Simply put, amending our soil means improving it in texture and fertility. Soil amendment should be looked at as a long term solution with ongoing continual effort and ongoing continual results. If we’re looking for a quick fix, we’ve chosen the wrong hobby. Even if our soil was great five years ago, its not reasonable to expect it to remain that way without continuing to replenish it. Plants use nutrients; water and winter leach out nutrients – it’s simple math. Making our gardens the BEST that they can be begins with healthy soil, and that means we do what we can to continually replenish what is continually being used or lost.
How do I know if my garden soil is good?
The primary way to understand your soil is to check its texture and structure. Good soil has a healthy balance of organic matter, sand, silt, and clay. It should also be moist but not soggy. To determine the texture of your soil, take a handful of damp garden soil and squeeze it into a ball. If it breaks apart easily our soil is on the sandy side. If it clings together, our soil is more clay. Why does this matter? Proper soil texture is essential to allowing roots to take up moisture and air. Most soils contain a mixture of clay, organic matter and sand. Whatever your soil is currently, the objective it to ‘amend’ it so that it is more humus-y. Humus is the result of a long process of decomposition, the combined efforts of earthworms, bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms and time. It is loose, crumbly and spongy and usually dark brown or black in colour. Good soil could have as much as 25% compost and will hold together loosely if we squeeze it into a ball. Ideal soil for growing vegetables could be as high as 50% compost in the soil. This helps hold the moisture in a way that plants can readily access it. Ultimately, it is our goal.
Let’s talk about Clay first:
Clay is a fine grained mineral made when rocks break down. It acts as a binding agent giving the soil elasticity and allowing the soil particles to stick together. Clay soils can be difficult to till, and will not drain quickly after a heavy rain, often hardening when dry.
I remember a certain area near a creek close to my childhood home. We kids called it the ‘clay pit’, and I have no idea who discovered it, but new kids were constantly introduced to it. In the spring we would walk down with pails and (if I was to be totally honest) our mothers’ serving spoons, to dig some clay. We had to go after a rain when the clay was perfect, other wise it would be like cement and good luck getting any out with a serving spoon. It was heavy so we couldn’t bring a lot home in our little pails, but no matter – we didn’t need a heckuva lot.
We would get more water and knead it in like we were making bread. When it was the texture of plasticine, we formed small bowls out of it and left them to dry in the sun. I don’t recall how long they took to dry, probably a day or two if it was nice and sunny. Then we’d give them to our mothers (who were always so ‘appreciative‘) as gifts. They used them as ashtrays – which in the world in which I grew up, was a valuable household ornament. When I was much older and observed old indigenous pottery in museums, made in areas further south of where I lived, I remembered that clay pit and our rudimentary attempts at using the clay – and I felt one with the world.
I cannot say anything really ‘bad’ about clay lol, because it holds such fond childhood memories for me. But on the other hand, I didn’t have to grow a garden in it. And I sure wouldn’t want to. Dense clay soil compacts easily, restricting the movement of water, nutrients and air throughout, making it inhospitable for your plants. Roots hit a hard clay floor or wall when they try to grow, and the clay retains too much moisture drowning or rotting roots. Sandy soil is the exact opposite.
to amend clay soil –
add organic matter – like compost, dried grass clippings, shredded leaves, aged horse manure, and compost. That’s pretty much it. Sounds simple doesn’t it? Well you’d be surprised at how many problems can be solved by compost. My advice – after some very positive personal experience – is this three layer lasagna recipe.
1. Distribute a nice deep layer of straw (3 to 4 inches is a good start) over the surface of your garden area in the early spring.
2, On top of that, distribute another 3-4 inches of well aged horse manure. Why horse manure? Because it is a beautiful natural fertilizer rich in nitrogen and perfect for earthworms. (tip: horse manure is a good thing to add to your soil frequently, so make friends with a horse owner and plan to add a top layer every year or two). Your leafy green garden vegetables will be very happy.
3. On top of that – like the shredded cheese on your lasagna, broadcast the clippings of the first mowing of your spring lawn – with all the leftover fall leaves and snow mold and all the other things you thought were ugly when the snow finally melted. All organic grass clippings are wonderful, but the first mowing is full of microscopic critters that make the world go ’round. Their job is to break down organic material and they’re very good at it.
I am reminded that many years ago when our kids were young – for a different reason entirely, we layered a few bales of ‘hay’ all over the top of our backyard garden (yes, I mean hay as opposed to straw). Hay is grass, less coarse than straw (which is the dried stocks of grain) so it breaks down easier than straw. I hear all the time that one should avoid hay in a garden because of the amount of ‘seeds’ in it that are obviously going to grow, but I found that not to be a problem at all. The types of seeds you can expect to find in hay are the type of hay it is – perhaps Timothy Hay, perhaps Alfalfa. Those seeds are going to grow so LOOSELY in the hay itself that they’re easy to pull out as you’re walking by. Nothing to worry about. Don’t avoid hay for that reason.
Over the course of that summer the hay created a marvelous mulch for us, while it began the process of breaking down under the surface.
Benefits:
– It kept the weeds down, and those that did grow were rooted in the hay so super easy to pull out.
– It helped keep the moisture from evaporating.
– It was excellent mulch for our potatoes. They literally grew IN the hay, shielded from the sun.
– In many ways that was one of the best gardens we’ve every had, and I was anxious to repeat it.
– By the next growing season the hay was almost completely assimilated into the garden, and I needed more. But we couldn’t find more that year – we live in the city, so don’t have easy access to things like this. We found straw instead however, and while we understood the difference, didn’t fully envision the significance of that difference. While it looked good initially, it didn’t readily break down like the hay had, and after another growing season and winter, when Dan rototilled the garden the following spring, it got all tangled up in the tines of the rototiller – very frustrating for him. I agreed to not use straw anymore. In retrospect however, understanding it so much more now, I could have done things a little differently. We gave up too easily. All these years later, it is interesting to me that we’re returning to a method we had unwitting success with decades ago, but we’re understanding more about why it worked and that is helping. Such is the nature of gardening: one lesson at a time.
Sand:
Unlike clay, sandy soil allows water to drain more easily, but that requires a lot more water to sustain plant growth, and the constant draining washes nutrients away. My 9 year old Zack, once asked “Why doesn’t the ocean drain out?” He had noted that the sand on the beach didn’t hold water. I thought that was a brilliant question but of course I didn’t have a brilliant answer. The good news is that it is a relatively easy remedy in the garden; but again, don’t confuse ‘easy’ for ‘quick’. Looking for a one time fix is far too simplistic.
Amending sandy soil –
is necessary to help create a happy, healthy home for our garden vegetables. Adding organic material to the soil will not only add important nutrients, but will also help maintain them. It will also help with moisture retention. Compost is the best amendment. How ironic that for these two extremes of inhospitable soil, the solution is the same: COMPOST and other organic matter.
The best quality compost is made of many different types of material: garden greens, shredded leaves, dried grass, as well as kitchen waste of all kinds, and everything else that goes into a homemade compost. If you don’t have a good supply of homemade compost at your disposal, start by using city compost, or commercially purchased compost. Then immediately start your own compost so you can supply yourself every year after this. If you live in a place that isn’t conducive to compost, consider donating your kitchen scrapes to your local community garden. At the very least, donate it to your city’s green bin program if you have one.
Peat moss aids in moisture retention, helps increase the acidic soil level, and we can still buy huge bags of it quite affordably. I use it in my many pots and window boxes – pots of flowers, pots with peppers or tomatoes – all traditionally places that I have a hard time keeping moist. I use a wheelbarrow as a big mixing bowl. Equal parts potting soil, peat moss and compost – pretty much following my mother-in-law’s recipe. Then I add a LOT of water. It will absorb more than you think it will, and I constantly work the water in with my hands till the mixture is very moist but not dripping wet. Then I put it into my pots and plant my plants or seeds in it. It is a lot easier to keep peat moss moist than it is to get it wet in the first place – it’s first reaction is to repel the water, before it finally gives up and absorbs it. If you let it dry out, you’ll be starting again with that process.
Aged horse manure is an excellent compostable material to either mix into our compost or layer over top of our garden surface. Again, avoid the temptation to work it in. Have a little faith and give it time to amaze you.
Ultimately – this simple rule applies: the best way to improve soil texture is by adding organic material, such as compost. Decaying organic matter loosens clay-dense soil helping air and water move more freely so that roots can penetrate easily. It also helps sandy soil by holding water and nutrients that would otherwise drain away. In each soil extreme, it encourages beneficial microbial activity and provides nutritional benefits.
All soil requires amending from time to time – if only just to KEEP it good. And of course there are all sorts of other issues like ‘heavy feeders’, and crop rotation which continually benefit the soil. Gardens are living breathing entities and part of the cycle of life. Though we cannot see most of that life – it is there nonetheless, and living in harmony with it makes life a lot gentler.
Testing your soil for specific nutrient issues
You can test your own soil using a basic soil test kit from your local hardware or garden store. Inexpensive, easy and relatively accurate, soil tests provide good insight about what’s going on under your feet, including the levels of pH, calcium, lime, gypsum and potassium. I have only tested my soil once, the year after we took our spruce trees out. And after a year of fussing about this nutrient or that nutrient, the only thing that made a sustainable difference was something as simple as that garden lasagna recipe – which added compostable material in a very big way.
5 easy tips for healthy soil in your garden
- continually add organic matter – every year, and throughout the year by incorporating compost and compostables – which increases air, water and nutrients
- try to get out of the habit of using a rototiller, especially in smaller gardens where they aren’t necessary. Breaking up all that soil isn’t helping it.
- protect your topsoil from sunburn with mulch
- don’t use chemicals unless there’s absolutely no alternative
- rotate crops so that they are naturally both using up and replacing nutrients
Crop rotation:
The concept of crop rotation is simple: avoid planting the same crops in the same area every year. Different types of plants require different nutrients from the soil, and in return – provide different nutrients. By not planting the same vegetables in the same spot year after year, new plants will benefit from what the former plants leave behind, and we will discourage pests and diseases from building up in the soil. Ideally, we should rotate a vegetable family so that it grows in an area only once every three or four years.
Beans – include all sorts of beans, peas and other legumes. They are easy to grow and don’t require anything specific in the soil – just lots of sun. They’ll replace the nitrogen that high feeders use up.
Greens – include anything green and leafy: lettuces, spinach, swiss chard etc. They are easy to grow and not too demanding, but will benefit from nitrogen and phosphorus. Beans and peas are known for fixing nitrogen in the soil, so follow them with greens.
Roots – are obviously potatoes, carrots, beets, and other vegetables that grow IN the ground.
Phosphorus promotes strong root growth. Bone meal is a good source of it, but don’t over use. 1 Tablespoon mixed into about 2 square feet of soil is a good amount. It’s not fast acting so the sooner you can apply it the better.
Fruits – includes any type of garden produce that produces ‘fruit’ like tomatoes, squash, cucumbers etc. They are heavy eaters so give them lots of attention. Brassicas like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage etc are also high feeders so I’m including them in with fruits. They want phosphorus – and good sources are chicken and horse manure and fish fertilizer (fish emulsion). For several years I have planted a raw broken whole egg with my tomato plants because I had heard that the protein in the egg was beneficial, and I knew that calcium was – which the shelf provides. I had not taken the time to conduct any experiments but I’ve always had good eggs. Last year (2023 I didn’t take the time to use any raw eggs. I noticed at the end of the year that my tomato harvest was disappointing but I didn’t make a connection right away – and who’s to know if there even was one? . . . A good friend of mine conducted an experiment last season with three sets of three tomato plants each. In one set she planted each tomato in a deep hole with a fish head at the bottom (sprinkle a little compost). Same types of tomatoes, everything else the same, but different things ‘planted’ with the tomatoes. She noted that the set of three with the fish heads had considerably more fruit than the others. That is what made me think about my last season’s disappointing harvest.
This year I will be using eggs again – and in half of my tomatoes, I’ll also be including fish remains. I’ll keep track and watch for any changes. Stay tuned.
Gardening is about learning new things Every. Single. Year! So keep your eyes open, listen to others and pay attention.
Personally I avoid growing most vegetables from the brassica family: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, brussels sprouts, radishes, mustard greens, and collards. Not to say I don’t like them, I DO. But I despise the ugly voracious caterpillars that come from the cabbage moths – which always seem to find my plants no matter how well I think I’ve hidden them. I have tried every potential solution I’ve heard or read about but in the end, each success is limited and unsustainable. I finally gave up years ago and I’m at peace with that. However, I have three exceptions to my ‘no-brassica’ rule: kale, radish greens and mustard greens (which I have recently discovered). These I plant dispersed throughout my garden – especially kale, which are planted here a few, there a few in the vegetable garden, herb garden, flower gardens, front yard, back yard, . . . . wherever I can find a spot for one or two plants. I do this because I’ve noticed that the cabbage moth will take the easy path of going down a row laying their eggs. If my kale are not in a row, I have a chance of saving more of them. I am ruthless though – if a plant shows evidence of being eaten, I quickly pull it out and get rid of it – saving its neighbours from a similar fate. I tell them “Sacrificing for the greater good is noble“. I don’t know if that helps them or not lol.
Radishes I plant sprinkled among my lettuce and carrots. I don’t really care for radish roots, but I do like their green tops so its worth it to me.
Mustard greens – I have only recently discovered mustard greens and I really like them. I haven’t developed a routine for them yet however, still working on that.
For years Dan and I have maintained what I (playfully) refer to as the “grass war”. Its a complicated conflict. He loves his grass and I sorta like it too. I love my garden and he sorta likes it too. I would like more garden and less grass. He would like more grass and less garden. The war has never been won; we remain in a tenuous semi-permanent truce, each awaiting the other to weaken or concede on small issues. Maintaining a healthy balance of both, our yard successfully accommodates every demographic in our family: the little kids who need a play area and a yard to run around in, the bigger kids and Grampa who need a trampoline with water and a treehouse, the young adults and Grampa who need space to set up some yard games and roast hot dogs, Gramma who needs a place to grow food for them all, and the Gramma Great who needs a place to sit and watch the whole goings on.
So far mutual respect is the keeping the peace. However, the ‘conflict’ is further complicated by our opposing views on a few major points – like compost. They’re not irreconcilable differences, just differences of basic idealisms. We both believe in composting – me radically, and him conservatively. It is my insistence on keeping grass clipping IN the yard, being lightly distributed as mulch throughout the gardens and adding the rest to our ongoing compost. His position is that we have too much of it, and some of it has to go. Consequently, he’s motivated to mow the lawn when I’m not around to get the bags of a freshly mowed grass out into the alley for pick up, before I notice and go rescue them – hauling them back in and dumping them out in the compost area.
For years, the quiet but simmering conflict came to the surface every spring with the first mowing. My instincts told me that the first mowing was a gold mine of grass clippings, and his instincts told him it was dangerous – full of snow mold and other bad things that had to be eliminated. This remained a stale mate issue since time immemorial UNTIL a mutual friend unwittingly weighed in. Our friend Scott took a stance firmly on my side – stating emphatically that snow mold was a garden’s friend, and that the first mowing was full of hidden treasure. I should state here that Scott and his wife Alana are excellent gardeners with more formal education on the subject than either Dan or myself. It was Scott who prescribed our garden lasagna recipe above, and we both respected his opinion. The success of that ‘experiment’ has become the stuff of legend in our garden. But that’s perhaps a story for another time. Suffice it to say, that since that supreme success, we have agreed on the issue of the first mowing. Score one point for Cindy (not that I’m keeping track of course lol).
Back to the lasagna recipe –
I understand that it is tempting to want to “work in” all that additional material you just put on your garden. I admit I was sorely tempted the first time we did this too. My opinion was influenced by many years of tradition – as no doubt, is your’s. But DON’T DO IT! In fact, you will actually do damage to the very thing you’re trying to nurture. The natural state of a soil’s structure is alive and loaded with organic material – bacteria, nutrients, worms and other creatures, and microorganisms all working together in the great cycle of life. As we rototill or dig that wonderful material in, attempting to distribute it, we are actually disrupting and destroying instead of repairing. All those channels that worms and other critters create when they chew through the soil, help to bring oxygen and water into the ground below, making it easier for our plants to develop healthy root systems and find the nutrients they need. With our shovel, fork or (heaven forbid) our rototiller, we will break all that up – destroying colonies and disrupting harmony. Let nature do what she does best, and leave well enough alone.
Let the rain do its job of washing the nutrients from the top layer down into the layers below. If we’re having a dry spring, maybe we can help it out a little by watering from time to time. Yes, I know the wind will blow some of the straw around. Calm down. Just mow it up when you mow your grass and sprinkle it over the top again. In a matter of only a few weeks it will all settle in and make itself at home. We can trust the natural process beneath the surface; leave this part up to God and all his little critters.
If we intend to plant this area right away, we may be obliged to work some of this material in with a shovel or fork. We must do what we must do, but be cautious. In the past, I’ve marked my rows and gently moved the straw mixture away from the row line – to plant my seeds or seedlings, gently pushing it back around the seedlings when they come up. For potatoes, I keep the straw in place. Potatoes are tough; they’re gonna grow through it all, but I’m not as confident about more delicate seedlings, so I baby them a little.
Yes, our garden will be several inches higher than it used to be, but over the season the straw will break down, the aged manure will be distributed into it and and the top layer will become indistinguishable. It will remain a fantastic mulch. By the next year we won’t see any evidence of it – testimony to all that subterranean community effort that went on undisturbed and unseen from the surface.
~
In the process of amending our soil, we may be tempted from time to time by the lure of a ‘quick fix’. This can sometimes look like synthetic fertilizers, which can be relatively cheap and promise to act quickly. (To be fair, I am not opposed to fertilizers but take care in their selection). Fertilizers don’t amend the soil, they feed the plants. A synthetic fertilizer might help us within a couple of weeks, but its usually a single use result, needing reapplication. Organic fertilizers on the other hand, release their nutrients over a period of time. We won’t get the instant fix, but we will get a longer, sustained feeding. Several years ago we had a problem area in our garden, caused by three 40 year old spruce trees that we had removed the previous year. Whatever we were doing to help the shrubs and other plants we planted in their place wasn’t working; it became clear we had a soil problem. We went to a few local nurseries to ask for advice and suggestions for soil amendment, but the best we received were recommendations of fertilizers to help specific plants in our problem area. This was not helpful, as the foundational issue remained ‘poor SOIL’; the plants were just falling victim to it. That is when Scott and I discussed our problem, and he prescribed our lasagna recipe above – which in a single season, transformed our dead zone into a rain forest.
disclaimer:
While I believe there is a place for natural fertilizers AFTER the soil has been improved, and I use them from time to time, I don’t pretend to be an expert on the subject. This is primarily a discussion on soil amendment.
Tips for ongoing success
- Adding compost or another organic material like horse manure, chicken scratchings, grass clippings, or straw or . . . . any other number of sources, is the easiest way to continually nourish your soil. An annual application of spring compost and an occasional top dressing of aged horse manure should in most cases, eliminate the need for any other form of amendment.
- The least expensive soil amendment is your own home produced compost using kitchen scraps and yard waste.
- While fertilizers temporarily add nutrients directly to the area, amendments improve the nature and characteristics of the soil while additionally adding nutrients.
- Don’t expect a quick fix. Soils cannot be changed in a single gardening season; it will take years of continually adding organic material to prevent your garden from returning to its former heavy clay state. The action of compost and garden plant matter breaking down and working its way into the soil is a process not an event.
- When clearing out your garden in the fall, consider allowing leaves and other plant material to decay naturally becoming part of the ongoing ecosystem. In the spring, you can rake out what you need to, mow it up and add it back in as mulch once you’ve planted your rows.
I’d love to hear your tips for a healthier garden.
Feel free to comment below.
Warmly,
Cindy Suelzle
