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Hi all,
In the past l have added sharp sand or new topsoil on a few projects - normally just cultivated the existing soil and add fertilizer pellets.
This job is price sensitive and as l'm always one to check my understanding or improving methods so l thought l'd look google it... and came across this comment from Turf Shop
At this stage it's well worth thinking about digging organic matter into your soil. For example, if you have very sandy soils, organic matter will add structure to the soil, and improve its ability to retain moisture and nutrients. If you have heavy clay soil, the addition of organic matter will help break up the clay and make it easier to work. It will also improve the drainage. Don't be tempted to put sharp sand into heavy soils, though. This is a common mistake which will lead to more problems. Try to avoid using peat as the source of organic matter; it is better to usev coir or your own composted waste.
They recommended at this product.
I then started to wonder what other LJN members did... sharp sand?!? right or wrong?!?! Like you Gary l'm not an expert but striving too improve my understanding and delivery a quality products to my clients.
One bale which will produce about 70L or a wheel barrow load.
Costs vary £3 to £6 per bale and if it does indeed do 10m sq seems cheaper than the costs l can get sharp sand and top soil for (l was assuming 1T / 10m sq this could be wrong).
Paul's point about hydration time; it's a very good point- no idea but they seem to do it in a trug or wheel barrow... but need to check 23L v trug size.
Could be a good debate on LJN....
Have a good weekend all... thanks for the comments back! Looking forward to more...
Also like to add the convenience
- it's a small block, moved in a single move v repetitive wheelbarrow loads - labour saver.
- clean as can be moved into area needed in it's package
- good for difficult ie hilly or terraced sites or access only through house.
Seems to have alot of positives but not sure l want to experiment...
Hi All,
Having using and studding many materials I hope I can help you with that.
Few important things to remember when mixing soil it does not work like: heavy + sandy gives medium.
the sand will mixed with the clay and may loose its impact- if you do not use big quantity. I will give you few ideas that can work better.
The bale you mention is usually sold named as coir ( I wrote a blog post about it here before), It is easy to work with in some cases, I used it a lot to save labor when needed to carry the material ( many roof gardens, containers and gardens sometimes when needed to add and improve soil- sandy soil in my case).
Few things that you must know about it:
1. It can give fantastic results if used well, as it holds really well air and water. ( WE got massive onions in our raised beds with coir from plants from my dad in laws his after growing for many years were about half the size!)
2. As organic matter It will disappear in few years - 3-6 so not sure how ideal it is for the job.
3. As it is free of extra minerals it observe nitrogen to start the process of 'breaking up' so you must make sure that the garden is fed well. ( Only tiny bit it needs so no worries any slow release or compost can do the job)
About the water: I used to live it under dripping hose for the night/ rain and than mix it. Also if you repeat the progress you get more material in better quality.
My advise:
Instead or in addition to coir use:
expanded clay- fairly low light 300-500kg to m/3 but will stay for good giving air and holding nutrients.
Standard is 3-8mm. / can add perlite/ vermiculite that is lighter and smaller.
Compost or coir can be added to improve results.
I also supply coir bales, expanded clay perlite and vermiculite) materials if needed. at trade prices for you.
I used to buy trees and plants from nurseries that use 100% coir or perlite + feeding and the results were amazing. Same in my roof gardens- as plants get more air to the roots they grow faster.
Craig McGibbon said:
Thanks Ofer,
Your information has been useful... going to add some sand and organic matter.
Your information on Coir is very interesting and l'm certainly going to look into it further. I can definitely see the benefits especially as you say for rooftops. Thanks for taking the time to respond.
Craig