How to improve the soil now for a Spring planting

I live in Montgomery, Alabama and have a lot of red clay in my garden soil. My garden plot is 12' by 28'. I was thinking of buying a yard on masonry sand and a yard of "super soil" (Mushroom compost). I don't know where to buy humus in quantity. Any further suggestions?

Last Fall I planted shallots and harvested around 5 lbs, but they are so small that it takes a great deal of effort to peel them. The result is almost flavorless. Apparently the variety of shallot I planted was a poor choice. What variety would you recommend that would be both larger and more tasty?

Every fall, I till the fallen leaves into my garden. I pick them up with the mulching mower, so they're mixed with some grass. The improvement is noticeable every year.

And they're free.

We have a lot of maple trees here, and one fall when I tried to mix the leaves in my garden, I ended up with many tree seedlings in the spring. What do you think I did wrong? I am afraid to try it again.

Maples produce seeds in the spring, and they sprout very readily. This wouldn't be caused by fall leaves - by that time, all the seeds would have been long sprouted already - in your garden among other places.

Along with the sand, till in all the plant material you can of any kind you can get you hands on - leaves , peanut hulls, pine straw, grass clippings, hay (first use the 12 day process described in the Straw Bale forum, which starts the decomposition process & kills any seeds in it), stable shavings or horse droppings (will age just fine in the soil by spring, unlike chicken or cow manure which has to be aged longer), rice hulls, spent hops from a brewery, sawdust, chopped, shredded bark, etc, etc, etc. I've used all of these to good effect at one time or another. Add some mitrogen to aid in the decomposition - doesn't take a huge amount. That red clay is likely too acidic (a soil test will tell you), and would probably benefit from adding lime.

If you don't have a tiller or can't handle one, you may have to hire someone to do it. There would be a little extra cost, but you'd be making a soil improvement that would last for years.


Frank

I don't know the name of my shallot but might be able to locate the tag. I pulled a couple just recently and they were more pungent than I expected. Chopping them made my eyes watery. I'm letting a few more of them sit there a little longer, hoping they get bigger.

It's my understanding that shallots are smaller and milder in flavor than onions. Maybe you should grow onions instead?

The tag says Allium Cepa from Millcreek Gardens.

Frank: I have same problem, I live in NW Florida, infamous for clay and sand. I'm a new gardener; but my dad was a green thumb. He used to add lime and used to use a lot of horse manure that he would get from the neighbors who had horses down the street. Then I remember he talking about a dark soil, could he have been talking about top soil? I was thinking about growing corn and onions this year in the ground, just to see if it would work. My brother said I needed to remember to plant corn in rows of 3, so they would produce.
I was reading about this one product called coco-fiber potting medium also, and was wondering if that would be good for my potted plants. It comes in a block and you add it to water and it expands.
joy112854

All the shredded leaves and horse manure you can get ahold of and just lay it down in layers (maybe even with some black-and-white newspaper if you got it) and let it sit. Should have some incredible soil by spring. You say you have access to mushroom compost? Drool!

Howdy rreznikoff,

This helpful article gives steps to amending clay soil. Scroll down to 'Amending Clay Soil'.

Regards, Les

http://www.bachmans.com/tipsheets/Soils/WorkingWithClaySoil.cfm

I just read some information on how earthworms improve soil condition. If you're doing this organically (they don't like chemicals), you might want to look into protecting the ones you have and/or getting some more.

Cover crops are an option as well. I don't know much about them, but I'm sure if you search you'll find lots of information on this site.

Make the best possible soil and the earthworms will come and stick around.

I don't have much to add to these great responses, other than mushroom compost is fabulous! and to share my own experiences.

Although it's not red, we have a pretty heavy clay soil up here in Chicago. I've been amending my patch (about the same size as yours) at least 3 times a year for as long as I've been at this community garden (this was my 3rd season). And it's really making a difference. There were lots of worms this spring.

What I do is shovel about 3-4 inches of well-seasoned compost onto my beds at the end of the growing season & let it leach into the soil over the winter. I also let whatever mulch I used during the summer (usually straw, but last year I used woodchips & mushroom compost) decompose over the winter.

In the spring, I lightly turn the soil by hand. The purists say don't turn the soil b/c it wrecks the little ecosystem forming under the ground (worm tunnels, which aerate the soil, and microbes don't care to be disturbed). But I'm still old school and don't feel like my bed is ready to plant before it's been turned.

Then in the summer after everything's in the ground, I side dress (add mushroom compost to the areas where the plants aren't, trying to keep the compost at least 3-4 inches away from the plant stems, lest it be too rich and "burn" the plants) the heavy feeders, like tomatoes, beans, and broccoli. THEN, once the soil is good and warmed up (up here, that's not until mid-June or so) I mulch the heck out of EVERYTHING. A good, thick (3-4 inches) layer of straw will prevent me from having to do much weeding - plus it holds in moisture & enriches the soil!

Amending the soil is a process. You won't see change overnight. But if you keep at it, and rotate where you plant your veggies, and don't use pesticides and herbicides, you will be rewarded with healthy plants and a rich, fertile soil.

Good luck!

Wow, thanks everyone, I have learned a great deal already just from reading this thread. Yes I do have access to mushroom compost, a little expensive except for if you get if from nurseries here or farm stores, which there are plenty.
joy112854

Has anyone ever tried to transplant earthworms to indoor pots/containers? It seems like it would work if the soil is organic and if the earthworms do not try to crawl out of the container. Just an idea.

ADD ALL THE USED COFFEE GRINDS YOU CAN FIND, AND THE WORMS WILL COME...and stay!!!

Ya'll guess what I just learned from a neighbor and this will make me look like a real numbskull. I was telling him how some of my yard was clay and some sand. I told him about the beds upside my double wide mobile home and he started laughing, when he was over that, he told me that the clay I was talking about was the foundation the company that put my mobile home in laid down and that my soil should be mostly sand. Now, don't I feel foolish? LOL
joy112854

Joy,
don't feel foolish. you just learned a new thing!

Gymgirl: My daffodils are trying to come up already, my neighbor says not to worry about it, they will come back in the Spring also. I got bored and decided to soak some canna seeds, I can grow them indoors if I gotta. LOL I'm actually thinking about adding coconut coir and mushroom compost to my canna beds this next Spring. I will do that when I divide the cannas, I think they will thrive really well if I do.
joy112854