Problem with very compact soil

zipcode · July 11, 2016

So a friend has a very compact soil. An I do mean compact. But it's not what I would call clay, its color is kinda dark grey with pieces of black in it.
You know those black muds that you can find near waters, really 'greasy' and with a sulfury smell? This looks like that stuff but hardened (not all as black). And it has the same smell when dug. It's so ridiculously compact that without serious work, money and time I don't think it could be mixed with compost or something to make it normal (so pretty much out of the question).
So my question is if it is any good for growing stuff, and what would be most suitable? Besides the obvious fact that it is very compact, is it any good nutrient wise? Shouldn't the black stuff be organic matter?

July 11, 2016	#1
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	Problem with very compact soil So a friend has a very compact soil. An I do mean compact. But it's not what I would call clay, its color is kinda dark grey with pieces of black in it. You know those black muds that you can find near waters, really 'greasy' and with a sulfury smell? This looks like that stuff but hardened (not all as black). And it has the same smell when dug. It's so ridiculously compact that without serious work, money and time I don't think it could be mixed with compost or something to make it normal (so pretty much out of the question). So my question is if it is any good for growing stuff, and what would be most suitable? Besides the obvious fact that it is very compact, is it any good nutrient wise? Shouldn't the black stuff be organic matter?