Worms love clay soil. Mulch and let them do the digging for you.
If you have a stable nearby you can get as much manure as you can cart away for nothing. Beats paying a fiver a bag. You need tons. Literally. Well, a few hundredweight anyway.
I've got some lovely composted chippings waiting to go on the top (mental note to get more fresh chippings). The price for composted bark online makes my eyes water - I found a local tree cutting service and bought a dumpy bag of fresh chipping from them. I put it in big sacks and a year later it's looking pretty good.
We have a wet deep shade area at the bottom near the summerhouse, it's planted up with loads of big ferns. They love it there. I haven't done anything to the soil there other than a bit of mulch.
Thanks Hostafan, next time I'll add grass clippings.
Steve, we do have stables not far away.I am only a beginner gardener but for some reason (or from something I have read) I thought you can't put stable manure straight on the garden. Is that correct or not?
My garden is exactly the same, on the right it sets rock hard the other is like a bog!
On the dry side I add my own home compost, I also add a layer of shop compost on the top after Ive planted my veg. Last year I put hay round my plants which done very well at retaining moisture and I only had to water once a week, but did introduce a few new weeds to the garden. This year I will also be planting alot of ground covering plants just to cast a bit shade on the soil, like strawberries just so I am not wasting ground.
The wet shaded side I will be adding alot of plants that love and take up alot of water like fatsia. Ive also added alot of grit, stones and sand.
I have a west facing back garden and east facing front. As you say the right and left sides of the garden are a challenge but the middle bit is great!
In the shady damp side the hydrangeas do well - which gives lots of green & colour and are easily cut back. Even the roses and camellia do OK. The bulbs are a bit hit and miss - sometimes they rot , although the iris are clinging on.
I will think about the hay. I might be missing something here but didn't it blow around? I am on top of a hill, not too far from the coast - I have had a fence blow down in the past.
Fresh manure needs to be left for a few months to rot down Alex, unless you're putting it onto an empty bit of ground which you don't intend planting up for a while. If it's well rotted you can use it straight away though.
I'm confused about the 'hay'. Has someone suggested using that or have I misunderstood?
Iris need good drainage unless they're the sibirica type which like a bit of moisture. If you have the little reticulata ones which flower in late winter/early spring, they won't do well in wet soil, so best to add loads of grit for those, and the big,blousy bearded summer flowering ones needs lighter soil and loads of sun. Do you know which ones you have? The little ones do well in pots too
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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Worms love clay soil. Mulch and let them do the digging for you.
If you have a stable nearby you can get as much manure as you can cart away for nothing. Beats paying a fiver a bag. You need tons. Literally. Well, a few hundredweight anyway.
I've got some lovely composted chippings waiting to go on the top (mental note to get more fresh chippings). The price for composted bark online makes my eyes water - I found a local tree cutting service and bought a dumpy bag of fresh chipping from them. I put it in big sacks and a year later it's looking pretty good.
Hope it's OK to use
I do the same Alex with my local tree surgeon. Try to layer it with grass clippings if you can.
We have a wet deep shade area at the bottom near the summerhouse, it's planted up with loads of big ferns. They love it there. I haven't done anything to the soil there other than a bit of mulch.
Thanks Hostafan, next time I'll add grass clippings.
Steve, we do have stables not far away.I am only a beginner gardener but for some reason (or from something I have read) I thought you can't put stable manure straight on the garden. Is that correct or not?
My garden is exactly the same, on the right it sets rock hard the other is like a bog!
On the dry side I add my own home compost, I also add a layer of shop compost on the top after Ive planted my veg. Last year I put hay round my plants which done very well at retaining moisture and I only had to water once a week, but did introduce a few new weeds to the garden. This year I will also be planting alot of ground covering plants just to cast a bit shade on the soil, like strawberries just so I am not wasting ground.
The wet shaded side I will be adding alot of plants that love and take up alot of water like fatsia. Ive also added alot of grit, stones and sand.
I have a west facing garden.
I have a west facing back garden and east facing front. As you say the right and left sides of the garden are a challenge but the middle bit is great!
In the shady damp side the hydrangeas do well - which gives lots of green & colour and are easily cut back. Even the roses and camellia do OK. The bulbs are a bit hit and miss - sometimes they rot , although the iris are clinging on.
I will think about the hay. I might be missing something here but didn't it blow around? I am on top of a hill, not too far from the coast - I have had a fence blow down in the past.
Fresh manure needs to be left for a few months to rot down Alex, unless you're putting it onto an empty bit of ground which you don't intend planting up for a while. If it's well rotted you can use it straight away though.
I'm confused about the 'hay'. Has someone suggested using that or have I misunderstood?
Iris need good drainage unless they're the sibirica type which like a bit of moisture. If you have the little reticulata ones which flower in late winter/early spring, they won't do well in wet soil, so best to add loads of grit for those, and the big,blousy bearded summer flowering ones needs lighter soil and loads of sun. Do you know which ones you have? The little ones do well in pots too
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...