On Thu, 28 Oct 2004 02:51:12 GMT, "Pam - gardengal"
wrote:


"RJ" wrote in message
.. .

We've just moved to the Southwest.

Like many, I used to think of desert as rocks, and sand.
I'm amazed at the variety of flowering plants
that grow in this environment....

We'd like to plant our garden area with native plants.
( Shrubs, flowering bushes, sagebrush, etc....)
The soil is somewhat sandy, and gets "clay-ey" about a foot down.

My ( backEast ) instincts are to mix a bunch of mulch,
and peat with the soil..... then a slow release fertilizer.

My spouse opines that this may be a mix that's
foreign to the plants we're trying to grow.

Listen to your spouse :-)) Desert and xeriscape plants generally prefer lean
soil with minimal amendments.

pam - gardengal

What you are missing here Pam is that desert soils in fact DO have a
lot of biological diversity. Generally constructed neighborhood soils
have NONE of the natural diversity. Do use some quality compost and
some organic fertilizers to begin with!!!!