Simple backyard soil test | Gardening 101 | Gardening Australia

The more you can learn about your soil, the more you’ll understand your garden.
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It’s easy to focus on what’s above the ground in the garden, when we should focus more on what’s below - the soil. Tino suggests a soil texture test as a starter.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
A shovel or trowel
3-4 containers, such as old ice cream tubs or buckets
A separate bucket for water
WHAT YOU DO:
Scrape back any mulch from your sample area, dig down about 4cm of soil then take a small sample (about a trowel full), removing any twigs and rocks.
Do this in a few different spots around your garden, as soil can vary.
Put each sample in its own container.
Fill a bucket with some water.
Grab a handful of soil and moisten it by dripping some water over it.
Try to roll it up into a ball.
Try rolling the ball into a ribbon.
Lastly, try ‘bending’ the ribbon.
Each soil will react in different ways.
In Tino’s first sample, the dry dusty soil won’t absorb the water nor form a ball - this is typical of sandy soil, which doesn’t hold moisture or nutrients very well.
A sample taken from around the pond was already moist and heavy, so needs no extra water. It easily rolls into a ball and can also be rolled into a ribbon. Tino is able to bend the ribbon without it breaking. This shows it has a lot of clay in it, which comprises lots of small particles that tend to bond together. It means the soil does not drain well, and there are fewer air pockets for roots.
The sample from the flower bed forms a ball quite easily, can be rolled into a ribbon but breaks when it’s bent - it’s a loam, with a good mix of clay, sand and organic matter. This is probably the best soil for growing a wide range of plants.
Once you know what type of soil you have in different areas of your garden, you can either choose plants that suit your soil, or you can improve it by adding compost and other organic matter.
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[@bencarey8988]

Great test 👍

[@JovialPlanet]

What an easy test man. Thanks

[@chezgirlrose7654]

Very informative video, thank you Tino. 👍🏼

[@mick0855]

The Garden he's working on is norty as!

[@abhigardening2068]

Very good information

[@evanfit1190]

I'll be thankful if you could add auto caption for the next videos

[@naturedegree5671]

Fantastic and impressive presentation Friend 🍀☘️🍁🌿👌🥀👍

[@namenameson8353]

great

[@socoperez8114]

¿ Podéis subtitular en español ? Gracias