When it all comes down to it, the key to a great garden is in your soil. You can have the best-grown, quality plants, but if your soil is not so good, then plants won’t thrive.

Find out what kind of soil you have with one easy test!

The “dirt hole + water = mud hole” test:

1. Begin by digging a 1 to 1 ½-foot deep hole near where you want to plant.
2. Fill the hole with water.
3. If the water soaks right into the ground within 10 minutes, it’s sandy soil. If it takes an hour to drain, then the soil is normal. If it takes more than an hour, it’s primarily clay.

This test isn’t always accurate after lots of rain, so test when the ground isn’t saturated from a recent rainfall.  Once you know what kind of soil you are working with, make it better with these recipes:

“Save the Sand for the Savannah” Sandy Soil

With sandy soil, plants will need extra water every day because the soil doesn’t retain moisture. To change this, add Peat Moss and Top Soil to the existing soil.  Mix in Soil Conditioner 50/50 when planting.

English Gardens Soil Conditioner is a mixture of composted pine bark that helps loosen soil and adds organic matter.

“Clay is for the Pottery” Clay Soil

Sometimes too much of one thing is bad.  With clay soil, the soil holds water around your plants for too long. To loosen the soil and improve drainage, mix Soil Conditioner with the existing soil.

“Add a little extra to ordinary” Normal Soil

When we say “normal” soil, this simply means drainage is good for planting. However, who wants to just be good?  We want you to have GREAT soil to ensure success in your garden. To do this, just add Soil Conditioner to increase organic matter, making it even better.

Important for all kinds of soil

Whatever your soil, plants will need some help to prevent transplant shock after they are planted. Bio-tone Starter Plus is an all-natural plant food enhanced with beneficial bacteria and mycorrhizae fungi that works to adjust the plant’s roots to the new environment. And helps establish new plants quicker.

Want to reduce time weeding and watering? Add a two to three inch layer of mulch around plants to reduce weed growth and aid in retaining moisture in the soil.  Be sure to keep mulch an inch away from the stems of your plants.

Go a step further

Bring a sample of your soil to your local English Gardens for a soil test to analyze the soil’s pH as well as nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium content.  Our garden pharmacists will provide a personal in-store consultation for improving your soil.

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English Gardens carries all the necessary amendments to help you produce great soil. Come in and speak with one of our garden pharmacists if you have more questions. We wish you a great planting season!