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how many years of mulch to improve soil ?
4 springs ago I cleared a bed, dug in two bulk bags of manure, have since mulched with compost a few times but probably not thick enough to make a difference. I am currently in the process of doing another good thick mulch with manure.
Its made me think, I am on light sandy soil. How many years of mulching would it take to actually really improve the soil structure so that it is no longer so sandy.
I know this might well be a question of how long is a piece of string, how many times a year to mulch, how thick the mulch is, what the mulch is, but just wondered if anyone has had any success turning their soil from v light sandy or v heavy clay into something that is really decent.
Thank you.
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my last garden was , literally , builders' sand. Mine was the last house to be built, they just levelled the sand and built my house on it.
In the 11 years I was there, I raised the soil level by over 8" 20cm and I still had to water constantly.
It will take a few years. A couple of years ago I had to improve a clay based bed. I piled it on about 4 inches thick over the first winter and then added 2 inches in the spring. Same the following year by last spring it started to improve so I did it again last autumn and I'm about to do it again this spring. It was thick Shropshire clay. It doesn't look too bad at the moment although I think I might do it again. But I'll see in the Autumn. So really it is as you say. I'd keep going till you're happy with it.
I have the ubiquitous left over builder's rubble just as hosta mentions, with concrete overspills and buried treasure.
I have been improving my soil for as long as I can recall, 10yrs I guess. I always dig a bigger planting hole and never skimp on adding compost, it helps but I'll never be able to grow bog plants, guems are about my limit, but I don't water much either except geums, due to very think layers of mulch
on the up side, I can dig it whenever I want, it's never hard work and what weeds do grow, are easy to pull out