Daily Dose Blogger Bios

Musings On Clay...

(The worst clay soil I've ever worked with - San Juan, Puerto Rico)

Hello. I'm renting a townhouse in Germantown, MD and our soil has quite a bit of clay in it. Because I'm renting, and we plan to move in 4 years, I do not want to put a whole lot of money into my tiny front yard. We tried sowing grass seed but nothing really took. I planted some red blood plans which grew very well. I also planed some lavender and sage. Neither one grew, nor did they die. My question is should I keep to a container garden since nothing seems to be growing? Or perhaps there are plants and flowers that do well in clay soil. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Jasmine

I think Jasmine should do both - I love mixing container gardening with a conventional garden. Sure, she could just plant in pots, but I don't want her to let clay soil intimidate her one minute longer! Clay... people hate clay soil. When dry, it looks like an overbaked brownie - crusty, full of cracks, and water beads off of it, refusing to penetrate. When wet, it is a heavy, sticky mass that is a better used as a building material than a growing medium. It holds water like nobody's business and takes forever to drain. Yuk! Who'd want that? Well, (and this might make Jasmine happy) clay soil is incredibly nutrient rich. If you could just change the texture of clay soil, you'd have yourself some powerful stuff to grow a garden in. Now, changing the texture of your soil sounds hard, but it isn't. First and foremost, compost. Compost your heart out. (and by compost I mean spread organic compost on top of your clay soil. You can even lightly dig it in, if you're feeling ambitious. Making compost is another activity, for another post). Another thing you can do is buy a coffee can full of red worms (the kind people use as bait) and throw those babies on top of your compost layer. They will be your little diggers, tunneling into the clay soil below the fluffy compost and mixing the two up as they go ... eating up bits of organic matter and pooping out that miracle substance known as 'worm castings'. Your clay soil will begin to have lift and life, like a great hairdo!
Plant lists for both conditions after the jump...

You will soon be able to plant a great variety of plants... but in the meantime, there are some plants that thrive in clay soils, and some (like lavender) which will freak out and die in a second. Grasses tend to do well in clay, as do prairie type plants like heleniums and monardas. Do not try the classic Mediterranean plants (lavenders, artemisias, nepetas) or Australians (kangaroo paws, hebes, grevilleas) - these like their soil lean, mean, and on the sandy side. Put don't worry! In a few years you can plant anything your heart desires

Plants for Clay Soil
Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower)... I wish I could grow this! Once you see them growing in the midwest, our puny little stands of Echinacea are downright depressing.
Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed) ... This is a great plant, but watch it - it seeds itself around. You'll have a whole neighborhood full in a blink of an eye.
Sedum 'Autumn Joy' ... This is a cool plant; it looks like pink broccoli to me.
Pennisetum orientale ... The prettiest grass in my opinion. Pink little foxtails sway in the smallest breeze.
Pennisetum rubrum ... A great grass for any garden. Beautiful shape, and a gorgeous red color.
Monarda fistulosa (bee balm) ... Another plant I wish I could grow. It has such an unusual blossom.
Liatris spicata (blazing star) ... With a name like 'Blazing Star', I dare you not to plant it!
Hemerocallis (daylilies) ... Some people think daylilies are too overused, I beg to differ. Great plants can't be used too much!
Echinops ritro (globe thistle) ... I'm a sucker for a pom pom on top of a long, thin stem.
Helenium (sneezeweed) ... Classic yellow daisy/sunflowers. You've gotta love 'em.

Plants for Sandy Soil
Lavatera maratima (tree mallow) ... Great plant/shrub /tree ... more people should plant this!
Cystus (broom) ... Lots of nice varieties. Fresh and pretty.
Artemisia 'Powis Castle' ... I can't imagine a garden w/o this beautiful silver plant!
Nepeta faaseneii (catmint) ... Plant this, add lavender, and you have instant Mediterranean garden!
Lavandula (lavender)... see above
Acanthus mollis (bear's breeches)... This is a classic, stately plant - regal, even.
Perovskia (russian sage) ... The flowers of perovskia look like a blue haze around silver leaves. So nice.
Anigozanthus (kangaroo paws) ...To whoever doesn't use these in their gardens ... your name is mud!
Grevillea ... My new favorite plant. Great leaves, flowers that look like shrimp kabobs, and a total hummingbird magnet!
Salvia (sage) ... A garden w/o a salvia is a garden w/o eyebrows!