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Woodridge, Illinois

I'm thinking about adding some sand to my patch to help improve the heavy clay soil. I'm looking for some advice, from those who have added sand, regarding the best type of sand to use, and the ratio of sand to compost that should be added. Thanks.

10/12/2015 11:43:27 PM

Austin MN

Talk to bubba he gave me good advice!

10/12/2015 11:53:36 PM

Paradise Mountain, New York

sand and clay makes bricks...... Use a lot of compost instead

10/13/2015 12:12:44 AM

Austin MN

Not true pumpkinbrat

10/13/2015 12:23:08 AM

Austin MN

Compost will help too but sand will increase your soil particle size thus making it not compact as easy.

10/13/2015 12:25:10 AM

Anamosa, IA BPIowegian@aol.com

Gypsum is supposed to help break up clay. Maybe gypsum and compost together would help. Darren C. said he helped his clay soil by adding sand. But I think you would need to add a lot of sand and avoid working the soil when wet to prevent making bricks.

10/13/2015 12:40:04 AM

Tinykinville

I agree with tanner compost and manure help break up soil and yes a little sand wont hurt but adds zero nutrients to plant, depending on levels gypsum will help break up soil as well but adds a fair amount of calcium and sulfer

10/13/2015 12:42:42 AM

Bristol R.I. USA

I added two dump truck loads of sand to a 24x60 patch. I think I could have added more.

10/13/2015 12:49:28 AM

Anamosa, IA BPIowegian@aol.com

I worked 30 yrs. as a soil conservation tech. Soil that is very sandy won't compact, but if you mix in enough clay you could get it to pack very good. That was important when we were trying to get a pond to seal up or build a strong enough dam. A good mix of soil particle sizes (sand, silt, clay) makes the best compaction. So if you add enough sand so that your soil is more sand than clay, you might help it out.

10/13/2015 12:50:49 AM

Alex, IN

It is more beneficial to add OM rather than sand since the OM will increase the CEC of your soil. That being said if you add sand you must add enough to make a more than 50% change in soil texture to gain a real advantage. Sand has no nutrient holding capability so one would only gain air space due to lack of compaction. I used 2 tons of very coarse, almost pebbles sand along with 2 tons of cow manure spread over a 10' X 20' area and had some good success.

10/13/2015 5:46:51 AM

JACKSON, WISCONSIN. ; )

I added 5 yard s of sand a few years ago and add sand every year... My soil is awesome .. I have a clay base with high o m drains like no other.. I don't think it had any specific name.. Just sand... So that year it was 5 yards sand and 10 yards of black peat dirt and 5 yards of leaf compost...
We had a special mix made and we called it something.. But don't recall what

10/13/2015 8:55:17 AM

Stanwood, Washington

Has anyone ever tried adding large amounts of perlite to a patch?

10/13/2015 7:12:08 PM

formerly RGG

Agricultural or coarse sand is preferred as it has a larger particle size.

10/13/2015 8:19:53 PM

Woodridge, Illinois

Thanks for all the help guys. Tconway - I tried emailing Mark twice over the last week and a half and haven't heard back. How about it Mark? Has Bubba left the building? I'm adding 12 yards of compost to 2400 sq ft, so I'm thinking 5-6 yards of sand to start? Tennessee Dreamer - I was wondering about particle size. Is there another name for coarse sand? I want to make sure I don't get anything with lime in it as I don't want to raise my pH.

10/13/2015 9:26:58 PM

Citrus Heights, CA

When I was younger, I lived in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. We had clay based soil. We added many tons of granite based sand taken from the side of cut banks. We also added tons of compost. while it took a number of years we ended up with some very good sandy loam. The gardens produced very well.

10/13/2015 11:28:54 PM

Citrus Heights, CA

Captain 97, Yes I add about four cubic yards of perlite to my patch each year.

10/13/2015 11:31:30 PM

Muddy Waters

Sand is great! I add 5 yards of sand To 1000 sg feet & till in in good several times.My soil has great drainage.Its mason sand.I did this 2 years in a row.If your emailing me And not getting a response You must have the wrong address??What address are you using??I dont use my old Comcast email at all.Can even remember what it was??lol I can be reached at Mark@worldwidegiantgrowers.com Leave a subject or I wont open it.

10/14/2015 6:01:49 AM