Planning tool

Garden Soil Prep Planner

Use catalog soil notes, soil test results, drainage checks, workable moisture, and seedbed timing to decide which beds need compost, drainage fixes, or a wait before sowing.

Planning tool

Current soil check

Ready to sow

Use the checklist, then sow or transplant only after moisture, drainage, and seedbed texture fit the crop.

Moisture test firstCrumbly, not molded
Drainage-sensitive crops70 catalog checks
Rich-soil candidates40 catalog checks
Fine seedbed rows51 shallow rows

Default soil condition presets

Start with what the bed is doing before requiring lab values, amendment math, or exact pH readings.

Ready to sow
Use the checklist, then sow or transplant only after moisture, drainage, and seedbed texture fit the crop.
Too wet to work
Wait before digging, tilling, or raking so wet soil does not compact into hard clods.
Compacted or crusted
Open the surface, protect paths, and fix compaction before judging fertilizer or seed quality.
Sandy or dries fast
Plan organic matter, mulch, and more frequent moisture checks before blaming weak crops.
Clay or drains slow
Check drainage and workable moisture before adding amendments or planting drainage-sensitive crops.
No soil test yet
Do not add lime, fertilizer, manure, or heavy compost until measured pH and nutrients are known.

Drainage-sensitive crops (70) · Rich-soil candidates (40)

Inputs

Observed bed condition
Start from ready to sow, too wet to work, compacted or crusted, sandy or fast-drying, clay or slow-draining, or no soil test yet before typing exact lab values.
Catalog soil notes
Each seed entry carries soil language such as fertile, rich, well-drained, average, lean, moist, or sharply drained so bed prep starts with crop fit.
Soil test results
Use lab results for texture, pH, organic matter, phosphorus, and potassium before adding compost, manure, lime, or fertilizer.
Drainage and compaction
Check whether water leaves the planting area fast enough and whether compacted layers or heavy clay are limiting roots.
Seedbed timing
Wait until soil is workable, then prepare the surface for the seed size, sowing depth, and spacing plan.

What it returns

Planning guidance

Soil test before amendments
A lab soil test reports texture, pH, organic matter, phosphorus, and potassium so compost, manure, lime, and fertilizer decisions start from measured conditions.
Workable moisture
Do not prepare soil when it is too wet or too dry; workable soil crumbles and breaks into small clumps instead of staying molded in a ball.
Fine seedbed
After tilling or spading, rake the planting area because a firm, fine seedbed is best for small-seeded crops and even emergence.
Drainage check
UMD uses a drainage test hole 12 inches deep and 12 inches in diameter; if water remains after 8 hours, slow drainage may point to compaction, clay, buried debris, high water table, or a restrictive soil layer.
Texture boundary
Clemson notes that soil texture affects how soil holds moisture and air, so texture should shape watering, organic-matter, and drainage decisions.
Catalog boundary
The candidate lists come from catalog soil text; the source notes are general home-garden soil guidance for interpreting those entries before planting.

Drainage-sensitive candidates

Rich-soil candidates

Supporting planning paths

Source basis