Improving the soil, no matter what type, vital for plants

To a new resident of Pueblo West it often comes as a shock when he or she first pushes a shovel into the soil. The top inch or so seems loose - look at the dust on our shoes. But when we attempt to turn the ground for our first tree or vegetable seeds or tiny plant from the nursery, we run into something akin to concrete.

To confuse matters our soils are not the same from area to area within our community. My flat acre is heavy clay that often needs the help of a pick to penetrate the soil deeply. A friend used to live on property that was sandy but still not easy to dig. Then there is the shale!

For shale dwellers the problem is simple - there is scant amount of soil for roots to grow in. The solutions are not simple. Does the homeowner then dig out chunks of shale and fill the empty spots with top soil, haul in loads of soil to cover deeply enough to plant anywhere, or limit his plantings to species that can fit between the shale?

For the clay dwellers and the sand dwellers - they have soil, but can they grow anything in it?

Our soils are alkaline and hard. There is a continuing cycle in most of the eastern and middle portions of our country that consists of plentiful rainfall creating green growing matter that dies and decays in fall and winter, and this decayed matter then enriches the soil to that it can support more green growing materials - and the cycle is repeated over and over. We don’t have this cycle here because both rainfall and green growing plant materials are limited.

Soil can be improved up to a point. Whether your soil is clay or sandy, the secret to improving it is to add organic matter. Doing this is not going to make it possible to grow azaleas or blueberries with any degree of success because of their intense need for acidic soil, but it will make the soil more porous and the roots of your plants will be able to grow more freely. And it just might edge the pH down slightly and briefly. After some time you will be able to dig with greater ease. Soil improvement is a continuing process.

Organic matter can be obtained by starting a compost heap or by buying bags of already composted material or bags of sphagnum peat. Manure from your, or your neighbors’, horses can be used but is risky. If fresh, it may burn the roots of your plants. Even after being composted for a year, manure is salty - salt is alkaline and can send the pH in the wrong direction. Also sawdust is better added to the compost rather than directly by your plants because as it breaks down it uses more than its share of nitrogen and the plants could suffer.

Soil improvement is a necessity for most vegetables and for ornamentals that come from areas where rich loam is a given.

What about the drought-tolerant plants that like it here? Many of them have been growing in this rock-hard stuff for centuries and they do just fine. Native plants destined for your garden as well as imported xeric plants can go right into the same ground that breaks shovels when we dig. When you make the earth they inhabit too fluffy and rich, they are not happy. With this thought in mind, our soil is perfectly acceptable for many plants unless it has been severely compacted by machinery or vehicles.

Our prairie soil that grows luxurious imported ice plants and glowing golden banner is a very fragile thing. The machinery that helps to build our homes is also a destroyer of soil as well as are recreational vehicles that romp over ground not designated for them. The weight of these vehicles presses down and compacts, pushing out the spaces between soil particles that hold the necessary oxygen for root survival.

So what determines the need for soil improvement is what you want to grow. Improve your soil for the vegetable garden and the flowers and shrubs that originate east of here. Leave it be for the native and the drought tolerant plants.

It is always a good idea to have your soil tested. Check with the Extension Service for the details. The results of the test will tell you what nutrients are missing and just how alkaline your patch of earth is.

Marilynn Chambers is a master gardener and native plant master, and a member of The Gardeners of Pueblo West, who designed the Xeriscape Demonstration Garden under construction at Cattail Crossing park. You can e-mail her at jchamlyn@msn.com. 

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