What should be added to garden soil to loosen it up?

Question

I need to loosen up the soil in a large garden box. I planted radishes, carrots and lettuce in it last year. They did terrible. The soil was too hard. What should be added to it when we turn the soil?

Answer 1

The soil particles were bound together too tightly, which leads to compacted soils and poor growth of your plants. Whenever soils become compacted, water and oxygen are unable to move into the rootzone and the plants expend too much energy trying to survive.

Your problem can be alleviated by adding bagged compost to a depth of about 3 inches over the top of your entire garden box....along with some throroughly composted (preferably bagged) chicken or steer manure scattered over the top (3/4 to 1 inch in depth). Both should be roto-tilled or spaded into the soil thoroughly as deeply as possible.

The compost and the manure contain (microbes) beneficial bacteria and fungi that help bind soil particles together and allow water and oxygen to penetrate into the root zone. You'll begin to see a softer soil and much better overall growth of your vegetables.

Beneficial microbes will also help the roots to absorb more nutrients and utilize fertilizers much better. AND they also help protect your plants against soil-borne diseases and root-invading insects (to an extent).

You should maintain adequate moisture to your soil and prevent it from drying out during the summer months. The addition of a mulch isn't a bad idea either.

Just fertilize your plants with a balanced fertilizer (such as a 10-10-10) every 4 to 6 weeks and you'll see better results.

Hope this answered your question. Good luck!

-Certified Professional Crop Consultant with over 30 years of experience and a Degree in Plant Science

Answer 2

How To Loosen Hard Soil

Answer 3

Depends on the soil and why it is hard. If you have lots of chalk or mud in it, organic material, like sedge peat, compost, well rotted horse manure helps. Actually organic material is almost always the best ingredient to add to any garden soil.

If you have problems with draining, adding sand can help, but even better would be to dig down deep and put in sand and gravel or tiles to allow the soil to drain.

When ever possible, you don't want to use Peat, as it is a scarce resource now days.

Hope that helps.

Answer 4

Try adding cotton seed hulls to the soil. They will have to be watered thoroughly after they are tilled into the soil. Also add Lots of potting soil. If you do this every planting season it will become easier to grow your veggies.
Guaranteed to work.
You can also collect newspapers, don't include the sale papers and adds- put these between the rows it will keep the grass from growing and it can be tilled into the soil as well.

Answer 5

You need to amend your soil. Try using a prepackaged amendment. I like to use Miracle-Gro Garden Soil for Flowers & Vegetables. You coauld also get some manuer and peatmoss and mix it into your soil yourself.

Answer 6

You can use some sand, or some commercially produced mulch. Also, most sanitation landfills process natural biological wastes into mulch that you can get for a cheap price, All of these can be tilled into the soil to loosen it up.

Answer 7

Some compost or peat moss should do the trick. We have really hard clay soil and that's what we did before planting. It worked great!

Answer 8

Peat - it 'loosens' soil . . . and helps moisture retention. Mulch around the plants also, unless you are growing in shady area.

Answer 9

use a rake or get some EARTHWORM. if the soil doesn't look black enough, you need to get few bags of soil from a graden store.

Answer 10

If it is heavy clay soil add GYPSUM. I would also and compost (organic matter).