil video, I will now add wood chips. I do find it beneficial to try to get in a cover crop at the end of the season (e.g., winter rye and maybe clover) and till or disc that is at some point. Also, I find that crop rotation can help some. Unfortunately, I live in the middle of hay fields so I have been using plastic otherwise I can't keep up with the weeds. I am starting to shift to something more permeable so that I can expose the soil to the air.
Hi Vincent - thanks for your input. My situation is pretty manageable (on a relatively small scale) but if I were trying to make change on a larger property or more difficult clay, I'd probably focus on the crop cover mixes as well. Did you see this article? : agfaxweedsolutions.com/2017/03/24/north-dakota-farmer-successfully-manages-heavy-clay-soils-cover-crops-no-till-dtn/
Interesting the kind of success they see with a seed mix and no tillage.
I think the correct point is that the cost you described is correct. A lot of people say that mixing Sand with a clay soil will get you concrete and that frankly doesn't make much sense.
Thanks Matthew
another great video, thank you. agree that approx. 9 yards of sand for a 20' x 20' veggie plot isn't impossible. I've added over 20 yards of gravel by hand to our gardens by now just for structure / paths. it's amazing how big 3 yards looks at first but then it hardly makes a dent in the yard! the delivery fees are worse than the materials cost, so the intel in this video would be good for someone so they could order 10 yards at once
p.s. agree that taking a few years to layer mulch on top seems a better strategy than strip mining 2' and then putting in a gelatinous puree of sand, silt and compost. we've seen a few episodes about Dowding's no dig method on Gardeners' World and it does make sense that all the networks in living soil are important for bio-chemical processes. loved the pastry analogy, thanks, that was a new one!
The discussion of whether or not adding sand as an amendment for clay is a catastrophic change or cost (beginning at the 6:50 mark) understates the issue if a person has to go to the high side (250 cubic feet of sand) in order to amend their clay soil. At 60 cubic feet (the low end of the presenter's estimate) it is not significant. But at the upper end of the estimate, it is significant. Consider that the 20X20X2 foot volume discussed as being amended works at to 800 cubic feet. Adding 250 cubic feet of sand represents adding just short of 1/3rd the volume of dirt to get just a 10% amendment in soil that started out at 40% clay. For many places, the clay soils could easily be more than 40% clay. For example, the country where I live has soil ranging from almost 40% clay in the southern & central parts closer to the sea, but up to 70% clay in the northeast where I live. I won't be considering sand as an amendment for the soil here.
You should do a garden tour. I would like to know what the white flower behind you is? Off subject. I saw another TH-cam video of someone who advised to plant your rose bushes deep to promote roots from the stems? Is this good advice?
Thanks Lori - and the white flower is cleome. It's been in bloom forever! I'm going to withhold any definitive judgement on deep planting for a bit. I've always favored the crown at soil level when transplanting almost anything - perennials, shrubs, trees. It seems the most natural placement to me, and because the crown (or bud union) is an important and vulnerable spot on the rose, I like to have it where I can check on it. I know that Paul Zimmerman (a real rose guy who I respect a lot) has written in favor of deep planting - but not because of adventitious rooting. He advises it because the buried stems will provide more stability against wind rock. My take on wind rock is that it's often associated with roses planted in a planting hole that's too large, to generously amended with organic matter, and with too loose a soil. Once firmly established in the native soil, my roses no longer "rock" in the wind. The additional rooting is an interesting angle - I wonder if the advice is intended for own-root or grafted - presumably the grafted roses were bought on the idea that the rootstock provides additional benefit, so the rooting of the scion variety would be undesirable? Finally, I do hear from those in cold climates that deep planting is helpful for winter protection. I'm not convinced. If you're dealing with a truly hardy variety to your climate, depth should offer no benefit, and a tender variety - good luck either way!
You didn't mention gypsum as a clay soil amendment. I learned my soil structures as a kid from Queen Victoria's gardener. An old, old book. Tilth, loam, composting. Layers and soil structure. Natural drainage and water retention and the importance of worms....
Thanks John. Sounds like a good book that stand the test of time. I'm not so sure about gypsum - the same expert I quoted about sand put out this info sheet on gypsum for clay soils: s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/403/2015/03/gypsum.pdf A bit of a mixed bag for gypsum - probably improving sodic soil, but also adjusting soil chemistry in a number of other (not always positive) ways.
Great points given here. Much appreciated sir. Hopefully I can get this Oklahoma clay worked up in a year or two.
Thanks Aaron. BTW, I haven't done much on cover crop mixtures, but I've read some really convincing articles on how it works.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Thanks for the heads up. Your topics and points line up with a lot of stuff I have read as well. Especially the high nitrogen greens like comfry.
Very good video! Well explained! You can always add mulch (Plastic or organic) to make your soil more brittle if you have clay soil.
Thanks for the input George!
Thanks, this seems like good advice. I was thinking the same thing about adding sand, seems like it will just mix with the clay and not be very beneficial.
I think a big thing is people get stuck thinking that only one thing is best without having a good look.
I am in Melbourne, Aus (Mornington Peninsula area) and we have clay loam soil, even tho I am closer to the cost (less than 10km's) we still have a lot of clay, but not solid. The thing is I would never think about trying to change it. The simple reason is a more loamy soil would actually make it worse. We have had if you are lucky 80-100mls of rain in our area over the 2 1/2 months of summer. Its been a pretty dry and moderate summer. When I do a deep irrigation on the orchard we built in the front yard last year, I can go 2-3 weeks before needing it again, just because the soil can hold onto that water. The plants love it and saves us water. A more loam or sandy loam would lose too much water.
That said I am building the soil with organics, even tho it was filled with worms etc when I took out the grass, it was a lawn for 30 years with no nutrients put in, so thick sugar cane mulch for organics, top dressing with compost etc.
Thanks Matthew. I totally agree - there are definite upsides to a heavy soil
I can't say for sure , but I think my soil is mostly clay and rocks. Grass has a hard time growing. The yard is bumpy to the point it is hard to walk. I am thinking of tiling it just to smooth it out and hope that softens the soil so plants can grow better. Any ideas?
Nature does not dig nature buries.
Great video thanks
Thanks coach , this was excellent.
Very informative video, thanks a lot for sharing. People say putting brewed coffee grounds into native soil can improve the quality of the soil. Is it true? And what is the proper way of adding it to the soil, just putting it on the top layer or digging a hole and put the coffee grounds in then back filling the hole? Thank you for your input.
Thanks - coffee grounds are fine and yes, just spread them on top of the soil. Digging in is more trouble than it's worth.
What I'm trying to do is engineer the flow of water to dry crop but the crops will need cool soil instead of warm. But the soil in Puerto rico is btw both.
We have just moved to a newly-build house in Scotland. We have a small garden that is about 100 m sq. The construction company provided about 10-15 cm of topsoil. It is of very poor quality, very heavy and clayish. But most of all I am concerned about the waterlogging, because beneath that topsoil are layers of red clay (seems like pure clay, with a structure of plasticine). I tried to dig down and it seems that that clay goes down for at least 1 meter. I've done a "drainage test", I dug a hole and filled it with 10 liters of water to mark for how long it will drain. It's been 48 hours and counting, and the water is just standing there. Given that it wasn't raining, I am very concerned with the drainage. Any advice?
That sounds challenging - I did another video focused on drainage (link: th-cam.com/video/g6A5XnpxkFc/w-d-xo.html ) but the short version is that you may have to consider strategies like slopes, ditches or drains to carry excess water away from your cultivated garden beds (or to avoid pooling in inconvenient places).
What if you have an area of heavily compacted clay (from machinery) with no top soil left? What can sustainably be done to enable appropriate plants to grow in it? Thanks! ( it's land around a reservoir in Essex- a dry region in UK)
The fast answer to get growing in one season is to use a raised bed or bottomless container. Compacted soil can be a slow, tough thing to correct. Some cover crops are good at addressing compaction: Oilseed radish, red clover, oats, rapeseed (or a wide mix of various cover crops). I don't know how free you would be to do a more disruptive adjustment (tilling organic matter or sand deeply) - but even modest additions of organic matter over a longer timeframe can help.
That’s actually what builders do. They excavate the property, throwing out all the good topsoil and then you’re left with clay soil.
Where are you? It's beautiful behind you like a screensaver or a painting. Very Thomas Kinkadish, but not blurry.
Thanks Michael. We're on Nicomen Island, maybe an hour east of Vancouver BC.
Thank you for this video. I have been wondering for a long time and hesitating if I should try masonry sand or not in my lawn after watching so many youtube videos. my lawn is high in clay. Last year I mixed sand with compost and topsoil (higher rate than sand) in some areas. I need to put down more in the future to level my lawn.
I spoke with a local landscape owner who has different types of soil. He suggested to try sand/clay soil mix (he made his own) mixing with screened soil that have high in nutrients. it's a learn and Hoping that this mix will work for both levelling and toodressing..
Best of luck - I hope it works the way you want it to. I've been topping up in places with a garden mix (with a decent percentage of sand), and where it eventually works its way down into the soil, I've been happy with the results.
I am thinking about the same thing, to add sand to clay soil, how is it doing with you now?
@love•horses I don't seeich of huge improvement yet. Due to lack of physical ability, time, and space, I am applying small amount of sand & soil mix at a time. so I know it will be a long run for me.
Wherever I had spread sand&soil mix thicker, grass came through just fine. I am planning to aerate and spread sand each year to improve clay.
Cover crops help amend soil. My radish are growing nicely. Sunn Hemp a legume is growing nicely too. The worms enjoy the cover crop roots and as a result aerate the soil. I have a few surviving oats that I broadcast. Oats should not be broadcast. I love my Barley. It has broader leaves than Sudex and Millet. I am growing all (3) Crimson Clover and Annual Rye make a nice root system. I have these planted as well.
Thanks Portia. Always good to hear what cover crops you're working with.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Cover crops are so much fun and variable. I left some Crimson Clover in my (200) cell trary and was amazed at the root structure! They were as plentiful as crabgrass. I've been spreading my bag de oyster shell around. I still have my (12) end de sale roses to plant. I have bags de coffee grounds layed out to use them in my back Southern yard. I am collecting Swamp Milkweed seeds. I have to get some parasite treatment for my new PetSmart black mollies. They are nocturnal. I am looking forward to their every (30) day fry.
Good explanation.....will save me some backache!
aggregation is way more important than the ingedients of the Soil. As a Farmer i can say that feeding your soil and all that lives in there with organic matter will improve your soil over time a lot more than adding sand. Even a not draining clay soil can get much better with the right treatment.
Sorry for bad english.
same goes for sandy soil. organic matter an the aggregation will improve the ability to hold water and things like nitrogen and potassium.
Thanks. I appreciate your insights.
What if you added sand? Would that be harmful?
I built structure using small trees and trenches of a out 3 to 5 inch deep they need to be 16 inches deep and waves around the trenches because of the down pours.
My 23 ft X 4 ft bed has a clay base below the soil. The surface soil is heavily peppered with limestone gravel. Does the gravel need to be removed for soil amendment success? I want to amend the soil with a top dressing of organic matter, compost, grass to eventually break up the clay soil so I can plant flower or shrubs that will thrive. Please advise.
Hi Janet. No, I don't see the need to remove the gravel.
Puerto Rico has Akaline soil its mud clay dirt soil with high ph level of 80 since precipitation is around 70 percent and sun radius is 5.5 and cloudy.
We till and plough the land anyway so the structure has to go after each crop. Isn't it ?
Thanks Azam - not necessarily. Annual tilling is still common for some kinds of crops, but many farmers are working to reduce it because of concerns about erosion and soil structure. In perennial and mixed gardens like mine, I don't dig more than I need to.
A very good discussion. thank you!
Your garden looks beautiful
Thanks Jessica!
Great information explained well! Thanks! ...Also, thanks for the great laugh about "rude remarks" some folks leave in the comment section. LOL
I wish I would’ve seen this video before I messed up my yard. I just dug up a stump and mixed up all the soil and clay before I put it back in the hole
This view is amazing.
Thanks. When the weeds are bad, I'm thankful for the beautiful backdrop to keep everyone's gaze up high.
My question is whether there is a preference for builder's sand or play sand when amending clay soil.
Builder's sand - The correct term you want to look for is "Sharp" sand
The clay will fill spaces in both - The sharp sand will leave more spaces where the hard angles grate against each leaving larger gaps yo fill resisting heavy compaction and allow water through soft sands will create more impermeable layers as the sand will pack densely with the clay acting like a cementing bond
@@bengrogan9710 so you recommend amending clay soil with builder's sand?
@@lovehorses2669 yes, though I would say from experience to include a health amount of composting material as well - it helps keep the soil from trying to bind as much
Every time you plant in a container you are starting with a brand new soil structure so what is wrong with that? Doesn't seem to hurt.
Hi Brendan. There are advantages and disadvantages to tilling in sand or other amendments. You have to pick what works for you. My preference is to maintain and improve soil structure if I can, but if I were faced with a very stubborn thick soil, I wouldn't take any option off the table. One difference to container growing is that I would generally fill entirely with a potting mix chosen for superior water/air balance and drainage qualities. When working with a natural soil you won't have the same opportunity to "engineer" these qualities (unless you intend to replace the entire bed with something new, and even then, it's not quite the same in-ground). The improvement in texture by amendment may be partially or fully offset by losing soil structure. YMMV
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Okay. I only started gardening a few years ago. Mostly in containers as my soil is clay. I did throw down a lot of leaves, hay and wood chips last year. The mound without wooden borders technique. Hope it works.
Wonderful video,... i just needed my dog to stop turning white to pink and was wondering if sand will hurt the soils... this gives me more options. Thanks!
What about cocopeat ? It lightens heavy soil.
A good amendment
Great video! Thanks so much.
If you start with a clay pan (for example once the top soil is scraped off and a house built) then instead of mixing sand or organic matter in then simply replacing the topsoil with more friable loamy, mixes of garden soil can work. So add 20-30cm on top of the clay (topsoil) and leaving the clay as it probably once was (the subsoil). Plants should thrive. Organic matter will also help. The clay will hold moisture and nutrients and release it to the plants as needed but you can control what mix of topsoil you’d like, then you can always mulch that too with arborist mulches. Like a layered cake.
Hi there, Which kind of sand is used to improve the clay soil building sand or sharp sand?
Sharp
Thank you - great explanation!
So I have clay soil in my yard, and I dug a plot of land down like 18 or 20 inches or so and Im filling it with compost and perlite, not sand. Is this going to be aerated enough, and will I be ok on drainage? will it be a good starting growing medium? will I run into the problems mentioned here about disrupting the soils natural systems? Brand new to gardening!
Hi Nick. I think you're right to be concerned about the drainage - that's the first thing you need to solve. Compost and perlite can be nice additions to the soil, but it will take some for the soil to settle and develop structure again.
Sand is Acidic and if you mix to much the composition wont ve right depending on other factors. What I need is thermal heating.
I have a very shallow water table about 15 inches, with very silty low permeabilty. It is a back yard that was designed to flood sacrificially (instead of flooding my house). I want to short circuit stormwater to the water table. I was going to till sand into it, but i was worried about ruining the root structure as you said. Is it better to stab the soil with a pitchfork to aerate and just sprinkle sand over top. Is Pete moss necessary?
It's hard to know what will work with such overall slow drainage. Sure you could try and see if aerating or breaking up some of the surface layer will help, but I tend to think any new "drains" will silt up again pretty quickly. Another thought is to look into cover crops that break up compaction, like oilseed radish, rye or sudangrass - of course, you'd have to do a little research into what grows well and is available in your climate and what season to try it for.
Hi Jason how are you. Hope all is well. I know I had asked you before about miniature Rose's. I'm really having trouble. They seem to die on me in a couple of days. I potted 4 in an adequate container put them in part sun part shade. Picked up another one "obviously there was a sale" and the blooms went brown and it also looks like it's dying. I didn't even have the chance to water it because it was already very wet. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Have a great day. Thanks
What should we do to improve clay plus salty land?
With high salt levels this might be a time to look up gypsum as a solution
Great video! You're not one of these "anti-sand" guys. I trust that soil triangle with my life.
I trust the soil scientists that recommend about 15% organic matter.
Sure you might need to add a lot of sand if you are doing commercial farming. But if you dig a hole for your plant in your backyard garden, and you backfill that hole with 40% sand, that hole will have great drainage which might be just enough to let the core roots breathe and prevent the worst excesses of flooding. That of course depends on the size and scale of the hole.
In any event, understanding the three particle sizes and their respective pros and cons, it really liberates a gardener and allows them to think outside of organic solutions. I think inorganic solutions (meaning particle sizes) are just as important if not more important. Hydroponics takes inorganic farming to its furthest logical endpoint. Hydroponics is successful and conserves water and fertilizer resources. That's not to say organic matter is entirely useless, but organic matter is easy to come by and obvious to most gardeners. But I think most gardeners don't understand the three particle sizes and the soil triangle.
One last thing I want to express is that, if you don't have sand at your disposal because it's too expensive and not local to the area, I would be interested to see a study where clay is taken from the local soil, superheated in a fireplace or kiln, turned into hardened clay, pulverized into large sand-like particles, and reintroduced to the garden to improve drainage.
Because once clay is superheated, it cannot return to its former state. In other words, you cannot sculpt clay pottery with clay that has already been heated. So I hypothesize that clay could actually improve soil drainage if super heated and turned into sand-sizes spheres.
This is an experiment I want to try because sand is fairly expensive to buy compared to simply heating local clay. Although the latter is more labor intensive.
Thanks Trevor for your insights. My quite silty soil behaves rather like clay. One spot in the garden must have been an old sandbox - and I have to say that the blended soil around that area is quite a pleasure to work with. I might not go to the trouble and expense of adding sand in bulk, but I'm happy to use what's there!
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@Alexander Cyrus Instablaster :)
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Thank you so much you saved my account !
Have you thought about developing an online course about some of these topics you've covered over the years? Online courses and on site courses are very popular with the permaculture crowd. Maybe something to think about developing during the slower winter months.
Thanks for the suggestion!
Haha. “Or rude remarks”. Thank you for this video. I have red clay (prob 100%) and wanted to try and grow these artichoke seeds I bought but then read they prefer sandy loam. I was like, “I guess I’ll just add some sand”. Now, I don’t know what to do 😂
Very informative, thank you .
Well what I’m working w is pretty dead anyway. Haven’t weeded in years it’s just a clay basin. So I’m not sure how to go about it.
Yeah - tough call. But at least it's a blank slate of sorts. I've seen blends of cover crops (including large-rooted daikon radish) that are good at breaking up clay
I had a small tree stump removed from my garden recently. I removed all the wood chips left from the stump grinding and then filled in the hole with miracle grow garden soil and regular bagged soil. Now I am having drainage issues which is killing some of my perennials. What can I do to fix this mess I have made. It is retaining water, has insects and a slight oil like odor. 😳
Thanks fraser
my garden is all new compost and all the clay was removed for 12 inches down. Its an amazing garden, im not sure why keeping the structure would have helped my garden. My compost is loaded with healthy bacteria and I added a compost tea.
Idk maybe you mean just sand?
Here's a crazy question... I'm trying to plant some roses in super heavy clay soil. Just now saw your video, after attempting to amend about a foot down, with peat moss and soil conditioner. I don't have sand, but I do have a bag of crushed quartz that's about the same consistency as sand. I won't use much, but would this be a worse idea than using sand? Also, what are your thoughts on gypsum?
Hi Kathleen. The quartz would be about the same as sand for its properties. Gypsum only helps in sodic soils, so you'd want to know the chemistry of the soil a bit before you hit it with gypsum.
Wonder if you're still reading/replying? I have a heavy clay lawn. I'm hoping that simply top dressing with compost 1-2 times per year will eventually improve the soil. Worms dragging it down, aerating the soil, then bacteria and funghi feeding on it etc.
Hi Peter. I think if I were aiming to improve a lawn over clay soil, I might also use a plug aerator and add some sand with the organic matter. I guess it depends on how much effort you want to put into it, but the slow addition of both organic matter and sand (distributed by soil critters) will definitely improve a heavy clay over time.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Thanks! I am thinking of creating holes with an auger drill and filling those with compost too. Maybe a sand top dress to finish it off :)
Sounds like a good plan!
Great expectation
In the situation of having to amend the garden soil of a new construction, where you have to dig out a serious compromised layer, how would you recommend the new layers to be? A base of gravel for drainage and sand maybe? And then the top soil? How thick would you say the gravel layer has to be? Thanks!
Depends on how warm and how much water you have - the gravel alone does nothing without somewhere for it to go
Eg: if you had a french drain nearby then any layer would need to be an inch or so only if graded properly
If you add organic materials to the clay with some sand to plant a tree would that work
In general organic matter helps, but don't go overboard in the planting hole - they tend to compact down over time, and that undermines the support of the roots.
I live on a sloped yard. Half my yard has lost all the top layers of dirt, due to erosion and water runoff - I’m down to clay/rock base layer. is there a way to add material to make it a grassy yard again or should I just pave it?!
Hi Jacquie. That's a tough situation. I used to have quite a sloped yard, and I delt with it by adding terraces using some of the natural stone - which I guess is the fairly traditional treatment. It's a lot of work through. There are plants that can be useful for stabilizing slopes too.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm thank you for replying. I’ve been adding terraces to the side of my “hill”, but the front was a grassy driveway…now it’s just sand and rock at the top, grass and sand at the bottom. We’ve had so much rain during the winter when the grass was dead, all the good dirt washed down to the bottom. Every time it rains, more sand flows to the end of the driveway
I'm about to go forward with my experiment. Everything that rots at the bottom of the hill is caught by logs and stuff. I'm scooping that up, mixing it with sharp washed sand, a touch of gypsum and perlite, plugging (aerating) the piss out of the soil, THEN filling with that mix.
Only came here for the rude remarks. But alas I was disappointed. Thank you very much for the information.
A sad lack of rude remarks - agreed.
In other words, if you added a bunch of sand to your clay soil, expect to wait years, if not decades, for the soil biology to re-bake the cake and make that new soil texture become the new soil structure.
However, if you added a little bit of sand, plus organic matter/compost, every year, you could get closer to a decent sand incorporation into the clay, and improving that structure, faster than adding it all at once.
Simple analogy sand plus clay equals concrete
When is the best season to modify soil with sand?
I suppose for the sake of working it in, I'd pick a dry season of the year.
I would like information on the best way to water a veggie garden where heavy Clay is involved. Thanks
Hi Diane - less frequently because of the high water holding capacity, and of course watch to make sure your drainage is okay
Big thanks 🙏🏻
I have clay soil and currently dealing with fungi that’s killing anything that I grow in it. Tried compost. Tried soil amendments like Humic acid. Since in Ontario I can’t use fungicide any suggestions
All my roses die bcz of dieback tried watering less to avoid moist environment will greatly appreciate suggestions
maybe you should check the ph of your soil
Rdaised beds is another solution.
Yes! CD is great and the no dig method! You should watch Morag Gamble- She has a wealth of information, similar to CD in some respects, but also using permaculture techniques. Great information!
Can I apply the techniques to my yard (aka grass area)
You sure can rake in manure and a light application of sand each year to gradually improve organic matter, so long as you have reasonable drainage to begin with.
just seen video . we have a foot of soil then clay . have started digging 10 feet deep and mixing in cow manure. will also build up ground level 4 or 5 feet. this will be a 50 by 80 foot plot goal it a orchard. any thoughts . we have material and a hoe. we have started but now snow. will carry on in spring will give a year for it to settle before tree planting
You'll be in a better position to see how the site reacts to all this digging - I've seen some landscapes turn into a wasteland if there's any moisture in the clay when you work it.
oh we live in the swamp when wet it is slop but even in winter yard i can find hard dry base@@FraserValleyRoseFarm
Very good. Thankyou.
if you had a choice of only one clay soil amendment ,what would it be ?
In my area, wood chips - cheap (free!), easy to apply with the tractor bucket or wheelbarrow, and I've seen the improvement it can make long-term.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm thank you
Thanks for shareing
Ahh. The Porosity vs Permeability vs Organic Matter as Conditioners. Love talking dirt. Oops soil.
People don't like to understand clay sand and soil that's why it's low views. Speaking of views. I like the backdrop
Thanks! Not a very sexy topic, I know
I totally agree!
I was thinking I’d add the sand to my compost pile?
Seems reasonable - letting soil life work the sand in gradually as you apply the compost
If your soil is more than 40% clay, it's time to build a kiln and learn pottery!
Mixing sand to clay will essentially result in ciment!
ive already added a bunch of soil bro & the grass is growing back! i might be screwed
I hope it turns out well for you
You mean you added sand?
Well explained. Thank you. 22.7.24
at 76 my aim is to quickly improve drainage and get rid of standing water after even the lightest shower. We have a small but neglected / compacted clay garden plot so I conclude that given my limitations of time etc I will double dig and include as much organic matter i can get but will include sand as well as gypsum. Any contradiction welcome 🙂
how about biochar?
Charcoal is a long-lasting soil amendment, and I apply wood ash (with charcoal bits in it) regularly to my garden both for nutrients and soil improvement. The "bio" part I'm a bit more skeptical about - not that I think it'll do any harm, just in wondering if it's worth the effort.
I feel like I can't get worse soil as it is, it's not looking good. Squelching noises - not even walking on it
Yikes - so a drainage problem?
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Yes, very heavy clay and no natural drainage - it's a new build estate
People would pay. I would.
Added sand to my clay soil and got concrete.
Ugh. Sorry to hear it!
Add lots of organic matter and wood chips, it will change dramatically into a beautiful healthy soil.
Can you check your facebook message, I left a message for you on it
I can answer general gardening questions here in the comments of my videos (so all the viewers can benefit from the conversation). I'm sorry I just can't budget the time to answer them individually.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm
Ok, thank you. Sorry, I will add the question.
I want to use wood chips to improve the clay in my garden. Do I just need to cover the soil? Can it not be mixed with soil, because I have noticed many comments that wood chips and soil will compete with plants for nitrogen when mixed, so can I grow annual vegetables in soil mixed with wood chips?
Thanks - I did a video on the topic of wood chips and nitrogen: th-cam.com/video/JjIfIEPzFAo/w-d-xo.html The effect of wood chips is highest where the soil is in direct contact. If you put them on the surface, only very shallow-rooted plants would see a reduction in nitrogen. If you mix it, the chips will break down faster, and pull nitrogen from a larger area. Either way, it's relatively easy to add supplemental nitrogen to compensate. Liquid fish fertilizer is a decent choice, as would be alfalfa pellets.
Sand didn't help my at all, in fact it is worse. My tiller will barely break the surface when it's dry. It went from heavy/muddy to basically concrete.
Sorry to hear it Harry. That's the classic cautionary tale about amending with sand!
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm I plan on adding some gypsum and dead leaves to see if that helps. breaks things up.
@@harrypeterson9287 what happened when you added such organic matter?
@@lovehorses2669 The consistency is better, but it took a ton of leaves, grass clippings, food waste and elbow grease to break it up.
We'll see how things go over the next couple years.
When clay soil meets river sand it becomes concrete kinda soil. So never ever add river sand or construction sand to your clay soil.
I mixed some of my clay with sand the other day in a pot, going to see what happens. Half and half by volume. I also mixed one with half clay and half shredded leaf bits. Last year I mixed half clay with half grass clippings in a container and I guess it turned into okay potting soil. Didn't keep track of which five gallon bucket was which.
@@watermelonlalala haha hope it works for u. Mine one got concrete solid when I mixed clay and river sand
@@harsh939 That's why I did it in a pot. I'm afraid to put it in the ground. I heard the guy who lived in this house before me dumped truck loads of sand in the yard but it must have washed away or sank through the mud and disappeared.
@@watermelonlalala I wish u the best buddy. I just wonder how cool we are. We have turned this environment plants friendly haha. Lots of CO2 in the air.