Loam?

[EddieF]

The lot i've been working on (for future mangos) has what my pops calls loam, all around old brazil pepper tree stumps, trees ect.
It's brownish almost golden, not red like fresh cut pep tree chips.  Should i be making a pile of it for something instead of putting it out for tree collection day? 

Where mango trees will be have 6-12" of topsoil we put down a few months ago, not loam.  I'll ikely need sand to mix with topsoil where trees go. ?

Thanks,
Ed

[Mike T]

Loam is really a name for good soils with an ideal composition of clay, silt and sand proportions. I think you are talking about the high carbon humus of partly broken down wood dust. If it is the best thing is to mix it with soil and not use it pure or use it as a top dressing. This stuff retains water and nutrients really well and will assimilate with the soil to make it better.

[EddieF]

Thank you.  If i'm working that area tomorrow, i'll rake some & take a photo but it rained a lot (a good thing).
Yes it seems like a sponge for holding water.  Heavy wet.

[Satya]

We are on solid coral bed - garden was not draining for weeks, plus no "soil" at all, maybe an inch... so we decided to bring in truckloads of muck mixed with organic matter and heavily mulched that, added mycorrhizae and some organic stuff like bunny poo and such. Now we have probably 2 ft deep soil that is turning into super rich compost-soil mix thanks to millipede and worm activity, mycos and general decomposition of organic matter. We do not remove any organic matter from the garden, mulch and chop and drop and barely get any flooding - organic matter and muck act as sponge and absorb all extra moisture and release it to the plants. Everything seems to thrive without chemical fertilization and irrigation. 

[johnb51]

Even soil that is deep sand and drains well benefits from the addition of organic matter.  My flower beds had beautiful soil after a few years, and all the mulch I constantly placed around my fruit trees broke down very rapidly.

[EddieF]

Been quite busy, sorry it took me so long to post pics.  This year is passing by warp speed.
The stuff i questioned being loam's a foot deep in some spots.  Sponge, push on it, pops back up.  Blast it with garden hose to settle & sounds hollow & stays put.  When time comes to grade with topsoil, i'll take a pile out first.  Maybe put it around areca palm bases?  I was just curious what loam is and more puzzling what created it?  Ants chewed up old trees?

[Oolie]

You may want to avoid planting in an area where pepper trees have grown due to allelopathogens which may hinder the growth of your desired tree.

[EddieF]

This was months ago after i cleared area & mulched.  Arecas were planted after clearing for fence vs pvc & cost same.  Sorry i messed up photo.

[EddieF]

Oolie, explain.  Thank you.  Planning mangos but not there.