Researching soil reveals indisputably that there are 4 types of soil. Or is it 3? No, it’s definitely 6. Wait, what? 5. Well, what research reveals for sure, is that there are many different combinations of soils that will render a garden lush and green, sparse and struggling or crying out for help. Help consists of your ability to change up the components of your garden soil.
The three common denominators in soil are unanimously sand, loam and clay. Based on where you are located in the country, and in your state, your soil will contain different percentages of each. Our challenge, as gardeners, is to know what we have, and if –and how – to alter it.
Sand is made of naturally worn-down rock. Its asset is that it allows water to drain thoroughly from soil, not allowing plants to stand in wet or moist beds. When rock and mineral particles are worn down to much smaller particles than those in sand, the result is known as silt. Silt consists of medium-sized particles which are smaller than that of sandy soil, but larger that that of clay soil.
Clay consists of extremely small sediment that packs together and is hard to dig. It also makes it difficult for roots to flourish and for water to penetrate. On its own, clay is a gardener’s nightmare. Loam is considered the Cadillac of soils because it contains the trifecta: sand, silt and clay, in pretty equal amounts.
Each soil type has something going for it, like sand’s ability to allow water to pass through it and drain thoroughly. The trick is to produce soil that provides balance and not “too much of a good thing.” Clay is nearly the opposite of sand; its particles are so fine and tightly packed together that it doesn’t allow water or air to penetrate. Let’s take a look at soil from our plants’ perspective…
As previously mentioned, sand provides good drainage. It is light and soft, but contains no nutrients. Clay is the opposite; easily compacted, it prevents good drainage, but can contain a high level of good nutrients. Loam consists of combining sand for drainage, clay for water retention, silt for nutrients, and presents the most accommodating garden soil for plants and vegetables. It boasts fairly equal amounts of coarse sand, tiny silt particles and clay.
While loam is the soil of choice for the majority of plants, check the tag that comes with perennials and shrubs to see if they favor a soil with higher amounts of any ingredient. Succulents and cacti are examples of plants that do not favor loam. Soil with a large amount of clay is favored by daylilies, asters and butterfly bushes. And sandy soil is preferred by irises, lavender and rosemary.
Compost is decayed organic matter, dense with beneficial nutrients, that is often added to soil as a fertilizer for plants. Petal Pushers Farm pre-mixes compost with loam in order to produce Super Soil, a top selling product used to start – or replenish existing – flower and vegetable gardens.