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#1
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
I have returned from the local garden center with a 40# bag of
pelletized gysum. I have two areas in mind that I wish to further "break down" the clay soil to a more friable condition with better tilth and not as hard packed as it currently is. My questions a At what rate should this gypsum be applied? Can I "top dress" with this gypsum or is it necessary to work into the soil? When should I see results? |
#2
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
On Wed, 11 Jun 2003 17:28:53 -0500, Carl e Roberts wrote:
I have returned from the local garden center with a 40# bag of pelletized gysum. I have two areas in mind that I wish to further "break down" the clay soil to a more friable condition with better tilth and not as hard packed as it currently is. My questions a At what rate should this gypsum be applied? Can I "top dress" with this gypsum or is it necessary to work into the soil? When should I see results? If the soil is adequately moist, I would recommend you turn it a bit with a thin tine fork and try to break up the clods. Water it very well for at least one inch of water about three days before you plan to work it. If it still clumps, it is not dry enough, if it is too hard, it is not moist enough. The other thing you can do is kin to how farmers disc the soil. Rough it up, so to speak. Take the fork and after watering so the soil is softer (not soaked and clumped) rock the fork back and forth to tear at it. Break the "tension" of the soil. Put the gyp down at about ten pounds per every 100 square feet. Let it get into the torn soil. Water well, put mulch on top and in about three months you should be able to work the soil with more ease. At the same time, the addition of compost would be ideal. Adding just gyp to the soil without compost will render the whole process null. |
#3
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
Adding just gyp to
the soil without compost will render the whole process null. Mainly because gypsum dosent do crap for your soil. Just add the compost, its cheaper. Toad |
#4
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
"Marley1372" wrote in message ... Adding just gyp to the soil without compost will render the whole process null. Mainly because gypsum dosent do crap for your soil. Just add the compost, its cheaper. Toad So you are saying that all those who recommend gypsum to assist breaking up heavy clay soil are wrong? What do you base this opinion on? David |
#5
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
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#6
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
On Thu, 12 Jun 2003 13:06:16 +1000, "David Hare-Scott"
wrote: So you are saying that all those who recommend gypsum to assist breaking up heavy clay soil are wrong? What do you base this opinion on? David Good question. I have used it on soil which was so dead, so full of clay, had barely 1% organic matter and was clearly stripped of its top horizon that I had only subsoil to work with. Builders are fond of stripping the top horizon of soil and they sell it to the topsoil companies, who bag it up and sell it back to you for a few dollars a bag. Fortunately, the builder didn't do that to this house because before they did I insisted they leave every piece of weed and soil in place or the deal was over. Austin, Texas is a far more green part of Texas. There is much awareness about the environment and there are many lobbyists and people who stand up to big government tactics where environmental issues are concerned. Back to gypsum...I don't have time to explain the process, but I've used in on awful muck clay, and it helped make the clay friable. |
#7
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
Have you had clay soils which you added pelletized gypsum to?
I dont have to use gypsum, because I mulch my plants every year. This alone does more for soil structure than anything else in my opinion. Personally, I just think gypsum is a bunch of crap. Toad |
#8
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
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#9
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
On Thu, 12 Jun 2003 07:47:42 -0700, Tom Jaszewski
wrote: On 12 Jun 2003 14:24:59 GMT, (Marley1372) wrote: Personally, I just think gypsum is a bunch of crap. It's a good thing sustainable farmers don't share your opinion!!! It's a good thing people are giving opinions regardless whether or not they have any experience with the material in question. That's like not going to a movie because Roger Ebert says the movie sucked. |
#10
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
animaux wrote in message . ..
[...] If the soil is adequately moist, I would recommend you turn it a bit with a thin tine fork and try to break up the clods. Water it very well for at least one inch of water about three days before you plan to work it. If it still clumps, it is not dry enough, if it is too hard, it is not moist enough. The other thing you can do is kin to how farmers disc the soil. Rough it up, so to speak. Take the fork and after watering so the soil is softer (not soaked and clumped) rock the fork back and forth to tear at it. Break the "tension" of the soil. Put the gyp down at about ten pounds per every 100 square feet. Let it get into the torn soil. Water well, put mulch on top and in about three months you should be able to work the soil with more ease. At the same time, the addition of compost would be ideal. Adding just gyp to the soil without compost will render the whole process null. I don't know if you have everywhere over there what's called a "Canterbury hoe" in England: it's the thing with three flat prongs at right angles to the shaft in the picture at http://www.permaculture.co.uk/erc/erc36a.html Great for breaking up strong soil, as you can use both a chopping and a raking action. I think they come in different weights. Lost mine! Mike. |
#12
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
In article , Tom Jaszewski
wrote: On 12 Jun 2003 14:24:59 GMT, (Marley1372) wrote: Personally, I just think gypsum is a bunch of crap. It's a good thing sustainable farmers don't share your opinion!!! Gypsum is mainly helpful in sodic soils and is generally misapplied to all clay soils. They help sodic soils because the calcium displaces sodium which allows clay particles to flocculate and thus improve drainage. In soils that are already high in calcium this obviously cannot occur and so is indeed a waste. See: http://www.wtamu.edu/~crobinson/DrDirt/gypsum.html http://turfgrass.hort.iastate.edu/extension/gypsum.pdf Roland |
#13
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
On Thu, 12 Jun 2003 20:08:27 -0500, (Joe Doe)
wrote: In article , Tom Jaszewski wrote: On 12 Jun 2003 14:24:59 GMT, (Marley1372) wrote: Personally, I just think gypsum is a bunch of crap. It's a good thing sustainable farmers don't share your opinion!!! Gypsum is mainly helpful in sodic soils and is generally misapplied to all clay soils. They help sodic soils because the calcium displaces sodium which allows clay particles to flocculate and thus improve drainage. In soils that are already high in calcium this obviously cannot occur and so is indeed a waste. See: http://www.wtamu.edu/~crobinson/DrDirt/gypsum.html http://turfgrass.hort.iastate.edu/extension/gypsum.pdf Roland Nice to see you again Roland, but I'm afraid there's more to this story than Iowa turfgrass and Dr Dirt's perennial. As always the sensible course is to have a Morgan extraction done and determine what nutrients are PLANT available. I would agree that more important than adding gypsum, where soil testing indicates, is the addition of carbon sources and building a soil biology. |
#14
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pelletized gypsum (to amend clay soil)
animaux wrote in message . ..
[...] The type fork I'm talking about is: http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jh...duct2071&site= These are some of the nicest tools, for the price, than I'd seen anywhere. Very nice, and a typically American low price. Here the equivalents, virtually identical in appearance, are Spear & Jackson of Sheffield, and would cost about the same number of pounds. I've just had the pleasure of spending my sister and brother-in-law's money on a set of tools for them, and the S&J were what I chose: a good balance and a lovely warm woody feel. Only trouble with stainless is they don't wear down to a slender cutting edge like my old carbon steel warriors: your grandchildren will still be trying to run them in! Mike. |
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