Why I picked gravelly soil instead of black soil to grow monster plants

A few years ago, a guest minister at the church I attend had a sermon on Matthew 13 — the parable of the sower. In Verse 8 Jesus tells a parable about seed falling on good soil, where it produced a crop —100, 60, or 30 times what was sown.

The minister based his sermon on good soil and held up three little plastic bags of different types of soil — sandy, black, and gravelly soil and he asked the congregation which one is the best soil for growing plants.

The people in the front rows all picked the black soil bag. He was pleased with their choice. But I, who was sitting near the back of the church, would have picked the gravelly soil. That could have been interesting. The minister would no doubt have asked why I picked the poorer class of soil.

Of course, I couldn’t start a debate in church about what is a good soil but I could limit it to a few positive sentences that might make people think.

Gravelly soil grows taller plants. It warms up quicker in the spring. It has good drainage. Roots go deeper.

Did you ever wonder why the grass, alfalfa and other plants growing beside a gravel country road are much taller than the plants growing in a farmer’s field, especially in a year when there has been winterkill in the alfalfa fields?

Gravel on country roads has spilled to the side of the road for years resulting in humongous plants growing there. That shouldn’t be because the roadside is also laced with winter salt and deadly vehicle fumes pass by all the time.

Years ago I had a large pole barn built and we had many truck loads of gravel brought in. There is thick gravel all around the building. And that’s where the tallest alfalfa and sweet clover are growing. Out of the gravel. The plants are 5 ft. tall and hardy. They are like brush. They never get winterkilled. I crush them by driving over with the tractor tires. My stream of black soil that runs through my farm can’t produce alfalfa like that.

I know a man who grows vegetables that he sells on his farm and at farm markets. He grows them on very rough looking stony soil — like what you’d see in a gravel pit. But his produce is amazing. He grows some of the biggest cauliflower and carrots that I have ever seen.

Fifty years ago I transplanted five 10 ft. tall Ash trees that were growing in front of our house to the side of the house along the laneway. I dumped a tractor loader bucket of gravel in each large dug hole and set the trees on the gravel and filled in the holes with clay. The trees flourished and grew tall. Too tall. They were cut down a few years ago as they were closing in on the hydro line. I credit the thick layer of gravel for the successful transplant.

Here are some reasons why gravel/loamy soil can be good soil

• Improved Drainage and Aeration: Gravel has large spaces between particles, allowing water to drain quickly and preventing waterlogging. This good drainage prevents root rot and ensures the roots have access to oxygen, which is crucial for root health and growth.

• Well-drained soil encourages deeper root growth as plants search for moisture in the deeper soil layers.

• Plants that are adapted to gravelly soils have developed mechanisms to thrive in these conditions, such as strong root systems that can penetrate the gravel.

In summary, while gravelly soil might not be the most ideal for all plants, it can support tall plants by providing good drainage, aeration, and moisture retention, and allowing plants to adapt to the environment by growing deeper roots or developing drought resistance.

Maynard van der Galien is a Renfrew-area farmer and a long-time columnist with Farmers Forum. His email is: maynardvdg@gmail.com