Clay Soil

[Deleted User]

Has anyone had success growing anything in clay soil? If so what?

We have large beds in our garden so was wanting a few different colourful plants for ground cover plus one or two larger evergreen shrubs that will grow big and won't die off in winter.

Not roses though, we have those already!

SunMoonStars

I garden in heavy clay, usually waterlogged (West of Scotland), and it is surprising how many plants can thrive which you wouldn't necessarily expect to, as long as you look after the soil well and are judicious with your choice of plants.

Plant recommendation and choice is dependent on so many factors. Where in the UK are you? do you know soil pH? What orientation does your garden have - N, S, E or W? Sunny or shaded aspect? Climate and rainfall? Holds water?

Clay soil is packed with nutrients. A little organic matter added to the soil will open up the soil structure a bit. Don't trample on your soil or dig over when wet as this wrecks the texture.

The RHS website has some good advice on gardening on clay - Google RHS clay soil (I am new so can't post links) - and has a great plant finder where you can say what soil you have, aspect etc. This is probably more helpful than getting a list of plants from around the UK that may or may not work for your particular situation.

I hope that helps ☺

Justagardener

We had to plant up some banks which had been formed from the spoil of a very large pond by the Thames in Oxfordshire, It was thick thick sticky clay!
The pond was 12 foot deep and didn't need lining and has held water for the last 25 years that's how thick the clay was!
Anyway, my point is.. we planted the banks with many plants, some that, on paper had no chance of surviving in clay but they did survive and actually flourished, so dont worry too much as long as they are not full on acid lovers. My only advice would be to mulch heavily after planting
Viburnums, cornus kousa, amelanchier, photinia, pulmonaria, brunnera, heuchera and houttuynia to name but a few.

[Deleted User]

Thanks for your replies.

I'm not sure what PH my soil is unfortunately. How do I find that out?

Basically the houses were built on an old quarry so pretty much all the garden is clay. I think its south facing and we get majority sun throughout the day until early evening. It doesn't get waterlogged. In the summer it actually gets bone dry and if we don't water the garden at least every two days everything starts wilting.

I've had minor success with a hydrangea, i.e. it survives and flowers but the flowers do turn a bit of an off colour halfway through summer. Need to remember to water it everyday or it starts to wilt.

I planted lobelia last year which actually did quite well. Thats on my shopping list for this year!

Planted a Rhodedendron which has survived, but like the Hyndragea I think it struggles.

WeAreGhosts

I garden on clay, too. My advice is to spend some money and time on preparing the soil. I mixed in lots of multi-purpose compost and manure at the beginning of last year and sweet peas, dahlias, sunflowers and courgettes did really well. I also have a lobelia that doesn't seem fussy.
I have to water every few days as well. If you're just starting out, it could be worthwhile looking at irrigation systems.

SunMoonStars

Ah. Quarryworks. This will likely have affected the structure of the soil in the past as it is unlikely that the soil would have been looked after properly (compaction which starves roots of air, mixing topsoil and subsoil and so on), making it so difficult to grow anything regardless of whether it is clay or not. Also, subsequent building work when building your houses may well have caused similar problems, to the point where plants struggle to survive, soil damage can take years to put right. Is this a relatively new build or has the garden been established for a number of years?

Given it’s history I would be inclined to concentrate more on adding loads of organic matter to your soil to improve it and not worry about it being clay or whatever for now. Try not to dig when wet because this will damage soil structure too. You need to open the soil texture up to allow air in to the roots so plants have a chance to establish.

Good luck
HTH

MrsSnail

I have a very heavy clay, and am in Greater Manchester, so it's always wet. Try to mix in plenty of organic material to improve the structure and try not to compress it so keep your stomping on it to a minimum - I found it easier to place stepping stones through my big borders at the front and plant around them.

As for plants that have done well - buddleia, holly, rose and pieris bushes are all thriving. Azaleas, various kinds of hebes, lavender, rosemary and sage, snapdragons, lobelia, salvia, lupins, wallflowers (erisymum) and hydrangea have all been going strong since the moment I planted them. I had to move the hydrangea to a slightly shadier spot as it dried out far too frequently in the summer sun, so that's now snuggled under the pieris japonica, underplanted with thyme and oregano to keep the roots shaded and damp.

Alliums and gladioli do well, but not tulips (I think my soil just holds too much water and rots the bulbs). I scatter cosmos, poppy and nigella seeds every spring and they always grow, as long as the birds don't eat them! I use rooting powder and bonemeal every time I plant anything, and mulch the beds twice a year (once in autumn/winter and again in late spring to shade the soil for the imminent 3-day summer).

I have a very shady area in the back which I'm gradually filling with loads of lovely ferns and hostas - there are a couple of geums and a crocosmia for colour which are doing very well. Near that, in a sunnier, but rarely messed-with space, I have the world's biggest peony plants which were here when I moved in 20 years ago. I think anything that recommends not disturbing the roots after planting could be a safe bet - peonies, bleeding heart and rhubarb are all doing well in my back garden.

I have cheated in the veg garden, as the drainage is so pants, and built raised beds. I cannot even imagine the work I'd need to do to dig it over every year otherwise!

My main tip would be to have a look at your neighbour's gardens. Anything well established will do well in your garden too. And they may offer up some cuttings or seeds to start you off! Everyone on my street has some combination of roses, hydrangeas, conifers of various types, honeysuckle and peonies, and low-growing things like cyclamen and primroses. There are a couple of wisterias and forsythias too, which are always lovely to see waving over people's fences.

[Deleted User]

MrsSnail wrote: »

I have a very heavy clay, and am in Greater Manchester, so it's always wet. Try to mix in plenty of organic material to improve the structure and try not to compress it so keep your stomping on it to a minimum - I found it easier to place stepping stones through my big borders at the front and plant around them.

As for plants that have done well - buddleia, holly, rose and pieris bushes are all thriving. Azaleas, various kinds of hebes, lavender, rosemary and sage, snapdragons, lobelia, salvia, lupins, wallflowers (erisymum) and hydrangea have all been going strong since the moment I planted them. I had to move the hydrangea to a slightly shadier spot as it dried out far too frequently in the summer sun, so that's now snuggled under the pieris japonica, underplanted with thyme and oregano to keep the roots shaded and damp.

Alliums and gladioli do well, but not tulips (I think my soil just holds too much water and rots the bulbs). I scatter cosmos, poppy and nigella seeds every spring and they always grow, as long as the birds don't eat them! I use rooting powder and bonemeal every time I plant anything, and mulch the beds twice a year (once in autumn/winter and again in late spring to shade the soil for the imminent 3-day summer).

I have a very shady area in the back which I'm gradually filling with loads of lovely ferns and hostas - there are a couple of geums and a crocosmia for colour which are doing very well. Near that, in a sunnier, but rarely messed-with space, I have the world's biggest peony plants which were here when I moved in 20 years ago. I think anything that recommends not disturbing the roots after planting could be a safe bet - peonies, bleeding heart and rhubarb are all doing well in my back garden.

I have cheated in the veg garden, as the drainage is so pants, and built raised beds. I cannot even imagine the work I'd need to do to dig it over every year otherwise!

My main tip would be to have a look at your neighbour's gardens. Anything well established will do well in your garden too. And they may offer up some cuttings or seeds to start you off! Everyone on my street has some combination of roses, hydrangeas, conifers of various types, honeysuckle and peonies, and low-growing things like cyclamen and primroses. There are a couple of wisterias and forsythias too, which are always lovely to see waving over people's fences.

Thanks you for the tips.

So if I got some compost and put it on the clay soil and mixed it all in, would that be ok?

Unfortunately my neighbours to the left have very little planted in their garden and the neighbours to the right just don't take care of theirs at all. They cut their grass about once per year and have numerous kids toys scattered about.

teachergirl

I have heavy clay and grow just about anything I want. I live in Essex and have very little rainfall compared to the rest of the country so like you in the summer I have to water loads and the ground regularly cracks. Your Rhododendron may not be doing too well because it thrives in acid soil. We have a couple that we inherited with the house and so just mulch with ericaceous compost. I have also planted some acid loving plants but just filled the hole with the said compost.
My garden is very cottagey so delphiniums, lupins, heathers ,poppys etc etc. I will try and find an old photograph and then try and work out how to post it

teachergirl

Ok unless someone can tell me very easily how to get pictures that is beyond me. But looking at my photos reminds me, wisteria, peonies ,foxgloves, snow in summer, clematis , campsis, lavender quince, etc etc

MrsSnail

Deleted_User wrote: »

Thanks you for the tips.

So if I got some compost and put it on the clay soil and mixed it all in, would that be ok?

Pretty much.

I'm quite a lazy gardener, so I've never dug over the whole thing (much to my "proper gardener" neighbour's horror). I did plan quite carefully using another neighbour's hot tip to grow woody things as they have tougher roots which break the soil up as they spread (so hebes, azaleas, lavender, rosemary etc), and I basically each time I plant, I've dug a slightly larger than necessary hole, lined it with a mix of compost and bonemeal, a sprinkle of rootgrow mycorrhizal powder, stick the plant in and then fill up any gaps with more compost. Hasn't failed me yet!

One small area that was pretty hard to do anything with because it was very slopey - I built up with a plastic border edge thing, added a 4" layer of bog-standard compost, and planted a whole bunch of bulbs and grasses without even digging into the clay soil. Took the plastic "dam" out 18 months later and it all stayed where it was, and the plants have rooted through into the clay.