Table of contents: How much soil do I need? All right, but how much is a yard of dirt? Dirt calculator - how to estimate garden soil quantity? What is soil? How much soil do I need? You can do it in the following way: Determine the length and width of the area you want to cover with soil. Calculate the area , multiplying the length by width.
You can also type the area directly into our calculator if you choose a more sophisticated shape. We've got area calculators for of many geometric figures, such as the trapezoid or the hexagon.
For even more examples, visit the 2d geometry section of our math calculators. Establish the depth - thickness of the topsoil layer. The volume of soil required is equal to this value. Our soil calculator will display it for you. First, we need to divide the grass yard into four rectangles: 1, 2, 3, and 4. We have to sum up these four different areas to get the area of the whole yard.
Weathering can be caused by: physical factors: temperature changes, cycles of wetting and drying and movement of material by wind, water or gravity chemical factors: processes of solution , hydrolysis, oxidations and many others living organisms: bacteria, fungi, earthworms, and even human activity Weathering of soil makes the parent material disintegrate over time into smaller and smaller pieces.
Basic types of soil If you do not consider yourself a pedologist a soil scientist , you can assume that there are six different types of soil: Sandy soil — it feels dusty in hand. Sandy soil dries very fast in sunny weather as it does not hold water very well. Escaping water washes away many minerals, so you have to apply some amendments or mulch to give your plants appropriate conditions for growth. Clay soil — this type of soil feels sticky and elastic — a little bit like plasticine.
The water doesn't go into it very well because there are not many empty air spaces in the structure of clay soil. It is rich in ingredients so if you maintain sufficient drainage, your plants should develop freely. Silty soil — it is an excellent type of soil as it is very rich in ingredients and has very good properties of holding moisture. Peaty soil — it feels spongy-like.
This type of soil is characterized by outstanding water holding capabilities but also poor composition of minerals. You should mix it with sources of rich organic matter and care for its pH level check the next paragraph — Soil degradation versus soil conservation. Chalky soil — this soil consists of many larger particles — bigger grains and stones.
It is alkaline which means it has a high pH level. Because of that, you should use some acidic fertilizer to ensure the best growth for your plants. Loamy soil — the best type of soil a gardener can dream of! It is very rich in ingredients, it holds water very well, and its structure assures good drainage. These perfect properties are caused by a well-balanced composition of sand, clay, and silt. Soil degradation versus soil conservation Soil degradation is the soil process most feared by farmers and gardeners alike.
There are several mechanisms of soil degradation: Soil acidification — when the pH level of soil drops too much, and it becomes too acidic for plants to grow; Soil salinization — when there is an excessive salt accumulation also inhibiting the growth of plants; Soil contamination — when the soil is exposed to human-produced waste or other toxic materials. The microorganism living in soil are able to assimilate waste material to some extent but sometimes it is just too much… Desertification — when cultivated land transforms into a desert; Erosion — when some physical forces such as water, wind or a drop in temperature cause the weathering of the soil go back to the What is soil?
Kacper Pawlik and Bogna Szyk. How much soil do you need? Volume needed. Weight needed. US ton. How much will the soil cost you? Price per one unit of mass. Fill Dirt: This, too, might be tempting as a cost savings, but it will hinder all your other efforts to build that healthy growing environment. What is fill dirt? Fill dirt is underneath the topsoil and includes none of the inherently good qualities of topsoil.
Biochar does have some nutrient value. Photo: Mark Highland. Fire Ash: I recommend against putting any fire ash directly into your garden beds. If your fire ash is all wood-based, it can be a good addition in a small quantity to your compost pile.
Mycorrhizae: This fungus is very popular as a soil ingredient in bagged products. Adding mycorrhizae to your soil may provide a benefit. Building that initial raised bed garden environment with quality ingredients will provide you good results the first season.
However, those crops you grow will be making non-stop nutrient withdrawals from those beds. How do you do that? Amend your soil once or twice each year with organic nutrients like those I described above — not synthetic fertilizer. By amending your garden beds, you will see better soil in season two, great soil in season three, amazingly rich soil in season four, and so on. Before you amend your soil for the first time and about every couple of seasons, I recommend that you get a soil test.
A soil test will determine the pH levels and deficiencies of your soil to help guide your amendment choices. The nutrients you provide the soil will be most optimally taken up by your plants when the soil is at a neutral pH. In early September — before I plant my winter, cool-weather crops — I topdress with an inch or two of compost. In late March — before I plant my summer crops — I do the same.
Amend your soil once or twice each year with a topdressing of quality compost. An inch or so goes a long way to keeping your soil productive. Sometimes, I lightly scratch the compost into the bed surfaces, but I usually just lay the compost on top, cover with mulch and walk away.
Remember that microbial party we got started when first building the bed soil? So, they will naturally and quickly work all the compost back down into the party with the rest of them. I would be:. On the off-chance something undesirable has made its way into those mediums, compost works as a buffer to help neutralize any potential negative effect. Many of you asked if you should remove the existing soil and start all over. To that I say — no.
Replacing your existing bed soil is laborious, expensive, and time-consuming. You might be surprised at how quickly garden beds, even those that have been neglected for years, can be rejuvenated.
If this is your situation, I still recommend against tilling the soil. Instead — using a pitchfork or a broadfork , stab the garden soil deeply and wobble the fork around to create a little space around the tines. Then, fill those spaces with compost.
A broad fork is a good tool to provide deep access for amendment penetration in existing raised beds and bring new life to tired and compacted beds. Are your beds too full to amend? If your bed surface is plumb up to the top of your sidewalls, remove any debris — if possible. That organic material will break down over the season and should provide at least enough space to amend by the next season.
Should you add fertilizer when you plant? I received many questions asking if fertilizer should be added to planting holes. When you build your soil the right way — slowly over time — everything your plants will need will already be in the bed.
If it really makes you feel better to add something at planting time I can respect that , just add more compost. Adding fertilizer puts you at risk for burning your plants. What you place in the planting hole may be more than the plant can handle, and it will suffer or die rather than thrive and produce. I love mulch! It protects the soil from heat, erosion, and pests. Mulching will reduce evaporation and the amount of supplemental water you need to provide. An exposed soilbed — especially in a raised bed — dries out.
It can develop a crust that can be resistant to water, and the exposed soil can blow away. Mulch will solve that problem. Did I mention that mulch significantly reduces weeds in the garden bed? Yep — that too. And thanks to the multi-benefit mulch protection from above, the microbial party will remain happier and healthier under the surface.
Also, it just looks nice. A one— or two-inch layer of wheat straw, arborist wood chips, shredded bark, grass clippings, composted leaves, etc. Shredded leaves happen to be my favorite mulch and are just another key to the success of my or any garden.
I recommend against rubber mulch for the same reasons I recommend against using tires as a container check that out in Part 1 of this series if you missed it. Mulch is to soil above ground what compost is for plants below ground. How quickly depends on the depth and width of the beds as well as the sidewall material and thickness. Good soil and mulch will reduce drying, but good irrigation is also important. Life is so busy for all of us these days.
So, having a good watering system in place will make it much easier to reap abundance in the garden. Myself, I go a step further and take full advantage of some quick, easy and inexpensive tools to automate the irrigation of my beds.
Depending on your set up and spacing; emitter tubing, soaker hoses or a drip system will provide the perfect moisture level. These methods deliver water slowly and directly at the roots of your plants — where that water does the most good! A side-by-side comparison of plants grown with and without biochar. Clearly, this amendment can benefit plant growth. Each of these options are inexpensive, easy to use and available at any home improvement or garden center.
If you are on a well, you will appreciate that each of these systems are low-pressure. Soaker Hose: The flexibility of soaker hoses make them great for raised beds. Soaker hoses are porous, allowing the water to seep out slowly along the entire length into the surrounding soil. Not all soaker hoses are created equal. Most soaker hoses are made that way, but I have concerns with chemicals from that recycled rubber leaching into my soil.
I prefer to use food grade, polyurethane hoses from Water Right Inc. I need my garden to be television-ready, so I also like that they come in various earthy colors that look good without standing out. Emitter tubes are also flexible and low-pressure 8. They self-flush to prevent clogging and have copper shields around each opening to deter root penetration. Emitter tubing is a high-tech, efficient, and affordable choice for watering raised bed or in-ground gardens. That means, water from each emitter will spread across the bed toward the water from other emitters, and any roots in between will receive moisture.
Drip Irrigation Systems: These systems can include drip tape or drip line. Most commonly, drip kits include a lightweight, flexible tube with an emitter at its end so that you can direct water to a certain plant or small area.
For most raised beds setups, emitter tube or soaker hose are your better options. Easy Automation: Each of these watering methods can be easily automated, which gets me back to my original point.
We are all busy, so why not automate irrigation? A battery-operated or spring-loaded timer, a quick connect coupler and a quick shut-off valve are all you need. Below, we walk you through some common growing scenarios and the type of soil most appropriate for each:. Use potting soil. This light and airy mix is specifically formulated for container gardening to ensure adequate drainage and space for roots to grow.
Simply add potting soil to pots and then plant your annuals, flowers, small trees and shrubs directly into it. Tip: ideally, replace potting soil annually. Use a soilless mix. These super light blends are perfect for starting delicate seeds and are usually a combination of peat moss, perlite, and vermiculite, and like the name implies, does not contain organic matter soil that could harm tender seedlings.
Use a raised bed mix. This blend is used when filling a raised bed that exists on top of native soil. Be sure to read labels carefully as some mixes need to be blended into native soil while others you can plant directly into. Compost is also a smart choice to add because it enriches and boosts fertility while releasing nutrients over an extended period of time, providing a longer-lasting impact than fast-acting chemical fertilizers.
Tip: Use compost as a mulch then let the earthworms do the hard work of dragging it underground. Use organic compost.
0コメント