The type of soil in your lawn determines how well you can develop plants and what types of plants will do best. Soils support plant roots and supply plants with oxygen, nutrients and water. How well they do that depends upon the dirt particle type and size. Sand is the largest particle, silt is clay and smaller particles are tiny. Loamy soils have a combination of three particle sizes, and sandy loam contains about 60 percent mud, 10 percent clay plus 30 percent silt. It’s good drainage and can develop many types of plants well, especially if it’s amended so it contains more organic thing.
Root Vegetables
Sandy loam has a good texture, without heavy clods of clay or accumulations of stone. This is the very best land for growing root plants where the roots require unobstructed, even dirt. Three commonly grown root vegetables prefer loamy sand. Carrots (Daucus carota) become Reducing or forked in heavier soils, and don’t grow well. The roots of beets (Beta vulgaris) won’t expand in clay soils. Beets are biennials which develop in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 8. Radishes (Raphanus sativus) prefer sandy loam or sandy soils. Onions (Allium cepa) grow well in sandy loam because they need good drainage and a non-compacted dirt which allows for bulb expansion.
Leafy Vegetables
Although lettuce (Lactuca sativa) may tolerate many different soil types, it grows best on a sandy loam that has been amended with organic matter. Sandy loam warms up more quickly in the spring than do heavier soils, therefore sandy loam is the best soil for early types of cabbage (Brassica oleracea). Later-maturing cabbage cultivars prefer a more moisture-retaining soil. Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) is a shallow-rooted harvest that requires good drainage. It prefers sandy loam, which allows the more frequent watering required without building up excessive root humidity.
Other Vegetables
Rumors (Solanum lycopersicum) are heat-loving plants which get off to a good beginning in the garden if planted in loamy sand, which provides the good drainage and early higher temperatures that the plants require. As the plants gain dimensions and the weather warms, strawberries may require more water than plants on heavier soils. Rumors grow as perennials in USDA zones 8 through 11, but are usually treated as annuals. Additionally a plant tolerant of many soil types, peppers (Capsicum annuum), that develop in USDA zones 10 through 11 or as a yearly, prefer a well-draining loam or sandy loam.
Ornamental Plants
Drought-tolerant ornamental plants are adapted to withstand periods with low moisture once they are created. They require a loose, open ground texture their roots may quickly penetrate, such as sandy loam, and good drainage so that the roots don’t stay moist, which promotes root rot. A wide root system allows them to effectively harvest nutrients and water. Plants that thrive in sandy loam comprise “Panchito” manzanita (Arctostaphylos x coloradoensis), which rises in USDA zones 4b via 8b, and California lilac (Ceanothus spp.) . “Julia Phelps” California lilac (Ceanothus “Julia Phelps”), that will be hardy in USDA zones 8 through 10, bears abundant blue blooms in spring and early summer.