Soils Types And Tree installation In Hollywood, FL

Did you know that Hollywood Florida has 60 parks? Yes, you read that right. Actually, in the early 1900s, the area was full of pine forests before Joseph Wesley Young laid out the town. This means for your tree project, Hollywood is the perfect area.

One of the most critical aspects of tree projects is the soil the trees need to thrive. While all soils play a similar role, in your tree installation journey, you will encounter many different types. Knowing which one you have in your garden will help you to choose the best trees. And even better, this will help you understand the type of environment you are dealing with.

In this post, you will learn about clay, sandy, and loam types of soils. To start the journey off…

What is clay soil?

Clay soil is a unique soil that has very fine mineral particles but does not aerate well because it does not have organic matter. What happens is that once the soil gets in contact with water, it produces a thick paste- what we call mud. The soil does not drain easily hence does not favor many plants growing in it.

These soils are made up of a large proportion of microscopic clay particles, which can become compacted, binding together tightly to form large, solid, airless clumps.

Clay soils retain water and nutrients well, but because they drain poorly, they quickly become waterlogged. And, during long, dry spells in summer, they may crack and form hard crusts on the surface.

They are known as ‘heavy’ soils, not because they weigh more than others, but because they are difficult to dig – if you have clay, you may not be able to get even your best garden spade into it in the summer. Read more from Gardeningetc…

What is sandy soil?

Unlike clay soil, sandy soil aerates perfectly and drains water so fast. In fact, it is the poorest in water retention compared to the rest. Sandy soil is coarse in texture and compared to clay soil has huge particles that do not hold water so well. They easily allow water to pass in them. The soil has those rough particles because it is from weathered rocks.

If you observed a jar of sand under a microscope, it would look like a bunch of marbles — large, rounded particles with lots of spaces in between. Those spaces are what cause the rain and nutrients in the soil to wash right through.

Grains of sand are teeny bits of rocks, and rocks can’t hold water or nutrients like a softer piece of ground wood or humus. That’s why we use organic materials to amend sandy soil. Those materials bind the moisture and nutrients in the soil around your plants’ roots. Read more from Family Handyman…

What is loam soil?

This is the perfect gardening soil. It is perfect because it is soil that has a healthy balance of silt, clay, and sand in it. This makes the soil have a fine texture that isn’t too rough and at the same time drains water perfectly while retaining some for the plant. You can test if the soil in your garden is loam by holding it in a fist. Open and you will see it has retained the fist shape. But poke it and it will crumble right away.

New gardeners are taught that friable, loamy soil is great for their garden because it retains water but drains easily.1 While gardening does not require an advanced degree, some terms, such as “well-draining” soil and even “loam,” can leave you scratching your head. Everyone knows that you need great soil to grow great plants, but what is this magical loamy soil so many gardening books say you should aim for?

Generally speaking, loam describes the ideal soil composition for most garden plants (although some plants require sandy or rocky soil, and some even require clay). Loam holds nutrients and has a texture that retains water long enough for plant roots to access it, yet it drains well, meaning that the water eventually seeps away so that plant roots do not sit in water and rot. Without quality soil, plants struggle to survive and usually require supplemental feeding and watering. Read more from The Spruce…

As a homeowner, you need a tree installation expert who will guide you through your tree installation journey in view of the soil type in your yard. EPS Landscaping and Tree Services offer quality advice and even better, we’ll do tree planting works for you. Reach out today and have your garden turn into a little heaven.