Sorry if that wasn’t clear - I meant drilling weep holes into the side of the timber of the raised bed, near the bottom, not into the clay soil. The latter would just create little holes for water to collect in!
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
Oh I see! Thanks for clarifying - clearly I’m new to all of this!
However... drilling holes straight into the clay and filling with organic matter also seems like a good idea since it would encourage the breakup of the clay by introducing organic matter (and hopefully worms) into the clay. In a sense I would be treating the clay soil like the lining of a big pot.
That seems like a decent price on your compost, £10 for 200L. I paid £8 for 100L compost and £4.70 for the 35L manure. I will add less then what I'm "supposed to" but hopefully my own compost will be ready by autumn which should keep the quality improving.
That's the real trick, @delski , just keep adding as much organic matter as you can, it'll all do the job in the end. Clay soil just seems to 'eat' organic matter, so you need to keep at it, with a regular autumn mulch probably being the easiest way.
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
@BobTheGardener It's a slow process, for sure! If the soil is so compacted into clumps I wonder if the mulching will do any good. There are certainly plenty of worms but whether or not they work, I do not have any experience thus far. When I was digging a blackbird took most of the worms I unearthed in the clumps it'll be a miracle if there's any left!
Maybe I should just give up with other plants and turn it into a rose bed! Those are thriving. That's an option for you too @squirral87k4-WvGwT! I'm glad I don't like lavender and rosemary...
Same here London clay, nope,no where near London though, one particular border that remains in shade, hubby dug it out in the end, bought lorry load of top soil, raised beds yes on top of the clay,no problems.weirdly, just the other side of the road,the South Downs, have the chalk,and their own set of problems
@delski - rose beds are a good idea but I find them a depressing sight in winter.
Last year I planted some red hot poker (which I personally love!) and they have loved the clay soil and grown well. Hydrangea also has done very well. I have a hebe which is struggling but surviving.
I planted a quince tree in the most waterlogged part of the garden and it’s also thriving
my allium bulbs are coming up in some parts of the garden so they seem to have survived for the most part.
so there’s a few options to consider!
I also hear the following do well in clay, which I’ll be looking out for this summer:
Posts
However... drilling holes straight into the clay and filling with organic matter also seems like a good idea since it would encourage the breakup of the clay by introducing organic matter (and hopefully worms) into the clay. In a sense I would be treating the clay soil like the lining of a big pot.
my allium bulbs are coming up in some parts of the garden so they seem to have survived for the most part.
so there’s a few options to consider!
choisya
Weigela
Gaura (mine survived)
Viburnum tinus