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Over the years, I’ve experienced only minor problems associated with inadequate soil drainage. This surprises several of my gardening colleagues since I have frequently worked in regions where rainfall exceeds evaporation and contributes to an elevated groundwater. In retrospect, I was fortunate to work on private estates where adequate garden drainage was designed and installed, sometimes dating back to Elizabethan times. Of course, natural determinants of poor soil drainage can be sufficiently inherent to defy normal engineering attempts to resolve them. Soil drainage properties can usually be explained in terms of the geographical location, surrounding physical topography, and the compositional structure defined within the various...

It saddens me to admit that the prevalence of seriously problematic soils appears to have increased dramatically over the previous few decades. Despite the proximity of international tensions, the world seemed a considerably safer and altogether more stable environment when I started gardening in my teens and early twenties. Perhaps this misrepresents the reality. It might be more accurate to suggest that certain issues were once described in concrete terms, without the numerous complexities and differences of opinion which are routinely encountered in the popular media of today. Like everyone else, I’m confused and disturbed by the reports on global warming, climate change, and species decline. When I look at my original notes for this...

The other night, I became frustrated with my football coverage so switched between documentary channels on the cable network. I managed to catch the second half of a program about earthworms. Prior to final credits, the narrator emphasized the significance of the earthworm’s contribution towards maintaining soil fertility. He then suggested that soil fertility was crucial for the long term sustainability of life on earth. Unfortunately, he repeated the words monotonically and they became divorced from any reasonable sense of urgency. As a keen student of organic principles, I’ve been concerned about the long term consequences of poor quality soils for several decades. Irrespective of the demand for organically grown produce, there...

I cannot sufficiently emphasise that the site chosen for growing organic vegetables is extremely important. A poorly structured site will drastically limit the potential for success, irrespective of any gardening competence or technical abilities which are subsequently applied. This can probably be attributed to their highly cultivated status. Even the most basic types of vegetable may possess an extended pedigree of selective breeding. This is widely accurate despite numerous distinctive plant species which are gathered under the general categorisation of vegetable. Like racehorses, and fancy dog breeds, most of our cultivated vegetables bear minimal resemblance to their wild forebears. As a consequence, their proliferation and survival depends...

As a professional gardener, I have encountered some beautiful and well structured soils in my time. As with most aspects of nature, there are plenty of mediocre and poor soils to maintain the overall balance. I’m not exaggerating to say that I’ve also brushed up against a few of these from time to time. From personal experience, I’m convinced that poor soils can be drastically improved with a degree of planning and effort. Having said that, I always suggest that beginners attempt to find the most suitable soil types for the plants they wish to grow. The ability to understand various descriptions of soil types depends upon some very basic understanding of soil texture and soil structure. When separated into its basic components, soil consists...