Help for my sandy yard - Is it hopeless?

I live in sand. If you ever read that description of how to determine what type of soil you have - squeeze a handful - my soil just pours out of your fingers like sand in an hour glass. I have been working for two years on increasing the organic material - I compost, I shred leaves, I rob neighbors of grass clippings, I purchase mulches to retain water - and yet my soil still drains like a sieve and does not hold nutrients well. If it is disturbed - digging or tilling - it seems to get worse. It will practically blow away. This is probably because I need massive amounts of OM to get anywhere near 5%.

This year I am working a new bed and I'm really torn about tilling... The area has had a 3" mulch - shredded wood and grass clippings - resting on the surface for a year now and I am worried about pulling this back and having the beach consistency return after a brief tilling. Should I dig... not dig? And is this hopeless? I have almost an acre of land and have concentrated my efforts but I forsee being only able to keep up with the organic material I need to keep the existing beds healthy, nevermind creating new ones as was my plan.

Can I expect this to turn around? Should I make a major investment in purchasing a truckload of something that is ready to use (as opposed to something I need to compost to be usable for this spring) and if so, what? If not, as the mulches break down, the soil is improved. Should I just be more patient?

Eeek! I've never lived in soil like this. Any help, thoughts, ideas are appreciated.

Sue

I have built up 1.5 acres of my 3 with raised beds and have used everything in my area to do this. I have used cow manure, composted mint, sawdust, clay, sand, wood chips from roadside tree clearing, horse manure with sawdust, compost, hauled in horse manure and wood chips, llahma manure, left over silage from dairy farm, and what ever torn bags at any garden centers and I have in 5 years created some wonderful beds. Inch by inch everything is a cinch. Look for what is cheap in your area and get it hauled to your area. I wish I had sand to start with I had rocks. http://davesgarden.com/journal/ed/index.php?tabid=1717 This is what I did with glacial till. Have fun.

Soferdig,
What absolutely beautiful gardens. I am assuming you decided on raised beds because of the impracticality of digging in rocks. I have always simply improved the soil I have but with the sand, I feel as though I'm starting with something less than soil although at least drainage is never a problem. I can't comprehend collecting enough to create raised beds on so much land but obviously you have done it! I guess I have to just make the decision - to dig in or to build up. I'll probably go back and forth about it for the next month and see how much OM I can collect in the meantime. Thanks for sharing!

I love the one bed a year thing. First it keeps me from going broke buyin g plants for the bed but also it keeps me growing soil from the previous years collection. See Compost pile for next years garden bed. Oh yeah all the trees I got for nothing this fall. Inch by inch everything is a cinch.

I would concentrate on selecting plants that like to grow in sandy soil.

This isn't an option for vegetable gardening, but you could concentrate the application of organic matter in the areas that you want to grow food stuff. And then for your remaining landscape, select plants that prefer sandy soils that dont need alot of amending.

I can offer a suggested plant list, if you are interested.

"I would concentrate on selecting plants that like to grow in sandy soil. "

I have done that in the small front yard. I've a great number of drought tolerant/sandy poor soil loving plants in the small front yard where I have full sun. Some of which I'm going to try out in the semi-shade areas but I would love any suggestions, particularly for part shade/shade.

The soil seems to do best structurally if I leave it alone but then I end up with the best, healthy, planting soil on a top layer - not where the roots are. It's better than the first year, though so I guess soferdig may have convinced me to just keep at what I am doing.

This is the problem with winter. Instead of actually getting out there and working, I spend too much time thinking!

I should probably mention what I already have in the sunny area... A number of varieties of dianthus, phlox, salvia, russian sage, sedum, daylillies, thymes, grasses, yucca, delosperma, buddleia, artemisia, lamb's ears and a heritage river birch... In the best soil created so far are carpet roses (planted last year, we shall see) along a picket fence and irises. They all seem to really thrive in the soil but enjoy the sun that I don't have on most of the property. Thanks! Sue

I love Cream false ingido (Baptisia bracteata). Its slow starter but matrue plants are beautiful. It struggles in my icky soil. But it should do nice in your conditions.

Other plants you might want to look into:

New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus)
White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra)
Tall Blue Larkspur (Delphinium exaltatum)
Maple Leave Alum Root (Heuchera villosa, var.)
Smooth Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis)
Cupplant (Silphium perfoliatum)
Ohio Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis)
Culversroot (Veronicastrum virginicum)
Bottle brush grass (Hystrix patula)
Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
Small Beardtongue (Penstemon smallii)

Thank you thank you thank you! I am going to look them up today. All except the spiderwort, a variety of which we have in abundance as a major pest around here. Can't bring myself to look at another. I do adore heucheras and have a few but not sure of the variety.

Addie,
I too have sandy soil and in some gardens have ammended the soil in others (Pitch Pine & Scrub Oak woodland) have not. I am new here and have just begun journal but if you go to view my journal look at the plants listed in "Front Woods West of Drive" and Front East of drive they are far from complete but I am pretty sure we are in the same zone. If you have any questions or would like to see photos I would be happy to help. Katy

Brick layers in this area use my soil (sand) in their brick mortar....This year I am going to try lasagna gardening in raised beds....I know nothing but am prepared to learn.....anyone experienced with this method?