How to improve Sandy Soils:

 How to improve Sandy Soils:

It will be remembered from my earleyer post that Sandy Soils greatest drew back is its un-ability to hold moisture.  The best way to deal with this is to add as much organic matter as you can, doing so will increase the of the soil to withhold water.

The foremost way to do this is to add farmyard or stable manure, what we in the UK call “muck”. Do this in the autumn.

If you are not able to obtain any muck, then collect leaves and pile them up to decay. I leave my heap of leaves for a year before I apply to my beds, the reason is very little action takes place during the winter months because it is too cold, decaying taking place during the warmer weather.

If you have not got the room or the time to make a heap of leaves, you can dig the leaves into your bed as you collet them, it will not be so good but better then nothing.

because I live in Oxford, I have access to some of the collages where they have huge grounds and are very glad to have somebody to take their leaves. It might be worth your while to have a word with your local street cleaners who will, I am sure, will be only to glad to help them out. 

Liming sandy soils will be helpful, because the lime will bind the coarse particles together. Also compacting the sandy soil with a roller is a  excellent horticultural.