Gardening seems like a simple task, but it takes more technical knowledge and patience than you might anticipate. If you are trying to save some money at the grocery and grow your organic vegetables, you might be wondering what kind of dirt or soil you need to start a vegetable garden.
Well, that’s a question with a somewhat complicated answer. You can make proper gardening soil out of almost any kind of dirt, but you need to add nutrients and minerals first.
Before any of that, you have to identify the type of dirt you have. Here is a guide on growing vegetables in the dirt, soil, and other organic matter.
Can I Use Regular Dirt From Outside to Grow Plants?
If you are trying to grow plants, whether, in a pot or a garden, you will need to ensure that they receive the necessary nutrients. Plants receive nutrients from three sources: water, sunlight, and the soil around them.
Unfortunately, regular dirt won’t always work to grow plants and vegetables, as different plants require more or fewer nutrients in the soil. Think of a cactus growing in the desert – it needs very little help from the soil, as opposed to the flowers and plants in a greenhouse.
While you can’t use regular dirt to grow plants, you can add nutrients, fertilizer, and additives to dirt to make it into the soil.
Gardening and potting soil are available at most hardware and gardening stores, but if you want to use what’s available in your yard, you can (with some critical adjustments).
What Kind of Dirt Should I Use for My Vegetable Garden?
The best kind of dirt for gardening isn’t dirt – it’s soil. While earth usually has rocks and sand and doesn’t clump very quickly, the soil is thick and rich, and full of nutrients. It clumps in hand and is a deep brown color.
Soil doesn’t usually occur naturally. Some dirt is nutrient-rich and soil-like, but farmers and gardeners cultivate most soil.
By removing rocks and stones, adding nutrients, and tilling the ground, it’s possible to create the perfect soil for a vegetable garden.
How to Prepare Soil for Gardening
Before preparing your dirt for vegetables, it’s essential to know which kind of dirt you have. Most American gardeners have property on sand, clay, or dirt foundations.
Each of these provides its characteristics and challenges in soil preparation, but it can be done.
If you have sandy soil, it will be loose and light. You probably already have some weeds and grass in your yard, but nothing with deep roots.
Clay clumps and is challenging to break up, and small plants struggle to grow. Dirt is a mix of the two – it is usually darker brown and has healthy growth.
How to Make the Best Vegetable Garden Soil
If you are planting vegetables in a backyard garden and have identified the type of soil you have, you can successfully make your existing soil work for vegetables. All you will need to do is to make sure that the soil can do these three things:
- Allow air and water through to the bulb or seeds
- Provide nutrients to the plants
- Give stability and structure to the roots
For each of these requirements, you will either need to aerate the soil or add nutrients to it. In some cases, you’ll have to buy sand to loosen it up or dirt to give it more stability. However, fertilizer will be a necessary purchase in any case.
Prepare Clay for Vegetables
Clay is the most difficult soil in which to grow vegetables. It does have some nutrients, but clay is mostly clumped and packed too close together to allow for water or air.
To make a vegetable garden out of a clay foundation, you’ll have to add sand and aerate (or hoe) the garden extensively.
Sand is crucial to loosen up the soil, but you’ll also need to apply plenty of fertilizer to your garden bed. The amount of water, sand, and fertilizer depends on the size of your garden; follow the instructions on your fertilizer container.
Prepare Sand for Vegetables
Sand is slightly easier, as it is generally looser. However, sand doesn’t give enough stability to the roots and it doesn’t hold water as well.
You’ll have to add fertilizer and water, of course, but you can also add composted soil or dirt to this mixture to create a more solid foundation for your garden.
Prepare Dirt or Loam for Vegetables
Dirt is usually darker brown and is the best preparation for vegetables. You’ll need to add fertilizer and aerate the soil some, but rich dirt is as close to gardening soil as the natural world can offer.
How to Prepare Soil for Planting Vegetables in Pots
Unfortunately, you shouldn’t use regular garden soil for pot planting. In the ground, vegetables have space to spread and grow. The water can trickle down and away, and if the soil clumps a bit roots can adjust to it.
However, potted plants have very little space to stretch. If the soil becomes compacted at all, it will kill the plants and reduce any fruit available.
If you want to plant vegetables indoors using pots or window boxes, you should buy potting soil.
Soil Types FAQ
Here are some frequently asked questions about gardening with various types of soils, planting vegetables, and dirt. We hope they answer some of the questions you may have and help your gardening journey!
Can I use all-purpose soil for vegetables?
If you have a bag of all-purpose gardening soil, it’s perfectly fine to use that for vegetables. Any bagged or boxed soil will have nutrients added. While you might need to find specific fertilizer for your vegetable garden, all-purpose soil should work just fine.
Always look up the specific plants or vegetables you intend to grow. Because different plants thrive under different conditions, the watering and fertilizing schedule might vary.
Can I use regular soil for seedlings?
Regular soil without added nutrients might impair seed germination. Since germination and early growth are such seminal times in a seed’s life cycle, it’s essential to provide all the right nutrients and water during this time.
Also, water that doesn’t drain through the soil properly can cause seed rot, which will kill potential plants. If you choose to use untreated soil, ensure that it drains well.
Can you use dirt instead of potting soil?
Using dirt instead of potting soil will make your plants weaker and produce less fruit. If you plant flowers or vegetables in regular dirt, weeds are more likely to grow and the plants won’t be able to take root as easily.
You can use dirt if you add fertilizer or composted soil to it to increase the nutritional value and trainability of the soil.
Is loam soil good for vegetables?
Loam is a naturally occurring soil that is rich in nutrients, low in density, and drains well. It’s one of the best natural soils your garden can have and is ideal for plants, flowers, and vegetables.
If your house is built on loam soil, you won’t have to worry about adding fertilizer or extra moisture.
Loam can be found in various countries around the world but is often mixed with sandier or harder soil. It’s possible to buy loam to mix with garden dirt and create a stronger base for your garden.
Healthy Soil
Whether you plant your vegetables in clay, dirt, or sandy soil, you can add fertilizer and the correct amount of nutrients to make them healthy soil. Within a few months, you’ll have a healthy garden of veggies to enjoy with dinner!