Garden Help - Please!

djsim

Registered User
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Hello again AAM members,

I would like some advice. I hate failing in projects that I take on, so hopefully ye guys can help. Otherwise, I will have to throw in the towel and get a professional in, don’t really want to do this as I have already spent money on this project.

First off, my back yard comprised mainly of clay soil (New estate). My friend and I dug a French drainage system (followed guide from a key post here) and the area where we installed this system has improved a lot. (Maybe should have done this after the step below, but anyhow)

However, the remaining parts of the yard, are still waterlogged when it rains. I was hoping my next stage of my masterplan will fix this:

Remove 6 inches of the remaining clay soil areas and replace them with top soil. Will this be sufficient to plant grass seed? By using this method I am hoping that with the top soil and French drainage system, my garden won’t be too badly of.

Any suggestions for ideas will be greatly appreciated,

Thanks,
James.
 
Spread about 6mm of sand on top of the clay and rotovate in. If it's really bad clay, then spread more sand. Doesn't matter what type of sand, the aim is to improve the drainage in the soil.

You could also throw some topsoil and / or well rotted manure on top before you rotovate. The more the clay is broken up the less it will be waterlogged and the better the soil will be.
 
I have heard it said that adding sand to soil can actually make it worse.

If it is really poor soil and you want a quick fix, then remove and replace with good topsoil. Otherwise dig through lots of organic matter (compost, manure etc) and over time it will get better.

Happy to stand corrected by anyone who is more knowledgable than I.

Edit: added this link which confirms my belief (and there are lots more that say the same). In particular avoid soft sand which can turn your soil into adobe ;-). Some sand and grit can be beneficial but the key is breaking up the soil and liberal and ongoing addition of organic matter. Old mushroom compost or well rotted manure in large quantities would be a great way to go.

http://www.gardenzine.co.uk/clay-soil.html
 
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Thanks, at least I am on the right track so.

Is 6 inches enough to dig down?
 
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