Clay Soil

Question:

I have very bad soil that is impossible to dig, it has a lot of clay in it. How can I break this down and make the soil soft and ready to plant. I am not frightened of a bit of hard work.

Answer:

The only way to improve the structure of heavy clay soil is to add well rotted manure. To do this effectively you should double dig the whole area adding the manure as you go. Here's a link to my soil page which tells you the best way to carry out the digging http://gardeningregister.co.uk/NonProductPages/Articles/soil.htm. Even after you have done this work the soil may not be as good as you'd like but you should be good enough for new plants to survive. Each autumn you should add a good layer of manure onto the surface of the soil and let the worms take it down into the lower layers. Do this for a few years and you should end up with great soil.

If the garden gets waterlogged you would be wise to add a good amount of gravel while digging, this will help the drainage.

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