Question
QUESTION: My backyard is just a single slope, so for gardening we put in three raised terraces on the hill last year (16'x4' area each).  One of the three is filled with soil from our lot and things grow reasonably well there.  The other two were filled with soil purchased from a garden center.  In these two terraces, nothing grew last year (zucchini, eggplant and peppers).  Nothing died, they just stayed very small.  I was told that I over-watered the plants.  So this spring, we added two large bags of composted manure and tried planting beets and turnips from seeds and brussels sprouts as transplants.  They were put in at the end of March after the snow melted (I'm in central MD) and since then, the turnips and beets have managed to get out of the ground but don't have their first true leaves yet and the sprouts have just stayed the same size while slowly turning pinkish-purple on the edges.  I thought the manure would help, but it hasn't -- this is a repeat of last year (even weeds don't grow here).  I also gave them a dose of fertilizer (the fish/kelp based liquid, not MiracleGrow) to no avail.  Instead of trying to get these plants to grow now (it's getting late in the season for them anyway), I'd rather pull them and start over with the regular season plants (beans, peppers, eggplant), but I'm not sure what to do to this soil first.  More manure/compost?  Thanks for your help.

ANSWER: Hi Joanne, You need to add soil from your lot.  Bagged top soil has little or no soil in it and it is difficult to water plants correctly that are planted in it. It holds too much water in wet times, dries too quickly in summer heat and holds nutrients poorly. Go to a bulk soil company and get your local soil (probably clay) that has been dried and sifted.  Add 3-4" on top and till it in to a depth of 8-10". Your crops will be much better.  Check your pH.  It should be around 6.5.  Jim

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QUESTION: Since I asked this question we did two things.  First, a drainage check.  A 12" round hole dug to 12" deep drained in less than 10 minutes.  This sounds consistent with your diagnosis especially since it's been somewhat dry here in the last month (the soil at 12" seemed way too dry and "crumbly").  Second, we added more aged manure.  I take it that won't help at all, that whatever the manure adds to the mix will just wash away with watering?

Answer
Bagged manure is good texture to add to clay soils but it has little nutritional value once it is composted, so it's not much fertilizer.  In your case, the water is taking your nutrients right through and out of the root zone.  Clay particles are very, very small and nutrients bind to them well for plants to get as needed.  Adding clay will fix your problem.  Fertilize regularly with a good quality fertilizer that has both quick and slow release nitrogen.  I promise, better results are ahead.  Jim