Regina Cal

Thomas Tipton wrote:My first soil test was very confusing.  It looked like yours.  Some organic material floating on the top, then water, then clay.  I have nothing but clay under a couple of inches of topsoil under my sod.  Clay that goes on forever.

I think the best thing I can do is make a test bag and see if it cures into a brick. Put some nails and screws into it. I probably don't need to get hung up on ratios so much. If the dirt is good, then it's good.

I think I'd rather have clay than silt.

Alright, I am going to make some objects from the dirt and see if it acts like clay. My main concern is if the material will be suitable for building structures in earth bag format. I think it will but need to test it a bit more.

Aaron Yarbrough wrote:I'd say mostly silt with some fine sand. It looks like you're using a pint sized jar. I have better success using a quart sizing and filling it 1/3 full of soil and 2/3 water.

Is this sub soil  or top soil sample?


No cracks in the clay ball is really promising

I actually have no topsoil, this is about three inches down. I will try the larger jar method. Even if it's not the "golden ratio" of dirt for earth bags, do you think it's still usable? I mean, this stuff is like so hard when it dries!

Trace Oswald wrote:I had no idea silt would form a rock solid ball like that.  Interesting.

Now that is where I'm confused. Because when it dries its harder than shit. But doesn't seem to be clay. Or is it all clay?

I would think silt would crumble away after drying. This thing is as solid as a baseball.

The big question is if it will be good for earthbag construction..... 🤔

John C Daley wrote:What will you use the clay for?

I have two differing viewpoints. One comment says its all clay. The other says it's no clay. I think its no clay. I am planning to do earth bag building. So the results are less than desirable.

Trace Oswald wrote:All I see is clay.  That stuff floating on top just looks like mulch or something, but I'm not seeing sand or silt layers.  Not an expert though.

It does seem like that. I noticed in my garden that when it dries its rock hard. Not what I was expecting for Arizona!

I filled my jar with half dirt and half water and shook it up. I'm not quite sure how to read the results....

I also made a mudball that has dried rock hard with no cracks.

What do you think my clay ratio is??

TIA!

Aaron Yarbrough wrote:Hi Regina,

I've found the jar test to be accurate for determining sand/silt/clay ratio. If the dirt ball you made cracks significantly your clay may be expansive. If that's the case as a second test you may want to make a brick using straw and see how it holds together.

Post a picture of your jar test and other tests here if you're unsure. There are a lot of cobbers on Permies.  

Awesome, I will do the jar test today and post the results!

I am fairly confident I have good clay in my dirt. When it is wet, it is sticky and slick, and holds a ball form well. I am letting that ball sit out to dry.

In my garden, when the dirt is damp and then dries out, it dries very hard, its even hard to break up with a shovel.

I plan to do the jar test, but have read its not so accurate.

Without doing any professional testing, are there any other easy ways to test the dirt for good clay ratio at home?