How to Make Good Gardening Soil

Dig a soil sample from the ground from up to 10 locations across your garden. Collect a quart of soil from each location and place it in a bucket. Mix the soil thoroughly. Spread it over a newspaper and allow it to dry.

Collect 1 cup of soil in a plastic sandwich bag. Take the soil to your nearest county extension service. An agent with the county extension service will provide you with paperwork and directions so that you can send your soil sample to the nearest USDA-approved soil testing facility. Many of these testing facilities are operated by agricultural colleges. The soil test will reveal your soil's structure and will make recommendations for soil amendments to add to help improve your gardening soil.

Break up your garden soil to a depth of 12 inches with a rototiller. Spread soil amendments in a 4 inch layer over the surface of the soil based on the test results from step 2. Good soil amendments for clay soil or sand include loamy organic material such as peat moss and compost. These amendments will help to aerate clay soil and hold moisture in sand as well as adding nutrients to both soil types. You can also make the pH of soil neutral by adding sulfur to lower the pH or lime to raise it. Plants placed in pH neutral soil can absorb soil nutrients better. Loamy soil will not need soil amendments.

Mix the amendments into the soil with the rototiller. Water the soil well to allow the nutrients from the organic material to work their way into the soil.