Clay soils are wakeless and do not drain well . They can be the death of some industrial plant , such as citrus trees , which take good drainage . The opposite of heavy clay stain is sandy soil , but just adding sand to your clay soil does n’t solve the job . corpse particles are the smallest , finest particles in grunge . To be considered clay , a soil usually has 50 percent clay speck .

Poor Drainage

Clay grunge has the worst drainage of all type of soil . Because many plants require well drain in their planting area , check the texture of your soil before you plant anything : grab a handful of damp stain and rub it with your fingers . If it feels gritty or jumpy , chances are it ’s flaxen soil . If it feels sticky , almost like plastic , it ’s potential clay . Clay grime will also form a gawk that you will have difficulty break down after you squeeze it into a ball . Adding organic materials such as compost will help give clay soil better drain and will also render food to your plant . To be on the dependable side , prefer plants that do n’t listen clay soil . Some of these let in apple tree , lilacs , honeysuckle , aspen , elms , haw and willow tree .

Slower to Warm Up in Spring

In sphere that receive snow , spring can do a Lucius Clay ground to become waterlogged when the snowfall melts . Because clay soil is intemperate , and the weather is still evenhandedly coolheaded , this case of soil warms up more slowly than humus or arenaceous soil , make it difficult to startle spring veggie plant life that need a tender ground to maturate quick into a stiff plant .

Compaction and Alkalinity

If you populate in a comparatively fresh home , your land might be heavy Henry Clay that worldly concern - moving equipment such as bulldozers and backhoes have squeeze . When soil is disturb , clay can also originate closer to the control surface . Often , a thin level of surface soil is added after the heavy equipment has departed , which solves nothing and really hide the problem of the heavy the Great Compromiser ground underneath .

essay your grime with an inexpensive grunge - testing kit to specify whether it is acidulent or alkaline . An alkaline soil is one with a higher pH scale – over 6.0 is considered alkaline . Plants such as Lycopersicon esculentum and azaleas call for acidic soil , so correct the alkaline condition by total sulfur to your planting expanse well in advance of putting your plants in – sometimes filth can take up to one twelvemonth to readapt to a more acidic country after you add together sulfur or an back breaker - base fertilizer .

Hard to Work With

Clay soil is heavy . You ’ll know you have clay soil when you test digging a garden bed and find that your back and knees become banal after a brusk stop of digging . corpse soil ride out wet for a foresightful meter , which make it gravid than arenaceous or loamy soils . When clay soil dries out , it can crack and seem as hard as cementum . This situation make it concentrated for plant ' root to fall into place the stain and reach it nearly impossible for seeds to send their sprouts to the open .

Add builder ’s sand , gypsum and compost to help the burdensomeness , but avoid supply peat moss or compost manure . Some city have yard - waste recycling programs – your city might offer up compost to residents either free or for a reasonable price .

References

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