Do certain plants like certain soils?
The answer to this question is, yes. And the effort to better understand the cultural practices (water, maintenance, pest control) and site requirements (light exposure, soil type, pH, drainage) to grow a particular plant, will pay off. Cultural information for most plants is easily obtained and usually well known by experienced nursery/garden center personnel. The site requirements like light exposure are also fairly well known for most plants. However, soil conditions may vary considerably in a residential landscape. Matching plants to soils is not always easy. Soil pH is one place to begin in matching plants to soils. The soil’s acidity and alkalinity is measured in pH units. More acidic soils in the pH range of 5.0 to 6.0 are preferred by certain plants like potato, blueberry, rhododendrons/azaleas, camellia, holly etc. and they are more productive and hardier when the acidity is corrected. Likewise, there are plants that prefer or tolerate more alkaline soils. Fortunately, most pl
