Soil is one of the biggest factors impacting garden success or failure. If your soil isn’t good, your plants will fail to thrive. If you are investing time and effort into growing a garden, you’re going to want to invest in good soil. So, here is what you need to know: the truth about your garden soil.
What is Good Soil
The best way to get your garden off on the right foot (or the right root should we say) is to start with good soil. So, what is good soil? Typically, you want soil that is dark in color. Dark Soil is high in organic matter which means it is full of nutrients.
Organic Matter is decomposed organic material from plants or manure. Basically, organic matter is plant parts (things like stems, roots, leaves, and bark) or old manure that has been broken down over a good period of time and is no longer recognizable as the organic material it once was. Soil that is rich in organic matter allows good water and air movement. It also retains the water that plants will need without drowning them in it. Another benefit of good soil is that it provides the proper stability for growing plants.
Recognizing Poor Soil
Lighter-colored soil is going to lack nutrients and is likely to be the kind of soil that compacts and doesn’t drain well. Sand and dust do not contain organic matter and don’t provide any nutrients. Sand drains well, but won’t provide the stability or structure plants need to stand up tall in your garden. Clay may provide support, but it doesn’t drain well and will cause your plants to drown.
Soil Color as a Metric
Soil color, may not sound like a super scientific method for determining whether your soil is good or not, but it’s pretty accurate and easy to understand. As we already determined, good soil is usually dark. But, what if your soil isn’t dark-colored? What do you need to know then?
| Soil Color | What it Means | How To Improve it |
| Dark Brown | Rich in Organic Matter | Continue To Add Compost Each Year to maintain soil quality |
| Black | Humus (All Organic Matter) | |
| Red | Rich in Iron, Drains Well, Plants may need phosphorus | Add Organic Material (Aged Manure or Compost) |
| Yellow | Too Moist, Doesn’t Drain Well | Add Organic Material (Aged Manure or Compost) |
| Gray, Blue/Green Tint | Poor Drainage/Water Logging | Add Organic Material (Aged Manure or Compost) |
1. Plants Need Good Soil more than they need fertilizer
When it comes right down to it, good soil is more important than fertilizer when it comes to planting success. A good example of soil quality can be seen in comparing the starts I grew last year to the ones I am growing this year. Last year, I used a cheap potting mix from the hardware store. Let’s just say, it wasn’t very nutrient-rich. My plants were slow to grow and tended towards discoloration. No matter how I fertilized them, it was all to no avail. It wasn’t till the plants made their way into the garden where there was better soil that they truly began to thrive.
This year, I mixed my own potting soil using a combination of manure, compost, and peat moss (all organic matter substances). This soil proved to be extremely nutrient-rich and my plants went gang-busters. I still haven’t used a drop of fertilizer and my plants are thriving happily. It’s unlikely these vegetable starts will need to be fertilized until after they’re well established in the garden.
2. Good Soil Doesn’t have to Cost a Fortune
If your garden is in-ground, you’re in luck! Your dirt is free. You may need to invest a little in soil amendments such as a load of compost from a landscape supply company or a few bags of aged manure from a hardware store. Other than that, you’re good to go.
Depending on the size of your growing space, there are a lot of things you can do to improve your soil health. If you have smaller raised garden beds, you can get a few bags of compost or manure from a garden center and add those to improve your soil. If you haven’t already filled your raised beds or if you filled them with basic topsoil, you’re going to want to get quality soil from a landscaping supply company.
You can usually get a cubic yard of soil for around $35. This will fill several 4 ft x 5ft raised beds. Make sure to either get raised bed soil or a mixture of topsoil and compost. Raised bed soil from a reputable landscaping company won’t need additional amendments your first year.
Tip: If you’re in the Spokane area, I highly recommend Gibson’s in Spokane Valley. I’ve gotten soil from other places, but theirs is far superior.
Comparing the Costs – Good Soil Vs. Fertilizer
If you compare the cost of soil to that of a good fertilizer, you’ll find that it is significantly cheaper. After all, once you buy the dirt, you have it for yours to come and it will only need minor amendments in the future. On the other hand, a bottle of Fish Emulsion that lasts one growing season is usually around $21 and a 4lbs of Dry Organic Fertilizer is $12 (and you’ll need at least 3 bags for a standard garden in a growing season). While it may still be helpful to fertilize, your garden will stand a much better chance if you start with good dirt.
3. If you are growing in raised beds, you can’t use regular dirt
If you garden in raised beds or containers, you cannot use regular dirt/topsoil. Dirt in containers has a tendency to pack down over time and with frequent watering. Thus, if you use regular topsoil, it’s going to compact and become a solid clay brick that your plants can’t thrive in. Soil in containers or raised beds needs to have even more organic matter to keep it from compacting.
You can get bags of raised bed soil, although that adds up pretty quickly cost-wise. If you want a more affordable option, find a friend who has a truck and get raised bed soil from a landscape supply company. 1/2 a cubic yard or a full cubic yard will fill a lot of raised beds and won’t compact or inhibit drainage. Your plants will thank you!
4. You Don’t have to understand soil PH to improve your garden
Notice I haven’t mentioned soil PH once in this whole post. Part of that is because I don’t really understand it all that well. Part is because you just don’t have to understand soil PH in order to understand if your soil needs improving and how to do so. It all comes down to the color of your soil. Every gardener comes to love the smell and feel of rich dark soil. Anything different and you know your soil isn’t right.
The Truth About Your Garden Soil
Soil doesn’t have to be complicated. The truth of the matter is that it all comes down to color. But soil can make or break your gardening success. Start with good soil and your chances of success are infinitely higher. Start with bad soil and even if you fertilize them, they may fail to thrive.
