Can I turn sand into silt or clay? 1

[NorthwesternDesign]

Hello all,

I am a tool designer, but I dabble a bit into small time farming. Problem is, I am located in a very sandy area where crops have a more difficult time to produce good results. I understand that organic matter is probably more helpful in making my crops grow, but the thought occurred to me on improving the texture of the soil. The best soils seem to have a bit of sand, silt and clay. I have more sand than anything. Water and nutrients disappear quickly. Am I silly, or does it seem possible to smash/pinch large volumes of sand into some rolling drums for instance (or maybe grind it) and turn it into smaller quartz particles like silt or clay?

 

[Ron]

Creating silt and clay is a long, slow weathering process. To grind sand in quantity to produce silt would be cost prohibitive.

Clay is not made from sand. It has a different chemistry and works differently than sand or silt.

 

[Ron]

Continuing my answer....

You can do much to benefit your soil with organic material. One benefit of organic material and of clay and silt is that they hold moisture in the soil. One difficulty in sandy soils is maintaining moisture, so adding organics, clay or silt will help that.

You can also buy clay and mix it into your sandy soil. If you check around you might find a bulk clay source. If you only mix 2 inches of clay into 8 to 10 inches of sand, you'll increase the moisture retention capability tremendously.

Your idea of the rolling drum (ball mill concept)would yield only small amounts of fine material in the form of rock flour or silt. As noted before, clay is not formed from sand and does not have the same particle shape and chemistry. Clay particles are generally flat or plate-like, whereas sand and silt are rounded particles when they are in the very small sizes for fine sand and silt.

Your least expensive beneficiation of the soil for agricultural purposes will be the addition of organic material (sewage sludge, compost, etc.)

 

[NorthwesternDesign]

Thanks for your reply Ron! Now I can get some rest. When I come up with a crazy idea, I seem to lose a lot of sleep. Guess its my design character in me. Not sure if I am near a clay source, but its worth checking out. I will probably just keep adding more organics and adjusting the Ph.