How Do You Amend A Large Lot With Clay Soil?
Plants grow best in well-drained, fertile, sandy loam soils. These soils when well supplied with organic matter are easily cultivated and produce quality plants. Unfortunately many garden soils are less than ideal. Gardeners faced with dense clay soils must modify the soil for growing success. Organic amendments and extensive tillage will remedy problems caused by gardening in clay. Test the soil. Dig holes for random sampling in a checkerboard pattern across the lawn or garden plot. Dig a hole 6 to 8 inches deep. Disregard the soil from the hole. Move back 1 inch from the diameter of the hole and take a clean 1-inch slice of soil. Place the slice in a plastic bucket. Repeat the process, taking a slice from the remainder of the test holes. Put each slice in the bucket. When all are collected, mix well, removing clumps, roots and debris. Spread out the test soil on newspaper to dry, then place about 1 pint of the soil in a ziplock plastic bag for submitting to a testing laboratory. Soil
