Ahhhh! Clay soil... the bane of many a homeowner. I have it as well .

Best thing you can do for your lawn to help improve the soil are several
thin applilications through out the season ( about an inch or so each time)
it will work its way through the turf, gradually improving the lawn's
condition. may take several seasons to work best. you can also apply
gypsum (calcium sulfate) to the lawn. it will also work its way into the
clay and increase the drainage.

not terribly much to be done about trees and shrubs other than just what you
are doing, digging a big ole hole and filling with good soil.

If you intend to build any sort of borders and/ or flowerbeds on the
property, you can use the existing soil and ammend it with equal parts of
sand and compost to 2 parts native soil OR build raised beds.






"Some One" wrote in message
a...
Hey all!

I'm a new homeowner and as expected, the developer stripped off all
the good topsoil before starting this subdivision. My yard has a
couple inches of decent topsoil, but below that is nothing but clay.

I've managed to get a lawn seeded and it came in pretty well, but it
is patchy in some spots. I'm assuming this is areas where there is
less good topsoil.

Is there anything I can do to improve the soil and get the grass to
root deeper?

I'm also having a hard time trying to get any kind of tree or bush to
grow without putting in a HUGE hole full of decent soil.

Any help is appreciated!