IMPROVE CLAY SOIL - 5 Step Strategy to better grass growth and drainage
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- Опубліковано 17 лис 2019
- This is a discussion on our five-step strategy for improving clay soil. Drainage, grass growth, gardening soil and flower beds all can be improved when combining common and lesser-known approaches into a comprehensive soil improvement plan.
Visit thrivingyard.com for more ideas on improving your soil.
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This is the exact ways I found to improve my lawn after years of trying , my yard looks fantastic now.
These are the most beneficial suggestions I have heard regarding this subject. You have condensed years of struggling into results. Thanks so much! Highly recommended!
Immediately hit the like button for the “I’m the crazy old man that drills holes In my yard on a Saturday morning” 😂
😂 🤷🏻♂️
That was the most succinct and intelligent presentation on improving clay soil that I've ever come across. Thank you.👍
I thought exactly the same, extremely informative
This is the best idea for a lawn renovation project that I've heard. Its going to take work but in the end it will be worth it.
You just gained a follower 👍
I've got horrible clay soil and you're completely right on with how to fix the problem. 100%. Great analysis.
I appreciate the video. I have been searching for an alternative to digging my yard up for years. Finally, I will be able to resolve/make progress of my shallow root issue. Wow
Awesome. Make it happen my friend.
Thank you for this video! Just moved to Utah from California and this clay dirt gots me digging every day just to try an loosen up a few layers..(and yes I’ve been tossing in a few bags of good soil)
Glad to know I’m not the only crazy 😜 person drilling clay in hopes of being able to grow grass someday..
Marroquin family I use a product called ‘rooster booster’ (essentially chicken poop), it is amazing at water retention and breaks down into the soil to prevent compaction. Highly recommend it alongside core aeration.
GWHAWK87
Thank you I got a few bags of chicken poop..
Also purchased a few chicks a few weeks back I’ll leave them out in the clay for a while so they can poo all over the place .. thanks for the recommendation..
Sounds like great advice, I have my drill bit ordered.
Stumbled on this process by accident recently. Wanted to take a soil sample from my new house sod over heavily compacted clay. ended up using the bulb drill because I could not penetrate deep enough with a lawn probe. So hard, even bent the moisture meter was using. I filled the holes with some compost and top soil and noticed those areas looked better. was wondering whether to do the same elsewhere. Glad to see someone else experimented before me! Thanks
My entire yard is one big experiment!!! 😂
This is incredibly helpful and makes so much sense, thank you
I’m so glad!
This is the best advice ever!
Thank you. I’m really pleased with the results I’m seeing.
This is the craziest idea I’ve seen to date but at the same time, just makes sense, neighbours already think I’m nuts, best not disappoint them! Sheer Brilliance! Thankyou 👍🏾🙏🏽
I hear ya. I stopped caring about the neighbors a while ago. As far as I’m concerned, they’re the crazy ones for hiring someone to do everything. What he says makes sense. I did all of em except drill holes which I have contemplated. Takes a few years to get that dark soil level deeper in the ground but why rush it. Better satisfaction if u do it yourself for less $ even if it takes a lot longer. Core aerators work but very heavy machine and u must water lawn b4 or use soil conditioner like he said or it won’t pull plugs out. Too dry. I’d skip core aeration n get the long drill bit n do it right. Just make sure to remove the clay the drill bit removes then backfill holes with good soil. Good luck buddy
Good one; lol; thank you
@@pujo28 same, has a coworker who paid $2,000 for a guy to come and take care of his yard, I told him I would have done it for $1,999. Just to show him how stupid he is.
I'm with you my friend. What else is there to do but make your yard look good 👍 I'm known as the mad scientist who care to much about his lawn. I'll leave you with this...
Work hard January to May then sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Whole everyone else is slaving and sweating 🥵 during the summer.
@@sirdumbthicc4294 🤣, you had me choking on my cup of tea! Funny as hell! You legend lol!
I have just adopted the dad lifestyle over this weekend. I'll take all the yard help I can get.
Welcome aboard!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge, I now have a little bit of hope 🙂
Just keep at it. It’s a slow process but you can do it.
The bulb auger is a eureka for me. Thanks for posting!
So glad! Put it to good use!
1. core aerate and remove plugs, creating thousands of little clay pots.
2. top dress with lawn soil mixed with grass seed and fertilizer.
3. use a surfactant in the summer when you water.
4. rinse and repeat.
My clay is very heavy..core aerators don’t work and nearly give me a slipped disc after a few insertions when trying to pull out tines (hydraulic lock). Cores stick in tines and compact.
@@Domn879 Any luck with the conditioner?
Damn. Thanks it actually makes sense now .
Loved it. Tons of information in a video which was less then 10 minutes.. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️👍🇨🇦
Thank you so much!
Great advice - thanks!
Excellent intergrated plan , when asked i have always said proper PH and soil sampling aeration and top dress compost
Thanks for the video! I saw you started posting a few months ago but haven't posted for a bit... I just wanted to send these words of encouragement to keep posting as youtube is a lot like yardwork... it takes a while to pay off, but consistent care will reap rewards! Cheers!
Appreciate that.
Very interesting! I may have to give those things a try!
I'm the crazy 27 year old that spent 4 hours drilling holes in his yard with a wireless drill and a 2 inch drill bit. My back did not like it. I'm ordering the 24 inch auger today and hopefully it helps.
For goodness sake save yourself the sweat and your wallet while at it! LOL 😂 Learn how to improve your soil, with REAL and simple strategies! Videos like this unfortunately, in spite of well intentioned, are extremely misleading...
At the stage we're nowadays, soil science thankfully evolved enough. To teach why and how to do it. Please be aware when following clueless information. ;-) Cheers
What are your results since this comment??
Oh wow
Results?
Looks like he succumbed to his laborb😂 @@Marcus-sk2xf
Thank you, sir.
Im just starting to think about this at a new house. Great video! Great overview!
Thank you!
Great video!!! Thanks
This guy is tools for everything.
Yes,crazy old man is right.
Never skip mulching
Super informative. 👍👍
Superb video, started this a few years ago and it’s really improved my lawn and soil structure. Will you be posting any more videos?
Awesome tips.
Thank you so much!
Very helpful I live in the uk and my lawn has some very hard compacted areas which I think the core aerator wont go through so the tip on using a large drill bit seems a great option!
Make sure that you moisten the soil before drilling. Let me know how it goes. I’m really pleased with the results I’ve had.
@@thrivingyard Can this be done when the garden has turned to mud? You mentioned wetting it first. It is currently winter here and the snow, rain and dog have ruined the garden I would like to mulch to stop the mud coming in the house but I think I should make some drainage holes first.
Have you experimented with or considered adding gravel in with a top dressing? I'm dealing with an area in the front yard near our road we're we often park or turn a vehicle around. Most of the time it's not an issue and the grass holds decently. However, when the clay is soaked, even a footstep into it causes it to move and spread like peanut butter... a car leaves a huge rut with mounds on either side. I'm thinking of just doing a top dressing of about 45% native soil, 35% compost, and about 15% gravel and 5% wood chips with a good bit of grass seed sprinkled it. The topdressing will also help me create a smoother slope for surface drainage.
Great advice
I was wondering exactly what drill bit would you recommend for totally compact dirt mostly with little stones?
You're the guy drilling holes in his yard on saturday morning, I'm the guy push-brooming top dressing into the holes after aerating lol
planning to fix our lawn this coming fall ,thank you for this info very straight forward and informative .Can you recommend a good grass seed for partial shade where from VA
I’ve just been digging up my yard and burying food scraps and coffee grounds from Starbucks. It takes a few weeks to even begin to see improvement, but it’s free and has been working. I was also told to plant cover crop seeds
Yes! I have done that for years myself. We have an article on our website about it called “Dig and Drop Composting”:
thrivingyard.com/dig-and-drop-composting/
Hi there - there are no videos out there like this one. Been struggling with clay soil like this and I'll be drilling holes this weekend. I'm mixing good topsoil, compost, biochar, and mushroom compost and using that material to fill the holes. Thank you!
Thanks for commenting Joe. It’s a process I developed out of necessity. Improving clay soil takes some out of the box thinking!
Well explained and to the point. Thanks for that and I am going to start implementing these.
I planted fruit trees by looking at the roots then drilling holes with a gas post hole driller filling the holes with compost and peat moss then planting the tree with the roots going into these holes. They get a good start with the composting packed holes going down as deep as I can drill them( 3to 4 feet). With some trees that had been planted several year but were not growing I drilled 2or 3 holes near them and packed them with compost peat moss mixture they started growing.
Love this. I do the exact same thing when planting fruit trees in my yard.
I had a real bad spot in my yard that held water like crazy. Drilled like 10 or so 2in wide 24 inch deep holes and filled them with wood chips. Grass covered the holes up and now its not waterlogged anymore. crazy but it worked for me
Hi, thanks for the very informative video. I know its been a few years since you posted this. Im trying very hard to fix my lawn. We have the hardest clay here. Its like cement. I want to try your method. Can I ask a couple questions? Do you pick up the plugs from the aeration, how far apart do you drill the 12" holes, and do you rake the dirt up from the 12" holes before you mulch? Thanks again.
Hello, I want to try the bulb auger on my clay soil lawn... after I drill the hole, should I fill it with gardening soil or top soil from Home Depot? How do I get it in the hole?
Have you ever thought of using a soil probe used for soil testing for your deep core Integration. Most of them contain the soil and can be dumbed in a bucket. I know the diameter will not be quite as large as the bulb auger, but the clean up should be easier. Just wanted to get your thoughts on it.
I think that could work very well, assuming the soil is soft enough to allow for it to go deep without too much fatigue. That may be a great option!
Hi - fantastic video Thankyou. I have a very thick clay garden. Would you recommend filling the holes around the lawn with a mix of pea gravel and topsoil or just topsoil alone? Many thanks
Thank you
All I do is top dress Black Kow and use Air8 to drive it in. Do a soil test every 2 years to see what you need. My soil is rich. My grass is dark green. I mow tall in the summer. 4 inches and taller depending how hot and dry it gets. Finally, I keep sharp blades on mowers and I like to spoon feed my lawn at least every 5 weeks. If you can invest in a roller spreader and lawn leveling rake you should be the envy of the neighborhood!
The bit recommended on the link has a shaft thickness of 3/16 it says on Amazon. IMO that s way to light for compacted clay especially if it hits a root or rock. Hopefully someone makes a half inch shaft bulb auger that’s 24”.
Thank you these tips. We recently moved into a new home . New home, new lawn. I’m in Houston. I have certain spots were no grass is grown and it’s due to the hard clay soil. Will the soil conditioner hurt or affect near the foundation ?
It should not cause any issue at all. You are only spraying a small amount on an area. See this article: www.concretenetwork.com/concrete/foundation_repair/soils.html
Hey there, thanks for the video and advice. I am in the UK and have been looking off and on for a way to improve particularly the lawn at the back which gets very waterlogged in the winter. I will definitely be following your advice, but was wondering if there is a way to help the drainage quite quickly whilst helping the grass grow better over the next couple of years?
Anyway thanks again for the great video and advice.
I'm looking to do the same, here in South Wales I have a very mushy, soggy, back garden, French drains are a good way to have better drainage but I'm definitely trying this method. Have ordered a 600mm long bulb planter drill bit off amazon. I've heard backfilling with sand will help also.
I have just moved into a new build house in England. The soil is clay and I am going to put grass seed down. I have dug it over then tried my best to break up the lumps of clay into smaller pieces with a spade. But it is still in chunks. I have some sandy top soil to go on top but I'm worried that underneath the layer of sandy soil there will be lots of air pockets. Should I be worried?
Would you say top dressing be done before or after seeding? If before then seed sits on top of the dressing...If after then the seed is buried under the top soil..
My back yard gets flooded and my soil gets compacted when it drains. Should I till the flooded area and add grass clippings, other organic stuff to kind of losen it up? No lie idk crap about gardening and im being forced to learn it lol. Thanks in advance.
I’m with ya! I’m the crazy lady drilling holes in her yard.
How often are you doing all five steps; couple times a year? And are you doing those 5 steps all in the same day?
This is probably the most simple yet comprehensive explanation of lawn care I've come across on youtube. We are in the U.K. but can see those strategies work here too, we have clay soil and as a result, although grass is growing, but quite thin and a bit lifeless in colour.
One question, do I need a special attachment to attach the bulb planter to the drill? - Thanks you!
Thank you so much.
No you do not need any attachments. The planter bits are actually designed to work with a standard drill.
Thriving Yard thank you!
Thriving Yard hi, been looking at the drill bulb planters to buy, what size would you recommend? Thanks.
@@nathanzhou5008 I usually recommend a 24 inch long and at least 2.5 inch diameter. This ensures you can go deep if you need to plus it is easier on the back since you don't have to kneel every time you use it. See our Recommended Soil Compaction Products page for the current one I've been recommending at thrivingyard.com/recommended/soil-compaction-products/
Thriving Yard makes sense, thanks. With the whole country on lockdown, having to buy everything online and hard to gauge size then, but will go for the size you recdmmmded! Cheers.
Totally new to this so this might be a silly question. Our backyard has been cracked dry clay for over 25 years and is covered with weeds and patches of dry grass. Should we, and how should we, remove that before starting this process? Like should the ground be entirely free of any weeds or dead grass before starting the process?
Shae this depends on whether or not you want to keep the patches of dry grass. If the grass is dry but not "dead" then you do not need to remove it. If it is dead and beyond bringing back to life then yes you should remove it but can you tell me how much you are dealing with? Is it a handful of grass patches or a whole lot? If it's a lot then you may be better off moving forward with this approach in the current soil but you can follow our guidelines for establishing a new lawn if you would essentially be "starting over". Here's the link to an article where we go over both approaches (scroll down to the section titled Bare Soil. thrivingyard.com/improve-clay-soil/
this is great, short and to the point, love it. one question though which you didn't point out. what do you do with all plugs and the clay you drilled up? i assume you raked them up and get rid of them because you don't want this back into the lawn correct?
Yes, don’t leave them on the ground. You want to remove them from the property.
Thanks so much for your tips and direction. I live in Clay County (Florida)…named for it. I’m using the auger you linked to and had a question on the backfilling. I was considering failing with 50% alfalfa pellets and 50% garden soil. Would you think this would be a good way to inject a more natural fertilizer (alfalfa) to the soil?
I’ve never used alfalfa pellets but honestly anytime you are putting organic material into that clay soil you are making an improvement from what it was so I wouldn’t have any concerns. Good luck! It’s tough work but it pays off with time.
Would you do these steps in one day or weekend or a longer period of
time?
It was so bad that DeWalt drill could not penetrate the clay. I kid you not it was like drilling into a brick. I wasn’t ready for torque when it hit that clay rock. I thought I had sprained my wrist. So I braced it against my knee, I gave up when I saw smoke coming out of the drill. I thought maybe I was hitting rocks, so dug them up with a shovel. It was clay that was exactly like a brick. They are about 5 inches below the surface. Any suggestions?
Thanks for this strategy. I will be giving it a try. I don't have the means to do a soil overlay but can fill deep core integration at the time of drilling the hole. Do you have recommendations for the best component to make an ideal soil mix? Should the soil mix have fertilizer in it?
If you got the space, make a compost pile. Include the best soil you can find and add a mixture of leaves and grass, turning it often. (I imagine your neighbors would be glad to contribute their grass clippings and leaves to be rid of them.) Worms will move in to aid the composting and you'll get some excellent soil. I've been doing that for a few years to improve my dreadful clay-and-rock soil. In one place I added a Japanese maple that was struggling is now thriving.
About to try this approach in my front lawn, St Augustin grass never really filled in right. Ground is very compacted. Any tips on a good top dressing to backfill with?
I also would like to know what is a good topdressing /backfill for this process as I hear sand is not good to mix sand with clay and almost all topsoil I see sold around here has a good amount of sand in it.
In addition you might consider 1-2 shallow graves per year. In laws if you got em
Hahaha
😂
😂
Thankyou Sir
Hey man, I've brought a auger drill bit and not only does my drill feel like it's getting hotter then the surface of the sun, my auger drill bit broke on the 16th hole 😂
But im a persistent SOB, so I brought myself a manual Draper, the tool you use too make holes for fence posts, works a treat and it makes a 10cm wide hole with a depth of a foot and a half deep, I hope to see a huge change in the next couple of years and I would love too see anthour video of your just too keep my enthusiasm running with a full tank ✌️
Yeah him telling people to drill in the back yard is such a bad idea. Not only does it not work well you could hit power or plumbing lines.
Thanks
What sort of spacing am I looking for between each deep core Integration?
1 to 2 foot but don’t overthink it. You’ll be going back over the same area each season so you’ll tend to fill in the missed areas. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. All my best to you.
Great video! when's the best time of the year to do this? and how often should this be done? how far apart do you recommend the spacing between each holes for the "deep core Integration"? Thanks!
If your soil is really compacted I recommend hitting it at least a couple times a year, spring and fall.
I’m pretty random with spacing. 1-2 foot apart, knowing I will be going back over the area again at some point.
Oh and I tend to do this all through the year since I have a large yard that I’m working (2 acres). A lot of “professionals “ say that you should only aerate every few years but when you have heavy clay soil like I do the more of that that you can pull up and replace with nutrient rich organic matter, the better off you’re going to be. That has been my experience at least.
@@thrivingyard im starting a new lawn, its all dirt about .5 acre... Yard got leveled with some bad clay soil. Do you recommend I till with compost?
Thank you for this advice. I have few real trouble spots in my clay soil that I'm implementing some of these strategies already. Had not heard of the core integration from anyone before, been thinking about something similar. What do you think about back filling the holes with something like a small chip pine park mulch/nuggets?
Also do you think liquid humic acids can help?
Those are good for adding bulk for aeration just know that they take a long time to decompose. If you use them cover with an inch or two of good soil.
Great information. I never thought of using the bulb planter bit, ordered one immediately. I'm assuming the best time to do this is in the spring and fall, as I wouldn't want hundreds of bare spots before the grass grows in. What kind of organic matter do you recommend for filling the holes? I was thinking maybe a mixture of regular organic compost, composted manure, biochar and possibly wood chips. I've heard that wood chips can steal the nitrogen.
Compost is excellent. In fact, it's probably the absolute best organic material that you can use because it adds bulk, is bursting with nutrients, and is absolutely loved by worms and beneficial microbes. I've not used wood chips but if you did I'd encourage you to bury those deeper and then still go over the top couple of inches with compost or a really good quality topsoil.
And yes, spring and fall are usually best but I tend to do this off and on all of the time. The wholes really aren't very noticeable after you backfill them.
I would consider some rock as well.
After aerating my clay soil lawn am I supposed to remove all the plugs or do I just remove the dirt after the deep core aeration? Love your videos btw
Typically you would leave the cores. However if u have clay soil you want to remove the cores. If your deep core aerating you also want to remove the clay that is removed and backfill the holes with good soil. Also look into Uncle Bobs Worms. I put them in my lawn a few years ago. Roughly $25 for a bag or then that naturally disperse and aerate the soil a lot deeper. Takes a few years to amend your soil by the steps he mentioned. Mulching. Top dressing with compost in September. Adding natural fertilizer like Milorganite. Mulching some leaves in the Fall. U wanna deepen the dark soil level that’s beneath the turf. Only other option is to remove like a foot of clay n replace with soil. I did it the hard way over a few years n my lawn looks goos
Correct me if I'm wrong but this seems to boil down to- remove clay and replace with good soil. Is that fair to say?
What if I dug a hole, put a bunch of debris in the hole, then get thousands of worms to eat the bio material and dig through the clay soil making tunnels and spreading good material arround the yard.
What did you do with the spoils from the deep core integration?
I rake them up and discard them.
Dude needs to be a motivation speaker.
Can you recommend a specific auger bit? Brand and size? I bought a new to me house last year and the back yard is a mucky mess (clay soil). Drives me nuts. May need therapy! I’ve looked at doing French drains and like products but I’m not sure how effective those would be vs the amount of work required. I like your solution but reviews on these auger bits are mixed at best. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Hi Al, see this page for my current recommendations. This is the one I use and I’ve been very satisfied with it:
thrivingyard.com/recommended/soil-compaction-products/
This is a great video! Thank you! However I am an absolute novice. Could you tell me how far apart to make the holes when you do the integration? And I may have missed it but do you reseed the areas once you’ve filled? Thanks again!
About 1 foot apart is a good goal to shoot for and yes reseeding is always a good idea if you are hitting it at the right time of year for seeding. Thanks for watching!
@@thrivingyard You rock! Thanks so much!
The missus invaded my garage with her pots of flowers because she cant grow on clay soil around the house. Got my hoe, composts, and a heck of days ahead. Im going to war.
Can you make a video of when to do this , when to fertilize etc....plz
I sure can. I’ll get one put together and get it posted as soon as possible.
Thanks for the info here in India we have found solutions for this clay soil by applying 2000 litre per acre of product name owdc which coast under dollar this will change your soil in 21 day continuous useing this product for year you can start digging you clay soil by hand
Chicken pellets are good to thanks
about the best video I’ve see thanks
Great tip and thank you so much!
If I have a very wet soggy lawn that has poor drainage, would sand be a better backfill option rather than soil?
Do add some real good dry drainage material? Also with the lawn being so wet would I still need to do step 1 before aerate? Because it’s already so moist? Thank you!!!!
Doug I really don’t recommend sand if you have clay soil. Clay has very small particles and sand is so small that it tends to bind right into it and make a bad situation worse.
What you really want to do is to increase the organic matter in the soil. Compost or other matter that is made up of large particles actually creates bulk and reduces compaction. See this article: thrivingyard.com/water-sits-on-top-of-soil/
Make sure what type of soil you actually have.
ua-cam.com/video/AUhOBxVFcFk/v-deo.html
Here is a video (in German) of the VOGT Geo Injector, working also on clay soil.
Breaking up soil compaction by hammering a hollow sonde 1-2m into the ground, blasting compressed air into it, breaking up the compaction, and injecting a porous clay ball product (Ø 1-3mm) into the ground. Then backfilling the injection holes with this clay balls, called "Terramol", too.
~ 1 Drill hole / m², depending on blow up effect.
If the area isn´t compacted again, like heavy machinery/cars driving over the area, this breaking up is permanent. Aeration of the upper soil layer has to be apllied additionally, to improve water distribution sideways in order to connect with the deep cores.
ua-cam.com/video/EYL9arTjSyc/v-deo.html
KAESER air compressors have a similar device.
But you would need to find a provider of this service in your region ;)
If I was to back fill with compost would I not find that eventually I will have have undulations in the lawn as the compost have been broken down?
I’ve seen that at times but it’s a process. Apply more the following season. Overtime it builds truly rich quality soil.
i noticed you did not mention testing ph and adjusting if necessary using an acidifier etc.. at what point would you recommend doing that in the processs?
When doing what I'm explaining, it's best to wait a year before testing the pH. You see, whether that clay soil is alkaline or acidic, I'm still going to drill down and mix as much compost or quality topsoil in. As a do that, I'm changing the organic composition of the soil itself and that is going to alter the pH. Give it a season after doing this then test and see where you are. That's my advice.
Read this article from our website on a cheap and easy way to test for alkaline soil: thrivingyard.com/alkaline-soil/
cvergottinicohen don’t overthink it. Clay is actually an amazing base that just needs some organic nutrients and aeration. PH is usually pretty stable.
Exactly, in most cases lowering ph is the first step to amending a clay soil. Gypsum next, organic topdressing. Core areation does better after the clay is draining well and ph is adjusted for your target grass.
Make sure you call 811 dig safe before you use that auger. Don’t want to hit any utilities, lol.
Great tip!
I basically followed steps 2, 3, and 5. I backfilled holes with the mixture of Perlite soil amendment and good quality topsoil. I am wondering if I can seed right after with sunny mixture grass seed. Fortunately, temp is in high 70;s in Socal. Thank you for the awesome tips. Sub'd from Socal.
You can absolutely seed at that point. You’ll want to keep those seeds moist and not cover them too deeply with the topsoil. Just lightly rake the topsoil over the seeds.
Thriving Yard Great! btw, add one more to the pack of old dudes drilling holes on Saturday morning. 🍻
Good for you! Get after it my friend.
Put some peat moss over the seeded area. It’ll keep the seed moist (holds in water) and you’ll get much better germination. I’ve done it both ways, side by side. 10x better germination with peat moss.
@@adamsa1000 I will definitely try that because I reseeded a half of my front yard last week and about 1/4 did not germinate. I might have put too thick of a top soil over the seeds compared to the other area. Thanx for the tip.
If you think deep clay is bad, try deep clay filled with rocks. The drill hits those and twists badly. For flower beds, I've used a pick axe to break it all up. I discard the rocks and much of the clay and add decent soil from elsewhere. For the yard, I plan to use a large funnel to put decent soil and compost in the drilled holes. That should make filling them more efficient. Oh, and because my yard is on a slope, I'm putting in a retaining wall and filling in good soil behind it. That beats topping an inch at a time. It also should stop my thin layer of topsoil from washing away with each rain.
The clay soil in my yard is so hard that my drill starts to smoke 🥺 but that might be more because I tried to go 15 inches instead of 12. I just tried drilling only 12 and it worked much better. I need to get some compost however.
You hit oil!
Make sure you clear the bit as you go by pulling it back out to get rid of the dirt.
What product do you use in the mulching step?
I have zoysia turf at my 3yr old house and suspect a section of my yard that doesn’t grow very much has compacted / clay rich soil. I’ve used liquor aeration and mechanical.
The mulching step simply involves using a mulching blade on your lawnmower. This ensures that the seeds and nitrogen-rich grass clippings are infused back into the lawn. One question regarding the mechanical aeration: Are you going back and backfilling those aeration pockets with compost or high-quality topsoil? I've found this to be an extremely important step. The goal here is to literally change the physical structure of the soil. We do this by adding quality soil or compost into the clay.
Thriving Yard Thanks for the info. I did not top dress after aerating my yard last fall. But plan to do your plan next week and top dress with peat/ topsoil and compost mix.
@@JdogJenn That is excellent. I'm planning a demonstration video soon to show what happens when we aerate clay soil but don't topdress after. Basically, the clay just consumes the aeration hole and we accomplish very little. Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions!
Would you recommend a 2 inch or 3 inch auger diameter?
@@codyphillips1279 I use a 2 3/4" auger. I generally recommend larger sizes because it removes more mass per use. A 2 inch would work just fine though if you didn't want to use a larger size. i just prefer to get as much done per effort as possible.
Also what’s the best time of year to start the process? I live in eastern NC
Sorry for the delay in responding. Not sure how I missed this one.
So, the majority of lawncare professionals will advise you to aerate while your grass is actively growing. With clay soil, however, I've found that it is beneficial to aerate more frequently than other soils. And so, I do it early spring, late fall, and even in the winter sometimes when I have a supply of quality topsoil that I can backfill the holes with.
Over time, as your soil becomes healthier and less compact, you can easily reduce your efforts to once a year or even less. The deep core integration is a significant part of the process though so I do encourage you to include that in your strategy in addition to traditional core aeration.
Thriving Yard Thanks again for all the info.
Fantastic video. I am in the UK and have clay soil. This spring I need to start tackling moss, crabgrass and 10 years of compacting. Love that drill bit idea.
It costs about £60 to hire a core aerator here. Do you think that doing the drill bit aeration would suffice or is it best to do both types?
Of course it’s always better to do both but if I was choosing one I would double down on deep core integration with a auger bit. You get much better long term results for your time and effort from my experience. Appreciate you!
@@thrivingyard thanks for the quick reply. I will do that twice a year then and try to alternate the grid pattern so that I'm getting the most coverage. Looking forwards to getting this lawn sorted. Thanks again.
Im the crazy old man that drills holes in his lawn on saturday. I laughed at that one!
What about back filling with gypsum or sand? Our clay soil is the wet and mucky kind. There's even moss growing throughout it. I feel like if we can get our soil to properly drain by breaking up the clay, then the moss wouldnt like it as much. Is topsoil still the best choice?
Gypsum can be beneficial for clay soils if the sodium levels are high or if there is low calcium levels. Gypsum will lower sodium and increase calcium but you'd need a soil test to determine if that is really beneficial. As a rule, I do not recommend sand. The best approach that I've found is adding rich organic matter (like compost or really good quality topsoil) and actually infusing it into the clay with aeration and deep core integration because you are actually changing the texture and structure of the soil itself. So, over time, you are creating a healthier living environment for beneficial bacteria and that's when you really are making a significant change.
Sand is another issue altogether. I just can't recommend it - it washes away easily and can actually cause more problems than it solves. That's been my experience, Katherine.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience!
You are very welcome.
I've done this until I burned up my life time drill from a my child hood lol. Guess it's time for a new one.
Anyone ever use a larger auger? Thinking I may drill some pits in the garden. Fill some with stones as a soak away, fill some with compost able materials.
The rest I'll fill with bulk soil amended with gypsom.
I'm at the step 3 & step 5 stages...
Only problem is that no one can tell me a good mix [soil, sand, compost, gypsum, organic matter, etc. & the amounts/percentages] to backfill for the core integration. 🤷♂️
And a good mix recommendation for the topsoil components would be awesome.
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Topsoil and topdressing 40% "good dark soil" organic matter/compost 60% sand (preferrably quartz-sand, not too fine, because this drives compaction again)
Rootzone mix (upper layer) on golf courses may go up to 90% of sand !
Ø 0,5 - 1,5 mm pure Quartz sand (fire dried for core filling) would be awesome but expensive.
Play sand/River sand can also work, but it should be washed, because itself can have proportions of clay in it. And no fine particles allowed again.
Rounded sand would be better than edgy/broken one, because the broken edges jam up again.
Clay is the finest, silt is the middle and sand would be the biggest (in particle size) fraction of soil compostion (+ organic matter).
Here are two good videos (don´t say much about your ratio question but interesting, especially the first one):
Understanding Soil Types and Soil Texture (test your own soil) ua-cam.com/video/AUhOBxVFcFk/v-deo.html
Water movement in the soil: ua-cam.com/video/ego2FkuQwxc/v-deo.html
When you have a very pure clay soil, i would go higher with the compost/organic matter and less sand, to boost up the microbiology/worms.
Paul, the Host, stated some comments above, that he wouldn´t use sand, because the clay soil needs the bigger "chunks" of the organic matter to loosen up the soil, and that the sand would do the opposite and compact the clay even more.
But make the Soil Type test, see your composition and decide for yourself.
In my opinion Sand (not too fine as mentioned above) is a vital part of good soil as well.
@@hectorpascale1013 you're FREAKING AWESOME!!!
🍻Thanks buddy!!🍻
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Question -- For Burmuda, are you doing this during the active growing season?
Yes. I do it anytime during the year.