Quick fix for hydrophobic soils and compost.
This quick fix for hydrophobic soils and compost could save your struggling plants, as well as save you time and money. Have you noticed that your plants are struggling, no matter how much you appear to water them? Most especially in your containers, and yet it appears you’re watering enough because the water is running though the bottom. What about in your beds too? They can’t possibly be too dry, because you’ve watered, and it may have even rained. But what if that rain just ran straight off the top, or only sat on the top layer. Quite often the water is just flowing around the edges of containers, and raised beds, but that can even happen in-ground.
What causes of hydrophobic soils and compost?
We’re probably all familiar with the forgotten hanging basket that has been left to dry out with its dead plants from the year before. This compost will be hydrophobic, and most people would dump the whole lot in the recycling bin, or compost heap. However, sandy soils, clay, and poorly made compost can become hydrophobic simply by not having the ability to hold on to enough water, and drying out too quickly. This allows a waxy substance to build up around each particle. In the case of compost, it’s usually because too much wood pulp has been used, and it hasn’t been composted correctly. This then turns to a dusty mess that becomes water repellent too.
Ants can also exasperate the issue. They need dry conditions, so they are an indicator that you have a problem already. Mostly because they farm aphid for their honeydew, and they need a struggling plant to survive on. The ants build their nest in your beds, or containers, but they line their tunnels with a waxy substance to stop them collapsing and to keep them water resistant. This diverts water away from your plants, and prevents the soil around the nest holding water. Drip irrigation can also be a cause, since the drip lines only place water in limited areas. Issues will occur if not enough lines cover an area, or the water left on for long enough to allow for deep penetration.
How to fix hydrophobic soil and compost.
There are two methods, depending on whether you have plants in-situ, or compost that can be removed from containers to easily fix hydrophobic soils.
Method one for containers with no plants.
Remove a litre of compost to a bucket, add a few drops of organic washing up soap, and a few litres of water. Mix this together until the compost is absorbing the water. Once the compost will hold on to the water, start adding in up to 20ltr of compost to one watering can of water. The few drops of washing up liquid should have been sufficient to break the waxy bond for this volume of compost. At this point there is still no organic life in this compost. We can sort that out HERE though (still in production).
Method two for beds, or plants in-situ.
There is no point in pouring water on top of hydrophobic soils and compost. It would take far too much water by itself to try and re-hydrate it this way. Instead we need to add a few drops of organic washing up liquid to a watering can full of water. Use a rake, or hoe to disturb the surface of beds, and your hand for your containers. Then use a fork to put holes down in the spaces around your plants to allow the water to travel down between them. Pour the water slowly so that it has time to sink where it is, and not run across the surface of your beds. You also don’t want this water to run down the edges of your containers. One watering can should serve 20ltr of compost. Then give everything a really good soak with a hose if you have one. Alternatively, you can watch for a good rain cover coming, and do it just before that.
Prevention is better than cure.
Prevention is always better than cure, so how do we do that? When it comes to compost I’d love to say ‘buy the best quality you can afford’. However, I’ve always been aware that the quality of compost has never reflected its price tag, or brand name. These days that is truer than ever. As growing our own food becomes ever more popular, the quality of compost as declined with the increase of demand. All I can really say on this now is to be prepared to amend it well. Choose instead the best organic fertiliser that you can. Be it that you immediately start building your own compost heaps. Start vermicomposting to have the ultimate in microbial boosting abilities. But most of all you should mulch to retain the moisture in your beds. On a personal note: I also always watch my weather forecast, and I make sure that I have watered just before it rains. This way I know for sure my surfaces are damp, and that rain can penetrate down where it should be going.
For a visual of how this works, you can watch this short video on fixing hydrophobic soils and compost here-