Have you ever noticed the amount of work needed to dig a hole in really hard, overly dense dirt? If you have, then you’ll agree that it’s always easier to dig a hole in soft, loose soil.
Robert Pavlis, a gardener for over four decades, debunks common soil myths, explores the rhizosphere, and provides a personalized soil fertility improvement program in this three-part popular science guidebook.
Soil that is hard and dry is often compacted. That means that it has been packed down, making it denser and more difficult to penetrate.
How does compacted soil affect your garden?
Soil that has become compacted is not only harder to work, it can also discourage beneficial organisms from your garden. Even worse, plants do not grow well in compacted dirt. Plant roots cannot penetrate dense, hard-packed soil.
Beyond this, when soil is too compact, water does not percolate through the ground. When water cannot move through the ground properly, plant roots can suffocate.
What causes compacted soil?
Soil compaction happens when air pockets in between the components of the soil collapse. This can be caused by pressure from foot traffic or heavy machinery.
The quantity of sunlight and moisture can affect how susceptible an area is to compaction. That’s because soil can also become overly dense when the ground is worked in less than ideal conditions. If the soil is too wet – or too dry – when you till, its structure can collapse
Then there is the lack of organic material, which can cause soil to clump and settle together, becoming denser.
How to Prevent Soil Compaction
Of course, the best way to deal with soil compaction is to make sure it doesn’t happen at all. That means you should avoid tilling your soil when it is too wet or too dry.
In fact, if you can, avoid tilling your soil at all. Instead of tilling, enrich it with mulches, composts, and living plant roots. Mulches can include shredded leaves, wood chips, and cover crops.
Do not stand or step on your garden beds. Having said that, you should not make your beds wider than 4 feet if you have a walking path on either side. A narrower bed allows you to easily reach the areas in the middle from either side without having to step into the bed itself.
How to Improve Compacted Soil
You can loosen compacted soil with an aerator. The machine will remove clumps of soil or puncture the ground to allow room for the soil to expand and decompress.
Top-dressing planting beds with several inches of compost or organic mulch will improve lightly compacted soils. Earthworms and other soil fauna will gradually pull the material down into the soil, loosening it and improving its water-absorption capacity.
Improving compacted soil will require extra gardening time, but the work you put in will be well-worth the effort.
