Soil amendments

 Texas Riviera Home Page

and other gardening tips & information 

 Organic Amendments

When organic material is broken down by the micro-organisms that are living in the soil, we must remember that a certain amount of nitrogen is required to completely brake this material down. If these micro-flora cannot get a sufficient amount of nitrogen from the organic matter within itself, they will take it from within the soil, robbing the roots and plants of whatever nitrogen is available.

 How nitrogen is made available to the plants

 

 

 

 

 Dead Plants
leaf mold

 

 

 

*Manure 

 Ammonium
Sulfate

 Ammonium
Nitrate

 

 

 

 

 Compost

 

 

 

 

Well rotted 
Compost

 

 Ammonium
Nitrate

 Sodium Nitrate

 Calcium Nitrate

 Organic Nitrogen Compounds
From dead plant and animal material in soil

 Decomposes to Ammonia
Not immediately useful to most plants

 Decomposes to Nitrites
Not useful to plants

 Decomposes to Nitrates
Useful to all plants

 Nitrates
Useful to all plants

 Micro-organism
activity

 Micro-organism
activity

 Micro-organism
activity

 Micro-organism
activity

 Micro-organism
activity

 EcoSane

 Aspergillus

 stimulate and

 /or exhilarate

 VAM activity within the soil

 As we increase the micro-organism activity within the organic material, the direct results are a faster decomposition process and at the same time increasing the quantity of nitrates that are made available to the plants.
Organic amendments such as Peat moss, leaves, leaf mold, well rotted *manure and/or compost, usually have sufficient nitrogen to complete the decomposition process, whereas saw dust, wood shaving and/or bark, will require additional nitrogen to complete its decomposition cycle, without robbing the soil of its already available nitrogen.
The addition of micro-flora accelerators or stimulants can help in the decomposition process by increasing the Micro-organism activity, thus making nitrogen readily available to the plants and at a much faster rate. Products such as EcoSane and
Aspergillus, have worked extremely well for me.
Sheet composting is a method whereas you spread a thin layer of leaves and/or lawn clippings over your garden beds. This should be done by spreading a sparse coat of yard material throughout the spring and summer months. This does two things, first it keeps the micro activity going strong in your soil while providing a constant, readily available, natural soil amendments and at the same time it is acting as a thin layer of mulch to hold and keep moisture (see mulch below).
The results of over fertilizing and/or the use of insecticides and fungicides, prohibits the growth and decreases the amount of micro-organism activity in the soil and on the plants themselves. I have found that smaller amounts of fertilizer, given over a shorter time-span, results in better managed soil bionomics, thus enhancing the gardens overall performance.
Good healthy plants are not always the best indicator that your soil and micro activity is 100%, only in the long term, can we realize and come to appreciate just what this symbiotic relationship between plant, soil, and micro-organism do. Surviving the winter is one thing, but surviving and flourishing over the long haul is quite a different story, its just another way inwhich we can look at, or I should say, within our soil. The response of our botanical treasures, in a well established and balanced growing media, can only mean the fullest potential, beauty and health of these plants.



The use of organic amendments when planting palms. Some people will tell you that by adding organic material to your soil when planting a new plant is bad news! They claim that by doing so, will cause the plant to be unstable and that, as the material decomposes, it disappears and sinks causing the plant to be lower than the soil grade. This maybe true if you don't know what your doing, but if done right and the compost that is being used is grade "A" meaning that it is completely broken down and is properly mixed with the existing soil this will not occur!
Although a certain amount of settling does occur regardless, even if you plant it in the native soil without adding anything at all to the mix. This is one reason you want to plant a little higher than the soil grade. Some palms like Sabal can be planted deeper than the soil line without any problems whatsoever.
As a general rule, palm roots grow close to the surface and spread out and beyond the drip line, so when digging the planting hole, remove as much soil as possible to the sides, its kind a like making a donut shaped hole with a raised center. See illustration below.

Planting Hole

By building up the soil to the outside of the planting hole creating a dike around the plant, makes watering and fertilizing more efficient and much easer (see illustration below). This method of planting keeps the plant from settling down and allows the roots plenty of room to grow. Also by adding mulch, compost or other organic material to the back fill area, replaces any soil loss, due to any ground settling that may occur.

Planting hole 2

So, by digging the planting hole and leaving a mound of undisturbed soil where the root ball will be placed, and digging the hole deeper around this area allows the root ball to rest upon solid ground. This aids in better drainage giving the roots much needed room to grow both down and outwards. I have been using this method for many years with much success, regardless of soil types and conditions.
Remember when planting any plant, find out what soil conditions and watering needs are required as to maximize its growth potential, including (drainage, fertilizing, soil PH, amount of sunlight etc...) then plan and dig your hole accordingly.

MULCH: The use of mulch is very beneficial through out the year, during the summer months it holds and retains moisture within the soil, reducing water loss due to extreme heat and drying hot winds. It prevents splash up, by keeping the soil from splashing on to the plants and thus prevents soil borne bacteria from getting on the plants and causing disease and other problems. During the winter it helps to moderate soil temperatures. A 3 to 4 inch layer of mulch is highly recommended.

Please Note: The information found on this page, is from my own experiences or gleamed from the knowledge of other garden enthusiast, and is suited for South Texas soil & growing conditions. Although I have used these practices and techniques in Portland Oregon, with excellent results, still it is very important that you know your soil and growing conditions within your own area. Check with your State Agricultural Extension Agent for more information, and enjoy the wonderful world of exotic gardening the safe and sane way, while keeping the environment healthy!
* M
anure should only be added once every 3 to 4 years and also note that they contain salts!

"Dirt", is something you get on someone; "Soil", is what our plants grow in!

Bio-Organic Technology
The secret is deep within the roots

More Garden Tips
Article


Texas Blackland Prairie Clay
Article

Also check out what this guys has to say about the Dirt Doctor
The "Dirt" on the Dirt Doctor



Temperature Conversion

  Fahrenheit Celsius



Is Equal to:

Temperature Conversion
Enter number in the top box and check either Fahrenheit or Celsius

Early Summer 2001

 South Texas Early Summer Garden Image Gallery 2001
New Garden Image Galleries for 2001

 Winter 2000 Page 1 Gallery
Winter 2001 Page 1 Gallery

South Texas Spring Garden 2001

Archive Y2k Garden Image Gallery

 Main Menu Page January - June
Our Year 2000 Garden 

Main Menu Page July - December
Our Year 2000 Garden 

January
2000

February
2000

March
2000

April
2000

May
2000

June
2000

 July
2000

August
2000

September
2000

October
2000

November
2000

December
2000

 Sago Palm Page One
General information

 Sago Palm Page Two
Variegated and transplanting

 Sago Palm Page Three
Seed, pups and propagation

 South Texas Spring 2001

 To The Oregon Garden

 Raingardens

 Rhapis excelsa

Search this site & menu

 Phoenix roebelenii

Links and Resource Page

Bananas

 Garden Comparison Page

 Carica papaya

John Anderson's Bromeliads

 Strelitzia nicolai
Images of the Giant Bird of Paradise in a progressive series of photographs from start to finish of the flowering process.

Winter 2000 Page 1 Gallery

Winter 2001 Page 1 Gallery

Send Free Greeting Cards

 Shop Amazon on line

 
A natural, completely organic, microorganism inoculate!

More links 
A Window on the Tropics
An expanded version of this page with site and WWW search engine

 Seed Catalog
Digital Raingardens Seeds

 http://www.texasriviera.com