new garden

[why me]

How do you get rid of clayin your garden. Iwant to plant potatoes in my veg patch, do you mix in compost, manure or top soil ect. stephen.

[andyjevs]

It can be a pretty long progress to break down clay soil.

Firstly, clay soils are very nutrient rich so your soil has a good start. But, in order to start having a go at the soil, you should have rough dug it in autumn. The big heavy clods would have had all winter to be exposed to the rain, wind, frost, snow and cold.

But, now you can incorperate any organic material into the soil in order to improve it. Garden compost, peat or potting compost, sand and grit, mushroom compost and farm yard manure are all good to add to clay soils.

If your soil is particularly heavy.....just like my parents soil was, it might take a couple of seasons before you get it right. Generally speaking, root veg (including spuds) do not fare well in heavy soils so you might have a problem.

Hope this helps a bit

[logman]

Planting potatoes in your plot is the perfect thing for improving your clay soil. the action of earthing up the crop as the potatoes grow, will help crumble the clay into a finer tilth, plenty of organic matter and compost will also help to improve your soil type.

I thik your on the right track. Best of Luck..

[gardenknowin]

I have added loads of spent mushroom compost to very clayey soil over several years, plus organic compost, and now grow loadsa spuds. Soil has broken down beautifully. Good luck!

[semolina]

A fairly easy solution (presuming that you have a lawn and you presuming can wait until mowing time) : Dig deepish trenches, line with sheets of newspaper, and add your grass cuttings, fairly liberally. Put the chitted potatoes on top of the grass, cover with your soil and bank it up slightly along the trench.

You may also have neighbours who wish to get rid of their grass, the more the merrier.

Simone