Common Soil Problems and Remedies
Gardening is a great way to relax and get some exercise outside. No matter how much you love spending time in your garden, it can be frustrating when the soil is full of weeds and pests. There are some common soil problems you can easily fix.
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Common Soil Problems and Remedies
It's easy to forget about the soil in your garden. It may be like a dirty, unimportant detail that you ignore because you don't sure where to start. But without good soil, you'll never be able to successfully grow plants and vegetables.
Soil is often the most important part of a garden. Without quality soil, plants won't be able to grow because they don't have enough nutrients or room for their roots to spread.
Some people are lucky and get wonderful soil right in their backyard but others need some help improving theirs so it's easier to garden than ever before!
Test your Soil
Two common issues with soil in the garden are that it is too acidic or not acidic enough. The good news is that these two things are simple to fix and can be done relatively quickly. The first step is to check your soil to see if it is acidic or alkaline or a nice balance in the middle.
Too Acidic
Soil that is too acidic can quickly be fixed. The most effective ways to fix highly acidic soil are using powdered lime or Epsom salts, which will neutralize the acid in your soil and help nourish your plants so they don't experience a cyanide-producing disorder called blossomed end rot.
When making your own compost for your garden with acidic soil, compost more eggshells for a higher calcium level. Super simple to do when you have chickens or quail.
Too Alkaline
Sometimes the soil is not acidic enough. With this problem, plants cannot absorb nutrients to grow, which can happen when the ground has grown potatoes or has been without fertilizer for a while. This can be fixed in a few simple ways like applying nitrogen and sulfur fertilizers.
Sandy Soil
Just because sand tends to make up the majority of your soil doesn't mean you do not have options to fix the soil so it can hold moisture and nutrients for your plants.
Adding a big batch of compost is a great way to loosen up sandy soil and make it better for your plants relatively quickly.
You will find that this continues to break down and will become shallower in your garden if you do not keep adding to it. If you have your own composter this will not be a challenge to keep up with for most families.
At the end of each planting season, till in the stalks and leaves from your plants after your harvest. You can also add in grass clippings and leaves you have raked from your yard to build up your soil.
If you’re raking grass into your garden beds, you will need to pay more attention to weeding your garden or use a garden fabric barrier.
Heavy Clay Soil
Rather than not holding nutrients and water, clay tends to restrict roots giving them nowhere to take hold. The key to making clay soil usable is to continuously add organic materials to break up the clay and improve the drainage of the soil.
Too Wet, Too Dry Soil
Two of the most common problems with soil are that it can be too wet or too dry. If you have a plant that looks like it's getting brown leaves and its roots are not healthy, then one of these may be the culprit.
You can also add mulch for water retention. You can prevent your soil from being too wet or too dry depending on the season by using lots of organic material when planting.
Soil can be a difficult subject to understand, and even more difficult when it's not working. We've put together some easy ways that you can fix common soil problems, now let us know which ones worked best for you by leaving a comment below!
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