What is gumbo soil

An added benefit of using some limestone products is that it will also increase the soil pH. Chemical fertilizers tend to acidify soils over time, as your soil test will show, especially if you zero till. Some people have used deep ripping or paratilling to try to break up the clay layer. The soil has to be dry to fracture but you only see an improvement for a year or two and the benefit does not last long. Once again, cost significantly outweighs the benefit. There have been attempts to use crops to try to fracture the hard clay layer.

Tillage radishes were tried in the county a few years ago. Unfortunately, their roots could not penetrate the clay barrier. They hit the hard clay and went sideways.

Poor soils due to the clay hardpan is also associated with low organic matter. You can improve growth on Solonetzic soils by increasing the organic matter, as organic matter has the ability to retain more moisture, leading to better plant growth. Using perennial forages can increase the organic matter, over time.

Travel on the prairie is still often dictated by nature's terms, not ours. While gumbo is certainly a force to be reckoned with and warrants our caution, it's also an example of what makes this place so wild and special. The American Prairie PN Property has been evacuated and is closed to visitors due to an active wildfire to the south of the property.

Campfires are currently prohibited on American Prairie deeded land due to extreme wildland fire danger. Phone: mail americanprairie. All rights reserved. Website Designed and Built by Giant Rabbit. Back to top Infobox October 15, What is gumbo, you ask? The easy answer is that it's just mud, but it's not your average mud.

Earthworms process soil so its nutrients are consumed more easily by plants. Amending gumbo soil with gypsum does not drastically change its pH like lime or aluminum sulfate; rather, it moves gumbo soil into a neutral zone benefiting a broad range of plant species. Apply gypsum yearly to the soil surface at a rate of 40 pounds per 1, square feet.

Water it in immediately to get it down into the soil. No tilling is required. Adding gypsum to gumbo soil does not eliminate the need for organic matter like compost, manure and peat. Decomposed plant material and manure partner with gypsum to create crumbly soil that retains healthy amounts of moisture. Gumbo soil corrected with gypsum and humus does not compact and crack when it dries.

With Louisiana as its next-door neighbor, Houston is rife with Cajun influences, including a certain delectable dish made from roux and stock, meat, shellfish, or sausage, okra, and other veggies, all over rice. The Houston area is known for a certain type of dirt known as gumbo soil. Although you might think its name comes from having lots of components to it like the Cajun stew, the truth is almost the reverse.

Gumbo soil is so named because of its one main ingredient: clay. With its high clay content, this dark soil becomes thick and sticky when wet, and it remains wet for long periods because of its low permeability. This trapped moisture makes the soil swell, until it finally dries, causing the soil to shrink.

The effect on a home built on gumbo soil is constant shifting and settling as the soil wets and dries, which can cause cracks in a concrete slab foundation that can be severe over time or during a prolonged drought.

This leads to cracks in the brick veneer, sticking doors, cracks in the ceiling, walls, and floors, and other potential problems. Through the Web Soil Survey created by the United States Department of Agriculture, you can ascertain whether your soil is high in clay.

Or you can hire a geotechnical engineer for the project to get the opinion of an expert and to conduct soil tests.