Plants for That Darn Clay Soil

You can use clay soil to your advantage by choosing plants that thrive in hostile conditions.

Dalea purpureum
Item # 76750 		Dalea purpureum
Purple Prairie Clover

each $5.49
3 to 6 plants $5.29
7 or more $4.99
Helianthus maximiliana 'Santa Fe'
Item # 55952 		Helianthus maximiliana 'Santa Fe'
Maximilian's Sunflower

each $7.99
3 to 6 plants $7.79
7 or more $7.59
  • Topic: Soil
  • Author: Cindy Bellinger
  • Keywords: clay soil, drought, amedning, spot amending, Site Solutions, pots
  • Date: May 2003

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It happens every spring. I get all excited about expanding my garden, go out and take a look, and get discouraged. Nothing but hard clay soil. At my place, the word ‘soil’ is almost laughable. ‘Soil’ brings images of loamy lushness. The ground around my house doesn’t even come close to anything lush; there are patches where weeds won’t even grow.

It’s a lot of work turning the soil in our area into something that will sustain plants. But there is hope. There really are plants that do well in subsistence living. And they aren’t all prickly sticker things either. In fact, a list of plants suitable for clay soil that I picked up in our information booth has plants with names like Blue Flax, White Bouquet Tansy and Moonshine Yarrow. And these are rather gentle flowers.

So. Rather than grumble and wish I were in Louisiana or some other humid place, I’ve decided to do some experimenting. There’s a spot under a pine tree that is nearly barren and the soil is hard packed. There’s another place in the open that looks about the same. These should make for good testing grounds.

But word is you still need to amend the soil. You can’t just stick in a plant and hope it’ll take off. (Wouldn’t that be great!) The difference between planting in clay and making really big loamy beds is with clay soils you don’t need to completely remove the dirt in the entire area and start over with something a little richer. You just do spot amending.

If you’re using gallon size potted plants (mature plants tend to establish quicker), dig down about a foot; dig wide about the same. Amend the soil with compost. A good choice is Soil Mender Blend, which is a mix of composted manure and cotton burs. Also add some Greensand to loosen the clay particles.

Once established in favorable soil, even if that soil is in a limited perimeter, the roots of plants disposed to clay will eventually find their way.

I’m tired of taking wheelbarrow loads of clay out of planting areas. So I’m going to try this technique of spot amending and use some promising items on that list. Following are only some of the plants listed that thrive in less than optimum situations:

  • Variegated Bishop’s Weed
  • Hollyhock
  • Silver Beardgrass
  • Poppy Mallow
  • Lanceleaf Tickseed
  • Russian Sage
  • Maximilian’s Sunflower
  • Purple Prairie Clover
  • All the salvias
  • Prairie Skullcap
  • Goldenrod
  • Silky Thread Grass

What I recommend is getting hold of some of our other handouts such as:

  • Clay Soils—Suitable Plants
  • Attracting Hummingbirds and Butterflies
  • Gardening for Wildlife
  • Fire Resistant Plants
  • and the one about zones

then cross-reference these with one of Judith Phillips books—“Plants for Natural Gardens,” “Natural by Design,” or “New Mexico Gardener’s Guide.” She gives a lot of good information for specific plants and working with the various climates and soil conditions in our area. We carry all three of her books in our Garden Center.