LET’S GET DOWN TO EARTH

We gardeners obsess about soil. We talk about it, we read about it, we complain about it and we work it. We add to our soils, we dig our soils, we test our soils, and we plant in our soils. When asked what they would most like to receive for Christmas, many gardeners say: “A large pile of manure” (much to the frustration of our family and friends who would rather we just asked for socks). But, the thing that we prize above anything else is good soil structure. That beautiful crumbly loam that is easy to plant into, and easy to weed. That’s the dream.

I once had an allotment that was such heavy clay it would feel like I was walking through treacle on a wet day.