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Asparagus, Blueberries, Clay & Dirty Socks

Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

>>I won't be adding any sand to my clay now!  I'm going to save all the
>responses and put them in a Word doc. for future reference.
>----------------------------------------------------------------
>*There's More:
>
>Go to
>http://www.egroups.com/group/mycology/169.html?
>
>and reads gypsom.
>This is good for clay.
>It softens soil, enhances nutrient uptake,
>w/o adjusting nutrient OR pH.
>Also called Calcium Sulfate (Not Carbonate.)
>
This is an url for a mycology site, not gypsum or soil amending. Do you
have the correct URL? Thank you, Margaret L
================================================================
Yes M, (And to which Salvation Army do you donate?  :>)

I am (hopefully) well impressed you can read a URL
and did not discover this solely by clicking, but also said, go to gypsum. 
You miss a lot of compost info... but to cut to the chase...

Subject: Compost Manure PHASE I Suppliments Material Equip
 From: Bill

MINERALS

GYPSUM-Calsium Sulfate

ESSENTIAL FOR MOST COMPOSTS;
1-Structure-aggragation of particals, opening it to air.
2-Increase water holding without as much over-wetting danger.
3-Prevents greasy conditon by counteracting K,Mg,P, and Na, if it
occurs.
4-Supplies calcium for mushroom metabolism.

================

So reading between the lines..
See 1,2,3 but skip 4.
This is good for the conditions clay causes.
She has clay.  It pronmotes areation, drainage,
while holding moisture.  Helps prevent over AND underwatering.

Other info tells me it's a buffer, not a fertilizer,
but assists in it's uptake.

And I think if you go back, Ammonium Sulfate is mentioned.
A pH low fert for blueberries.
I glean tidbits, and add 2+2+2, because each book has tidbits.
They all skip massive basics, because that doesn't sell.
I have clay.  Not like OK clay, but I've lived in it.
Clay is rarely short of nutrients.  It's heavy tho,
and has the aeration hassle, plus would get soggy as heck.

She needs pH lowered. Peat
Air. Peat. Vermiculite. Perlite better perhaps for her.
Gypsum will help the blueberries, and everything else,
lawn too.
Soil amenders, like compost, are rarely appropriate for
blueberries due to pH. But perfect with most plants.

For her clay, 50% would be reasonable. And maybe not enuf'!
On a 4x4 square, done as 1x1s, dug 1 ft deep,
means a 1/2 cu ft, per sq ft is 50% if she digs 6" deep
and adds 1/2 cu ft per sq ft, so has a 1' deep mix.

If she digs 1' deep, then tosses 1/2 cu ft on ea sq ft
and mixes the top 1' of the (now) 1 1/2 ft, it's better
for drainage and approaches the french "double-dig"
intensive method, which sq ft borrows from.


If she digs 1' deep, then tosses 1/2 cu ft on ea sq ft
and mixes the all of the (now) 1 1/2 ft, it's only a 33% mix.
Great for most all folks and some can use 25% and be GREAT,
but her clay makes 33% dubiuous.

I mean to say, she must try 33% and 50% and see what
she can get away with, and it depends if she adds other
amendments like gypsum and perlite for herb regular veggies,
due to clay.  The peat is good too, and the pH is easy
to fix, but it costs, so peat goes primarily to her
blueberries, compost to herbasparagus, with maybe some
peat, mabey some perlite , vermiculie, and gypsum, because
the asparagus need rich AND LIGHT soil, she has clay.

Asparagus gets 5-10-10 also.  Most veggies will
like that.  Bluberries, Ammonium Sulfate, but
THAT"S later for the bluberries.  No fert for them
the first period of growing... (I read this.
Haven't heard why, exactly, yet.  I feel the peat
supplies it.  So if you quote me, keep it in context.)
Bill
(There's a bit about urine in the compost you might
be interested in also.  :>)

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