Water into wine, clay into something I can work with...

East Tennessee Red Clay -- it's gotta be capitalized. That's what I'm starting with. I have no real materials for composting at this point since I'm starting out. There are pine trees but that's about it.

SO....I'm digging a bed (terracing actually, but that's another thread), and chopping up the bottom of the clay bed and then dumping mushroom mulch into the bed and chopping/shoveling/forking them together before I plant.

But then I dig a hole in that bed and set individual plants into a combination of Pro BMX (peat moss & vermiculite I think) and mushroom mulch.

So far this is working great. I'm getting drainage because they are raised beds (or terraces depending on your pov) and the Pro mixture. I'm getting nutrients because of the MM. And I'm getting water retention in the clay and peat moss. This season I'm doing well with herbs, peonies, calla lillies, coreopsis, clematis, daylillies, English Ivy, hosta, and altheas... So far...I'm concerned these are short term results.

Any advice for next year or this fall -- re soil improvement or composting from thin air?

TIA

You have a good start. Now, keep adding peat, shredded or whole leaves, barky mix potting soil, etc. Anything organic you can get your hands on. I would stay raised above the ground level if possible. It is going to take a long time to make that clay nice and friable. Lasanga beds where you start by laying down thick layers of paper or cardboard, then leaves, grass clippings, manure, stable cleanings, kitchen scraps, straw, hay, alfalfa meal, etc. layer upon layer. Just let it all rot down and mix somewhat next spring. Keep adding to it until you reach the depth you want/need. Then start on another bed and do the same thing. In time it will all mix into the clay but it is going to take a few years I think. Here in central MO we have what is known as black gumbo. Basically rich black clay type soil. Sets up hard as a rock when it gets dried.

Hang a sign out WELCOME ALL WORMS. Do this with a lasagna layer over your existing beds starting early fall and keep it moist. All of the worms neighbors and relatives will be living packed into the bed you have created. Vermicomposting will bring the layers of clay alive below you. Actually I used lots of compost and wood chips sticks and pine needles to bury deep into the sub soil before I set the good stuff in the raised bed. But you will get the same results with the worm sign. Worms are busy little buggers when it is moist so give them what they want.

Worms! You need worms..... I had adobe clay soil - concrete in the summer and "suck your boots off" in the winter. Put worms in the mulch you've brought in.

Sorry I forgot to mention the worms. They are hard workers in compost. I really don't know if Night Crawlers are better than Red Wrigglers but they are a lot larger and can really work up some hard clay.

Worms exist every where except the desert. So you only have to build it and they will come. It = compost pile.

Soferdig, that is absolutely beautiful dirt.

Malamutes, if it gets too hot in the summer, you can build an indoor worm bin if you're not squeamish. Mine is in the pantry and they're very happy. I will probably put some of them outside in October or so, but keep the bin going indoors. Google "cheap and easy worm bin" and "worm man" if you're interested, for a bin plan and a source of worms.

I made all of that dirt out of clay and glacial rocks. Well I added about 5 parts mushroom compost (horse doo doo and wood chips) and 2 parts of compost to 1 part of the clay rocks that are here.

THANKS.

OK, this morning I thought I'd give this a new twist and laid down 2" of newspapers, wet them down, then brought in a truck load (my small Toy truck) of shredded pine bark and put it in a new bed. Then went back for a load of mushroom mulch (peat, wood chips, and horse do) and put that down and then mixed that up with the garden fork . Wet that all down. I'm done for the day because of the heat. But in the morning I have an empty truck... any advice as to what to bring home this next load -- I have room for 2 more loads in this bed..

I have bagged perlite, bagged peat moss, bagged promix, epsom salts, Osmocote for trees and shrubs, and moisture crystals.

Could NOT find Super Thrive, fish emulsion, or alfalfa this morning at the farm co-op, Lowe's or Wal-mart. Any other ideas to kick-start this bed?

Also, was thinking about doing this same routine with a row of planters that are actually 24"x24"x24" clay chimney flues. Any thoughts on retaining moisture in those?

(Thanks, all!)

You could not find alfalfa at the farmers co-op? That is almost bizarre?

Did you try Bart's Feed & Seed in Dayton or Triple B Feed & Dog Supply in Pikeville?

I agree that on TN clay - raised beds is the way to go.

You definitely need to start your own compost - do you have kitchen scraps and junk mail?

Very little junkmail or kitchen scraps -- with the dogs, kitchen scraps don't last long around here and I don't want to put anything in the composte pile that would attract 100lb determined, willful, obstinate dogs who always think they are starving to death. Alfalfa was temporarily out, should be in by Tuesday, I thought bizarre too.

I can get for the next 2 trips any of these:
- Topsoil (it's not all that top if you ask me but IS dirt which we dont have any yet)
- mushroom mulch
- peat moss/vermiculite/perlite
- shredded hardwood mulch
- shredded pine mulch

(have 1 load pine mulch and 1 load mushroom mulch already in the bed on top of soaked newspapers -- I'm thinking lasagna raised bed and just plant in the durned thing, it's August already).

Ideas?

Very little junkmail or kitchen scraps -- with the dogs, kitchen scraps don't last long around here and I don't want to put anything in the composte pile that would attract 100lb determined, willful, obstinate dogs who always think they are starving to death. Alfalfa was temporarily out, should be in by Tuesday, I thought bizarre too.

I can get for the next 2 trips any of these:
- Topsoil (it's not all that top if you ask me but IS dirt which we dont have any yet)
- mushroom mulch
- peat moss/vermiculite/perlite
- shredded hardwood mulch
- shredded pine mulch

(have 1 load pine mulch and 1 load mushroom mulch already in the bed on top of soaked newspapers -- I'm thinking lasagna raised bed and just plant in the durned thing, it's August already).

Ideas?

What do you plan to plant? I'd vote generally for peat moss and mushroom mulch, with a nice layer of topsoil, pine straw on top. Roses especially like peat moss. But will you need to acidify or alkalize the soil?

You know that's an excellent question, brigidlily, and a complicated answer, see #3 below

1) Since I'm doing all my hardscaping this year, putting in terraces, raised beds, and extra-large planters, I'm not really concerned with what goes in them -- this year. I'm buying things on sale because I can afford them and I like the plant species in general, even if I don't know where it will end up specifically. And I'm deliberately NOT worried about what goes where. I have enough on my plate with the hardscaping. But this winter, I'll come up with a plan that uses what has lived, and I'll have more of an idea of what I want to do with the overall picture. Yeah, hodgepodge is not what I want eventually, but I really don't have the energy for more than just GREENERY. And erosion control. I've ended up with a lot of daylillies, herbs, flowering shrubs, coreopsis in 3 colors.

2) I have planted very carefullt in specific spots English Ivy, pachysandra, hosta, vinca, varigated vinca, and naturalizing daylillies -- but that's the majority of my plant selecting -- and those were conditions-specific to what was needed there.

3) OK, what I need for these planters I'm working on today/tomorrow are things that will tolerate heat and sun and dry conditions -- the clay chimney flues will get really hot in the direct summer sun. I intend to plant BULBS in the lower levels and perennial uprights and spillers in the topmost levels so that they will cover withering bulb foliage in late spring/early summer. I'm also using some varigated running vinca in a few of them for all season greenery, some misc herb plants in others because I figure they have the best shot at surviving the baking heat. But I'm looking for something that flowers and can tolerate a lot of heat and sun and drying out -- they get regular water, but probably won't stay as moist as some flowers will like it.

Ideas for perennial flowers.that like to bake?

I've had good luck with geraniums, if you like those. And very varied luck with herbs. You'd think if they'd thrive in the Mediterranean they'd thrive here, but not so. Though my rosemary is amazing, and the bay laurel very promising.