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Clay soil ... Builder's sand

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Posts

  • LeadFarmerLeadFarmer Posts: 1,500
    Sharp sand/grit sand I find is ok dug into soil, but I'm lead to believe no sand should be added to clay.
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    edited June 2022
    Builders' sand is brilliant stuff in the garden, but don't mix it with the clay.

    John Little is a biodiversity landscaper. He champions builders' sand.

    2020

    2021


  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    I am not sure many people would want that as a garden. Most species that people on here like to grow, would not cope in sand.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    edited June 2022
    I think the videos are useful for ideas if you have a load of builders' sand and don't know what to do with it - making walls and banks and wildlife areas. Lots of us grow with poor soils and think we need to add a load of fertility.  It's good to know that there other options than working with top soil. The vids show that loads of plants will love sand, chalk, glass, concrete and you can use them to build structures.

    For those (above) who see sand as a curse - there are other perspectives. I would personally be happy with John Little's gardens - it's huge diversity of planting and life.
  • Slow-wormSlow-worm Posts: 1,630
    Make a pond and use it under the liner!
    Incidentally, we used to dig food scraps (only veg) a couple of weeks old straight into the soil (well buried!) in heavy clay, it worked a treat! We had ferns growing happily in that patch a few months later.
  • hiacedrifterhiacedrifter Posts: 119
    Fire said:
    Builders' sand is brilliant stuff in the garden, but don't mix it with the clay.

    John Little is a biodiversity landscaper. He champions builders' sand.

    2020

    2021


    Fascinating videos, thank you. I wouldn't mind a sandy area ... what plants could I put it in? Must be for pollinators/wildlife ... a condition of inclusion in my garden! 
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    what plants could I put it in? Must be for pollinators/wildlife ... a condition of inclusion in my garden


    Plants that like very poor soil and sandy/chalky conditions. There are a lot of wild flowers that find this substrate perfect and don't want top soil. Any thing that seeds into gravel or paving would be fine. In my sandy bed planted for pollinators I have sedum, verbena bon, californian poppies, jupiters beard, erigeron, ox eye daises, bushy salvia, campion,  yarrow, vetch, plantain, marjoram. Thyme would be very happy.


    You can wildflower seed mixes for sand.

    https://www.meadowmania.co.uk/wildflower-seed-for-sandy-soils.htm


    https://britishwildflowermeadowseeds.co.uk/products/sandy-soil-meadow-seed-mix


    Rather thrillingly, I see John Little (above) is opening is garden for the NGS in July. I would love to go.

    https://ngs.org.uk/view-garden/34797






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