How To Make A Vegetable Garden In Clay Soil

Clay Fix-it Tactics.

How to make a vegetable garden in clay soil. Another method is pinching a piece of soil between your fingers. Remember to only work in your clay soil if it is relatively dry. You can build a compost bin of any size right in your backyard.

Best Vegetables for Clay Soil One of the best approaches to growing vegetables in clay soil is to stick with veggies that like clay during the first few seasons of soil improvement. The heavy slower draining soil surrounding your flower or vegetable bed will act like a bowl and water could build up in the bed. Spread about 2 inches of compost on top of the tilled soil and work that in.

Spread it over the clay soil and mix them up to 12 inches deep. Adding organic matter in the form of leaves hay bark mulch peat moss and untreated grass clippings all help to make clay soil more workable. Cover with Organic Material Cover areas of clay soil with slower composting materials such as bark sawdust or ground wood chips.

You could plant buckwheat oats ryegrass and clovers. The soil type we have is heavy clay soil and although we have a south-facing garden the fence at the bottom is 4 metres high so that part of the garden is in shade for most of the morning and even in this heat I measured a 45 degree ground temperature two days ago the clay soil just cant dry out because behind the 4 metre high fence is. Pick up a piece of damp soil and work it between your hands form it into a ball and then roll it into a sausage shape.

There are a number of straightforward steps that the home gardener can take to improve the productivity of clay soil. This method uses layers of material such as shredded black-and-white newspaper compost and coir. Avoid pressure treated timber as it is treated with chemicals.

Before planting in spring add compost and aged manure. You can use grass clipping or you use shredded leaves compost or rotted manure. Start the process by using a tiller to loosen the existing soil if it is a large area or a spade if it is a more manageable size.