Urban Horticulture Note No. 3精品.pdfVIP

NC STATE UNIVERSITY North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service Durham County Center 721 Foster Street Durham, North Carolina 27701 919-560-0525 Fax: 919-560-0530 Urban Horticulture Note No. 3 /durham/ AMENDING CLAY SOILS Gardeners in many areas of the country can take good soil for granted, but gardeners here in the Triangle have to work for it. Our heavy, sticky, clay soil needs organic matter, and lots of it, to become good garden soil. The top 8-10 of soil, where plants roots live, determines the success of your gardening efforts. Plants need oxygen just as people do. Clay soil is too compact to allow roots to breathe. Adding organic soil amendments to the soil lightens soil texture, discourages compaction, adds nutrients, improves drainage and aeration, moderates soil temperature, and provides pore space, which is essential to plant growth. Clay without organic matter is like a flattened deck of playing cards. Adding organic material jumbles the cards, permitting water and oxygen to enter the soil. Red clay has excellent potential; improving drainage and aeration makes it good soil. The gray plastic of the Triangle is among