Soil Type and Gardening
Soil Type effect on Gardening
Last but not least - understanding your soil type is key to successful gardening! Soil is made up of clay, silt and sand and will provide your plants with an anchor for roots, water and essential nutrients. Take a look at your garden. You will find that your soil is made up of two layers - thin topsoil, and further down the subsoil. The topsoil is the important part - the heavy subsoil will not provide your plants with the suitable conditions in which to grow.
It's worth checking how deep your topsoil is, because if the layer is only a couple of centimetres thick the subsoil will cause problems. If the subsoil is clay, you are likely to experience water logging in winter or heavy rain. If it's sandy or chalky, you could be in for a drought in summer. Make sure you use plenty of rich and bulky manure to ensure you have a good healthy layer of topsoil for your plants to thrive!
Clay soils are well known for being waterlogged in winter and bone dry in summer, however they are rich in nutrients so will feed your plants well. Aster and Weigela will do well in Clay soils.
Sandy soil drains very quickly so you must choose plants that can tolerate droughts such as Broom, Tulip and Hibiscus.
Silty soil holds moisture and nutrients well so New Zealand Flax and Mahonia should both do well.
If you have Loamy soil you are in for a treat! It is very fertile and will suit almost any plant. Some good choices are Wisteria, Black Bamboo and Delphinium.
Acidic soil is perfect for really showy plants such as Rhododendrons, Heather and Camellias.
Alkaline or chalky soils will support a wide range of plants but is not suited to plants that need more acidic conditions. Lilac, Weigela and Lily will do well.
