Posts

High quality landscape soil will support your WaterSmart landscape design. Photo: Lisa Fotios/Pexels healthy soil

Building Healthy Soil: Give It Some Space

/in , /by

Healthy soil consists of elements we don’t typically think of as soil at all. In fact, one of the most critical aspects of soil is the space between the particles.

Soil space results from a process called aggregation. Solid matter will aggregate under the right conditions, forming space between the masses. This allows air and water to fill this area. Rain or irrigation water percolates through the soil, and aggregate spaces hold it like a storage tank. You can store more water and irrigate less frequently when you have more space.

Common Soil Problems Can Be Corrected

Set yourself up for landscaping success by building the best foundation in your soil structure. Photo: walkersalmanac/Pixabay healthy soil

Set yourself up for landscaping success by building the best foundation in your soil structure. Photo: Walkers Almanac/Pixabay

Check your soil aggregation by looking at the soil you dig out during a drainage test. Does it have nice clumps, or is it condensed and compacted?

Compaction is a common problem, especially in areas where grading has been done, foot traffic is heavy, or years of chemical use have killed the soil microbes. Compaction occurs when soil particles are pressed together, reducing pore space. Reduced pore space keeps air away from plant roots and stops water from infiltrating and draining.

Here’s how to tell if your soil is compacted. Take a turning fork and plunge it slowly but firmly into the ground. If your garden has a foot or more of penetrable soil, your compaction is minimal. New roots will grow easily, and water will effectively penetrate and drain. Anything less, and you probably have some soil compaction.

Using a turning fork, an aerator, or a tilling machine, you can create gaps in the soil to loosen compaction. Because it breaks up the fungal connections, it should only be done once to prepare your planting beds.

Follow all of these activities with a layer of compost to feed the soil food web to help build the aggregate spaces. Mulch can also feed healthy soil and help loosen compaction over time.

__________________________________________________

WaterSmart Living-Logo-San Diego County Water Authority

(Editor’s Note: The San Diego County Water Authority and its 24 member agencies offer programs, resources, and incentives to improve water-use efficiency for residential, commercial, and agricultural users. WaterSmart choices are a way of life in the region. Stay WaterSmart San Diego! For more water-use efficiency resources, go to WaterSmart.SD.org.)

Soil-WaterSmartSD-Drought, Landscape makeover

Get to Know Your Soil Conditions

/in , /by

Every individual landscape sits in one of San Diego County’s 16 watersheds. The watershed approach to landscaping considers every garden its own mini-watershed, holding onto or cleaning the water falling on it and nurturing a diverse habitat of plants and insects.

Each mini-watershed can be controlled by the people who steward it. Individual landscaping choices add up to collective community action. As a result, these collective actions have the ability to restore the county’s greater watersheds.

Every landscape has unique opportunities and constraints. A thorough evaluation helps to identify them and inform the planting and design choices. Spend time in your yard, observe and take notes about it. Identifying multiple site elements will help you make decisions as you start the design process.

Notes should include the home’s architectural style and materials, good and bad views, slopes, and plants and trees you want to protect. Locate utilities and major irrigation items such as your water meter, controller, and valves.

Start With Healthy Soil

There’s so much more to soil than most people new to landscaping projects realize. Soil is the growing medium for plants. Its nutrients support healthy plant growth. Knowing and working with existing soil conditions and composition is a powerful strategy to maximize water efficiency.

Healthy soil controls the behavior of water: how it moves through the soil and how long it holds on to it. Healthy soil is essential to irrigation efficiency and plant health. It’s possible to build better soil even if existing soil conditions aren’t optimal.

See a demonstration about soil conditions in this video.

First, you must figure out what kind of soil you’re working with. There are three basic soil types: clay, silt, and sand. Clay soil is made of the smallest particles.  Sandy soil is composed of the largest particles. Loam, an equal blend of sand, silt, and clay, is considered the ideal. In general, sandy soil drains faster than clay soils.

Soil structure is also vitally important. Hard, compacted sandy soil will not absorb water. Healthy clay soil can behave more like a sponge, holding and releasing water when necessary.

San Diego County residents must often deal with clay soils and work to improve them to provide the best growing conditions and watershed.

__________________________________________________

WaterSmart Living-Logo-San Diego County Water Authority

(Editor’s Note: The San Diego County Water Authority and its 24 member agencies offer programs, resources, and incentives to improve water-use efficiency for residential, commercial, and agricultural users. WaterSmart choices are a way of life in the region. Stay WaterSmart San Diego! For more water-use efficiency resources, go to WaterSmart.SD.org.)