Pointers for Gypsum

I recently purchased a young Wild Olive tree (native in southern Texas), and the nursery suggested we use gypsum when we plant it to compensate for our clay soil. I'm not too experienced, and I'm wondering how much I should use. Should I just line the bottom of the hole with a shallow layer?

Also, I understand that sheetrock is made from Gypsum. If I have some scrap sheetrock, can I just crush some of it up and use that? I'm cheap that way. I checked with Home Depot, and they didn't have any in stock, and besides, like I said, I'm cheap.

Thanks,
Marco

Marco,

hope this helps ... http://www.humeseeds.com/gypsum.htm , http://www.environment.act.gov.au/ie4/yourenvironmenthwp/gardenfertilizers.htm

how to improve clay soil ... http://eesc.orst.edu/agcomwebfile/garden/soil/claysoil.html

Marco, yes you can crush up sheetrock - I've done the same thing with scraps from our remodeling jobs. I crushed it up and added it to my compost pile, and it eventually makes its way to my garden. I've also bought bagged pelletized gypsum when I needed some in a hurry to loosen a new asparagus bed (I have VERY heavy clay soil, and areas are on the alkaline side of the pH charts - go figure.)

I didn't check the links MaVie provided, but I wouldn't recommend layering it in the planting hole, as it can set up a brittle but hard layer. Instead, I'd mix it well with the dirt, and I'd also add leaf mould, compost, or other organic material at the same time.

Also make sure you add back a fair amount of that clay soil - if you create a nice humusy environment for the tree's roots, it might never bother to push its way into the surrounding clay, and eventually it will stunt the growth when the roots start growing in a circle. Eventually the rootball can girdle/choke itself.

Some experts go so far as to suggest that planting holes shouldn't be amended at all - it's a "tough love" approach to plants (they either make it or they don't.) Others aren't quite so radical, but if you're going to amend the soil, make the planting hole pretty big, and use most of the clay you excavated when you plant, so the soil isn't radically different in the hole versus the surrounding soil.

And working on improving the overall texture of your soil, even your lawn, is a good thing :) Aeration, addition of organic matter as a top dressing will help over time.

Thanks MaVie Rose and go_vols. Good information. I'll do the best I can. We have really heavy clay in areas of the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas where I live. I've seen these trees do really well down here since they're native to South Texas. They are often used to dress up medians on highways and for other landscaping on public areas. I don't think the city does too much to amend the soil before or after they plant them, and the trees really do well. So maybe I'm worrying about nothing.

On the otherhand, last week I went hunting on a friend's ranch, and saw these trees growing wild. That area had much more sandy soil, so I started to think more about what the nursery suggested regarding adding gypsum to the soil.

I'm rambling. Anyway, I'll incorporate some of the suggestions. It probably won't matter. After that hunting trip, these trees are like weeds, but I think they're pretty.

Thanks a bunch.

Marco