Subject: Nasty clay soil

From: [email-masked] (Doug Vogt)
Date: 28 Mar 95 18:59:08

In a msg on <Mar 24 23:29>, [email-masked] of 1:1/31 writes:

 j> Am ex-Brit with burning desire to have lovely  'cottage garden' 
 j> here in Pittsburgh. However, have horrible heavy clay soil 
 j> that needs pick-axing in order to plant (or double dig)! Can't 
 j> afford to employ heavy equipment contractor to replace all 
 j> beds. Please give any suggestions so that another frustrating 
 j> summer is not experienced!!
     Have the same problem here in central NJ (more or less river bed in the
Raritan Valley). The first time I tried to put a shovel into this dirt, it
bounced off. I bought a Sears tiller and with peat moss, compost and pine bark
manage to grow some very nice flowers. Loosening the soil really helps but
digging by hand is a bit too time consuming. Get a tiller.

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From: [email-masked] (John Woodworth)
Date: Wed, 29 Mar 1995 07:34:45

In article <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (Doug Vogt) writes:
>From: [email-masked] (Doug Vogt)
>Date: 28 Mar 95 18:59:08 
>Subject: Nasty clay soil

>digging by hand is a bit too time consuming. Get a tiller.

Tillers are great if you have one, your neighbor has one or you're lucky 
enough to have a truck to haul rentals. I found an easier way. In the fall, 
pour gypsum on top of the clay soil. It should be at least 2-3 inches deep. To 
keep it from washing away, cover with some loose mulch. By the time spring 
arrives, most of the gypsum will have worked its way into the clay and 
loosened it up. 

John

"Epater les bourgeois"

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From: [email-masked] (John Woodworth)
Date: Wed, 29 Mar 1995 07:34:45

John

"Epater les bourgeois"