Which Clay Soil Amendment is Best? PART 2

In Part 2 of my Clay Soil Amendments Test- 'Which Soil Amendment is Best', I share the results of my 8-amendement soil test.
I tested 8 different amendments for clay soil to find which soil amendment is best, and this video looks at how each amendment affected soil structure and drainage, performance of plants grown in each container of amended soil and the cost & ease of application for each amendment.

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00:00 Intro
00:20 How this test was set up
02:07 Evaluating plant performance in each amendment
03:20 Evaluating soil drainage/moisture absorption
06:11 Evaluating soil structure changes
10:34 Amendment Cost & Ease of Application
14:58 THE BIG TAKE-AWAYS!

#claysoil #ohiogardening

[markmeyer]

The absolute best amendment that I have ever added to my clay soil was grass clippings from an untreated lawn…! My technique was to fill a large black trash bag with the grass clippings, left it out in the sun for a week or two, this caused a rapid composting. The end result was this beautiful, black mush! I then incorporated it into my soil the results were absolutely mind blowing! I wish I could post pictures😢

[AlphaFarms]

This is a really well done study! I have seen several similar tests done with different types of soil. My father taught me to garden and always said don’t make it complicated; there’s nothing better than composted animal manure, leaves and composted wood chips from cow stalls. This is what I’ve lived by because it’s what I know but as a see more of these tests and hear more of the actual science and life of soil, I am realizing these old timers’ experience was as good as Cornell University studies. I’ve come to the conclusion that all soil types will benefit immensely from just adding manure and readily available organic matter.

[johnrobholmes]

Thanks for sharing! Not a big surprise that manure won. It's almost like recreating nature is the best method.

[marybaker]

I live in southwestern ohio. I’ve had really good results with leaf compost that we buy in bulk. We have sand, gravel and clay. The property was stripped of the topsoil. It was a new build 20 years ago. Thank you for all the information. I was always told also to use gypsum. Glad I didn’t.

[bdwon]

Great work!
I use homemade compost! It's great.

[juliegogola]

Wow, soil science can be very confusing. My soil is pretty much a well draining loam, BUT, I recently put together a raised bed that is about 4 feet high and approx 4X 6. And, I paid a neighbor to deliver me soil to fill it up with. Well, he delivered me 2 scoops of soil, and I had wood underneath it for a "hugulkultur" bed. The soil he delivered and filled the bed with was clay soil, so, now, I am trying to find the best way to make that clay soil into a well draining soil that I can eventually grow good things in. I now have annual decorative plants in it.
From what I see cow manure is the BEST soil ammendment, BUT, I can only get bunny poo and commercially sold cow poo in bags.

[souljahaden]

I want to see worm castings next if you ever try this test again

[InappropriateShorts]

They saw you coming. Mushroom compost is $5 per .75cf at the Home Depot

[TugaemBristol]

what do you mean by "control" ?

[KeoniKoa]

Now THIS was the information I spent a better part of a year searching for. THANK YOU SO MUCH for making this video! The information was STELLAR! I'm glad that cow manure was the "top dog" because I was definitely looking for more of a natural way to improve my expansive clay soil. But I was NOT surprised at all to see that the manure was the only amendment that had Earth worms.

Just FYI. Around early Summer in 2022 I had some left over hay that was spread on about 1, 000 square feet or so of my property. I used a bulldozer to clear a little over 10 acres of mesquite trees and then used the bulldozer's rear rippers to sort of plow the severely compacted soil because the condition of the expansive clay soil was horrible on those 10+ acres. In the process, I inadvertently spread the hay around as I was trying to smooth the land. By the Fall/Winter of 2022 ryegrass started growing beautifully on about 2 acres of the land. Right now it's so thick and lush that I had a farmer neighbor ask if he could bale it for me and take half.

I pulled up a few handfuls of the ryegrass to the roots and that compacted, expansive clay soil has turned to black gold, and I did nothing but accidentally spread it while clearing trees.

It got me to thinking, after this guy bales this grass, I will experiment by using the remaining half to spread around other parts of my land and see if the same thing happens. If it does improve the soil and grows ryegrass in the Fall/Winter again, I think I'm onto something.

I'll let anyone interested know what happens.

Take care, and thanks again for the video!

[suzannestack]

I've had the best success with a mix of additives. Compost, manure, peat, perlite, vermiculite. Maintaining a fresh cut grass, plant cuttings, leaf mold mulch throughout the growing season. This transformed my clay concrete jungle into a gorgeous loamy soil over 2 seasons.

[garmaldolne]

Thanks for taking the time to do this experiment so you can help us to be a better gardener ❤

[danielmansour]

I was looking forward to this one. I would make a couple notes: manure is full of a significant amount of bacteria and other microbes. These microbes along with the organic matter are likely the reason why the soil texture began to improve. This is likely similar to applying a good compost.

[brianseybert]

How did you ever find the time to do such an amazing comparison? I am envious of your energy.
I also have heavy clay soil and was going to recommend trying my favorite soil amendment, leaf mold.
Another kind of cool thing to look at would be any difference in the soil life within the different samples.
I've really enjoyed looking at different soil samples and amendments this year.
Enjoy your videos.

[jagatgururampaljibhagwan]

In India earthworms are given the title of friend of the farmer due to its relevance in maintaining the quality of soil, they make it more porous and rich in other essential elements. In sandy soil they help it to improve moisture holding capacity. Your video has also proved the relevance of these tiny incredible creatures. I am very glad to know this fact through your video also. I appreciate your enthusiasm and hard work. I think all that camera work is also done by you yourself, you alone doing all that. 👍

[thomspengler]

Hi Jenna, nice job on the amendments ’shootout!’ Yes, I agree, manure is the King (or Queen if you prefer) of amendments. One observation I noticed was that you added peat moss in a dry state; in my experience you will have greater success soaking peat/coir BEFORE applying. When dry it’s like a dry sponge that actually repels moisture. It actually takes weeks to normalize it’s moisture when used dry. Worms hate dry coir/peat because it will suck them dry. That could have affected the pepper’s growth. Simply soak it in a wheelbarrow, for hour or two, then dig in. The sand shown was pretty fine grade; sharp, coarse sand is a better way to go. Not to breakup soil, but a small sand bed/bucket is a great place to start bare-root cuttings.

Sounds you plan further testing; I’d encourage you to research “COF, ” AKA complete organic fertilizer pioneered by Steve Solomon, the founder of Territorial Seed Company. It’s a fascinating and cost effective way to increase the verdant fertility of soil. One of the key components is bags of horse feed (e.g., alfalfa pellets, soy pellets or grass screening pellets). This increases fertility as well as providing organic material. This stuff is cheapest when you buy it in feed bags of 40-50 pounds at a Farm Store.

A quick example of the cost differential (both from same farm store):

Down to Earth Organic Alfalfa Meal Fertilizer in a 4# box = $12 = $3/lb.
50# sack of Alfalfa Meal = $20 = 40¢/lb
…FOR THE SAME EXACT THING!

Soybean pellets have 2-3X more nitrogen than alfalfa, but are more $$$, conversely
’grass screenings’ pellets are less $, with less % nitrogen. An advantage to the cheaper screenings is that since you use more, you’re automatically adding more organic material to the soil which combats the clay issue. Last fall I fertilized one 4x6’ bed with an entire 50# bag of screenings. It had all winter to break down & feed worms. It was covered to prevent rain runoff. We’ll see how that does this year. My brother, an avid beer brewer has been dumping his brew grain leavings in his garden for years; I have never seen a garden with richer soil or better tilth than his! You could shovel his beds with your bare hands! So verdant!

If you have a good sized garden, it’s a no brainer. And it’s organic.


Finally (whew), I encourage you to locate a mushroom farm close to you. They use straw that has been sanitized by steam, then bagged & inoculated with mushroom spores. Eventually they peter out and need to be replaced. Every mushroom concern I’ve ever talked to is happy to have someone to cart it away. Sometimes they ask for an insignificant fee. Now these farmers are busy & don’t want to be bothered by requests for a bag or two… but if you borrow a pickup truck & carry away a load they’ll be friendly & happy. Note that these are moist, leaky bags that you do not want to put in a nice car/van. One final bonus: if you moisten the bag you’ll likely get another flush or two of delicious, edible mushrooms (usually oyster mushrooms) before using them as compost.


If you made it this far, thanks & good gardening to you & yours!

[KerriEverlasting]

I never understood why people said to add sand! My garden is pure clay, sand and rocks. Sand doesn't help at all. No theories as to why there are more grubs, except possibly less competition from some established bugs. The only addition I really have access to is horse manure, it seems to be the only thing that works in addition to coco coir. Great video and super relevant for me. 💖

[Kate]

last year, 2022, i added sand to an area that was not draining, it got worse, i lost some plants, when i went to dig it was so hard…sand plus dirt/clay is how ancient homes were made! basically i made bricks….switched back to gypsum…but and going to buy some cow manure today! thanks for this huge effort!

[franksinatra]

Thanks Jenna. I know these experiments are time consuming. I use mushroom soil and horse manure/bedding in addition to my own compost to amend my beds. I live near the mushroom capital here in PA so the mushroom compost is relatively inexpensive. And there is a big horse farm down the street so that makes the horse manure and bedding practical for me. I never have done a controlled experiment as you've done but can say these amendments seem to have given me good results in the beds where I've used them. I usually use the horse manure in the fall in new beds or beds I'm renovating. The mushroom soil I consider safe to use anytime so I often apply that in the spring and summer if needed.

[stephanygates]

My concern about cow manure is how it conveys whatever chemicals were on/in the grass/hay they ate. Horror stories abound of legumes and nightshades completely failing from “Grazon” contamination. Great work!