# @ahs_gardening on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DKpKmsnTcmd
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/55036027-ahs-gardening-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/e38b3aa1f0.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-06-08T14:30:20.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** American Horticultural Society | American Gardener Magazine (@ahs_gardening) — https://gondola.cc/ahs_gardening

## Caption

🌱 Garden Tip of the Week⁠
How Well Does Your Soil Drain?⁠
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Rain is great—until it isn’t. Poor drainage can suffocate roots, especially for plants like camellias, roses, and some ferns that love moisture but need oxygen in the soil to thrive.⁠
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It’s not the water that kills them. It’s the lack of air.⁠
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Heavy clay and silt soils are the usual suspects, holding water like a sponge and starving roots of oxygen. So how do you know if your soil is a soggy mess or a gardener’s dream?⁠
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Try this simple soil drainage test:⁠
• Dig a few holes (2 feet deep) in different parts of your yard⁠
• Soak the ground (or wait for a rainstorm)⁠
• Fill each hole with water⁠
• Use a ruler to track how fast the water drops⁠
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📏 If it takes more than 1–2 hours for 1 inch of water to drain, your soil’s holding too much water. That means it’s time to rethink your plant choices or improve your drainage.⁠
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🪻 Swap soggy soil strugglers like lilacs or spruces for moisture-lovers like Clethra or dawn redwood.⁠
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#GardenTip #SoilHealth #DrainageTest #WaterSmartGardening #ClaySoilSolutions #WetGardenPlants #SustainableGardening #AHSGardening #KnowYourSoil #PlantSmart #NativePlantGarden #PercolationTest⁠
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The American Gardener, the magazine of the American Horticultural Society. These tips are from “Dealing with Poor Drainage” by Scott Aker in the November/December 2015 issue:⁠
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You can find more information by checking out the article in the magazine archive on our website.⁠
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## Tags

claysoilsolutions, soilhealth, nativeplantgarden, watersmartgardening, knowyoursoil, drainagetest, ahsgardening, wetgardenplants, gardentip, sustainablegardening, percolationtest, plantsmart

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