On 06/02/2019 15:52, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Wed, 06 Feb 2019 15:04:31 +0000, Bob Hobden
wrote:
On 5 Feb 2019 12:08, (Nick Maclaren) wrote:
In article ,
Another John wrote:
A chap I do a bit of gardening for had a couple of his borders
flooded
last year by a change in subterranean water flow. That has been
fixed,
but the borders are still "sticky".
He wants to dig sand into the borders. Fine, but he has specified
"horticultural sand". I think it would save him money if I just used
ordinary sharp (concreting) sand from a builder's merchant. What does
the team think?
Yes, sharp sand is the stuff, but the problem is that you need a LOT
(or of anything, else for that matter) to make any difference.
That is the problem. However sand is a permanent fix from what I've
seen whereas composts get broken down and will need renewing, they will
also affect the pH making it more acid and clay is usually acid anyway.
As NM said, you need a lot of sand to make a difference. A coarse
grit-sand is better than builders' sand. Old gardeners' saying: "sand
on clay is thrown away". Grit-sand plus compost is the way to go. Not
all clays are acid, btw. The only way to be sure is a pH test.
Ive always considered builders sand to be the name of soft sand -
rounded grains that cump together when damp and suitable for bricklaying
but unsuitable for this application.
https://www.buildbase.co.uk/building...100010231-0000
Sharp sand, which is also available from builders merchants, has sharp
grains (and a smaller mix of smaller rounded grains) and is more suited
to this application. In my experience it can vary a lot. Around my way
it tends to be yellow in colour and relatively small sharp grains which
will cut skin if you rub it between two fingers. I recently purchased
some sharp sand 200 miles away whilst staying with friends and it was
red in colour with larger grains.
https://www.buildbase.co.uk/sharp-sand-100010232-0000
Ballast which is a mix of sand and large shingle.
https://www.buildbase.co.uk/ballast-100010234-0000
As for a previous warning on salt, if it is going to cause a problem in
a garden it is going to cause greater problems when using it for
building! The sand will have been washed.
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