|
| I've read countless threads looking for answer to this and still not satisfied. I run a community vegetable garden - raised beds on top of clay that doesn't drain well even though we put in french drains initially. I'm at a loss as to the most cost-effective, SAFE thing to put in these beds for planting medium. Not trusting expensive bagged compost product (Organic Growers Conference in March to discuss this). Didn't like the last big name outfit that delivered supposedly "topsoil". Also, I think the advertisement for "organic topsoil" is kind of funny....not falling for that. Whole point of this garden is to teach people to "save money by growing your own food" and yet they are buying bag after bag of compost and topsoil product to put in these beds.
Wonder if answer is to have native red clay hauled in and mix with lots of homemade compost? |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by piedmontnc 7b-8 (My Page) on Mon, Feb 7, 11 at 16:12
| Does the community garden have a compost pile(s)? |
|
- Posted by rosiew 7 GA (rosemarywalsh@bellsouth.net) on Mon, Feb 7, 11 at 16:43
| Minnie, you totally cracked me up with the statement about 'ORGANIC COMPOST'. Thanks for the belly laugh. I needed it today. Tell us more about this garden - where are you, BTW. Hope to get involved with a community garden here in Sugar Hill this year and can learn from your choices. Rosie |
|
- Posted by minnieoaka (My Page) on Mon, Feb 7, 11 at 19:47
| Yes, CG has compost pile- still waiting on all 38 gardeners to jump up and down over benefits of composting. Have compost finishing out at a rate that would serve about 10 garden beds in a meaningful way --28 to go. We are Georgia - zone 7b. |
|
| What do the people that garden there do with the leaves that fall from the trees around them? Those leaves are organic matter that could be 1. used as mulch on the soil which will eventually contribute organic matter to the soil which will aid the drainage of the clay, or 2. they could be tilled into the clay (a lot of work, however) which will add organic matter to that clay which will aid the drainage issue. Any other form of organic matter could be added to the soil also either as mulch or tilled in. Compost is organic matter in a form more readily utilized by the Soil Food Web then raw, undigested organic matter would be, but it is not the only form of organic matter that can be added to soils. |
|
| My first inclination is to work on amending the clay that you have...though of course if you're set on using raised beds, you'll need to fill them with something. As kimmsr says, working in leaves or other organic matter is a lot of work, but if I had a lot of clay with drainage problems, I think I'd bite the bullet and do it, because it will really pay off. If you're talking about trucking in clay to fill the beds, then working in organic matter as you fill is easier than working it into existing soil...but if it were me, I would still dig down and add the existing soil under the beds into the mix. I tend to think that most people's soils are better than they give them credit for, and are worth amending rather than abandoning. Leaves, horse manure, cow manure, rabbit manure, seaweed if you're near the coast, and of course compost are excellent additions. A bit of asking around can often produce a good supply of free stuff, thus helping your "you can save money by growing food" argument. I've really been on this kick lately, and I basically don't pay anything for soil amendments any more, and when my current bags of organic fertilizer are gone, I don't anticipate buying more. Remember, though, that if you fill your raised beds with too high a percentage of organic matter, you're just setting yourself for needing to significantly re-fill them every year (I'm not talking about adding a bit more organic matter, but rather needing to fix serious sinkage). I would make sure that you have a high enough percentage of regular old soil to minimize the sinkage problems. I speak with the Voice of Experience! |
|
- Posted by minnieoaka (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 11 at 9:47
| Ahh. then you all finally helped me get an answer. The raised beds have been up for two years now..some are a mix of clay and compost but most are 100% various mixes of designer bagged compost. Seeing the futility in this made me write this post to begin with. However, I had people deliver leaves last Fall from their own yards and we now have leaves coming out our ears. Sounds like a mix of local red dirt mixed with these leaves and left to sit a bit might ultimately be the most sustainable answer |
|
- Posted by piedmontnc 7b-8 (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 11 at 10:09
| Once amended, that red clay (I have the same here in NC) makes a wonderful garden soil. Between the garden waste generated, leaves, and encouraging all 38 families working the garden to bring their kitchen veggie scraps, you should be getting enough compost to keep those beds topped off. |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Soil Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.