Growing palms in caliche soil (Texas Hill Country)...

[fr8train]

I was talking to someone who gardens here locally, and he was telling me how difficult it is in this soil. He said it's called caliche. I was wondering about what people have been able to pull off here, or what can be done to amend this soil? Can you drill or somehow break through the layer of limestone that's here? I don't see many things growing other than live oak trees, and even they look very stressed.

Why caliche is terrible for plants

Caliche is terrible for plants for three reasons: (1) Plant roots cannot penetrate it, so they become root restricted. (2) Water can’t drain through it, so roots are suffocated. (3) Its alkaline nature can make several essential micronutrients (phosphorus, iron, boron, zinc, and manganese) unavailable to plants. Gardeners with alkaline soil such as caliche need to be on the lookout for signs of nutrient deficiency in their plants.

https://www.finegardening.com/article/gardening-with-caliche-soil-in-the-southern-plains

This article talks about some of my questions, but I guess I'm just curious about what people here might be able to add to this. I'm looking at land for sale and the soil around here looks very poor almost everywhere, unless I go south or east of the city, but my wife wanted to stay in this area. 

Edited November 15, 2023 by fr8train

[RFun]

That's a good question.  You can tell by looking at the land that it isn't a very great environment for a lot of plants.

[Silas_Sancona]

1 hour ago, fr8train said:

I was talking to someone who gardens here locally, and he was telling me how difficult it is in this soil. He said it's called caliche. I was wondering about what people have been able to pull off here, or what can be done to amend this soil? Can you drill or somehow break through the layer of limestone that's here? I don't see many things growing other than live oak trees, and even they look very stressed.

Why caliche is terrible for plants

Caliche is terrible for plants for three reasons: (1) Plant roots cannot penetrate it, so they become root restricted. (2) Water can’t drain through it, so roots are suffocated. (3) Its alkaline nature can make several essential micronutrients (phosphorus, iron, boron, zinc, and manganese) unavailable to plants. Gardeners with alkaline soil such as caliche need to be on the lookout for signs of nutrient deficiency in their plants.

https://www.finegardening.com/article/gardening-with-caliche-soil-in-the-southern-plains

This article talks about some of my questions, but I guess I'm just curious about what people here might be able to add to this. I'm looking at land for sale and the soil around here looks very poor almost everywhere, unless I go south or east of the city, but my wife wanted to stay in this area. 

For starts, Caliche is a sub-type of " soil ", ..not a main type... The " main " thing your soil is likely made up of  is limestone-based rock ..soil derived of decomposed / -ing Limestone rock is your
" main " soil type ..in a lot of places in -at least anywhere on the Plateau, or in S. TX ..west of Corpis.

Caliche is a layer of finite Limestone -based sediment that accumulates in depressions and slowly accumulates.. As it does, Salt ..and minerals like dissolved Calcium can bind the individual larger particles together and ..if packed down, after being cooked in the sun, over time, repeatedly,  can eventually lead to the -generally - soil surface layer of hard to penetrate " crust " ...What we call Caliche..

Unless an extremely thick layer, which isn't all that common ( We have areas of Caliche here, and in in other areas nearby  as well ) you can try to break it up mechanically, or use some of these suggestions..  Regardless, since your main soil type is Limestone, unless not in an area where that geology is prevalent, so, ..your " base Soil " will always lean highly Alkaline..

*** Note what the U.of AZ article says about watering ..how long water stays in the hole  as a way to determine how averse / or good enough your drainage might be.

https://porchpepperproject.wixsite.com/porchpepperproject/post/naturally-conquer-caliche-organic-methods-for-removing-hardpan-in-your-las-vegas-desert-garden

https://extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/pubs/az1281.pdf

FYI, plants evolved to conquer every possible niche in the environment.. including areas of Caliche..  Only areas pretty much devoid of plant life would be areas where there is a deeper layer of Salt ..or some other, highly toxic element / mineral concentrated right on the surface. 

..So no,  the stuff isn't totally hostile to all  plant life.  Some really interesting things can grow on the stuff, and in soils derived of pure Gypsum, ..or Serpentinite / Serpentine, an extremely toxic soil / Ultramafic rock type.

That said, there are plants that will grow in extremely saline soils, and on Serpentine ..starting the  generally  long n' slooowww process of re vegetation on such a site.

[amh]

1 hour ago, fr8train said:

I was talking to someone who gardens here locally, and he was telling me how difficult it is in this soil. He said it's called caliche. I was wondering about what people have been able to pull off here, or what can be done to amend this soil? Can you drill or somehow break through the layer of limestone that's here? I don't see many things growing other than live oak trees, and even they look very stressed.

Why caliche is terrible for plants

Caliche is terrible for plants for three reasons: (1) Plant roots cannot penetrate it, so they become root restricted. (2) Water can’t drain through it, so roots are suffocated. (3) Its alkaline nature can make several essential micronutrients (phosphorus, iron, boron, zinc, and manganese) unavailable to plants. Gardeners with alkaline soil such as caliche need to be on the lookout for signs of nutrient deficiency in their plants.

https://www.finegardening.com/article/gardening-with-caliche-soil-in-the-southern-plains

This article talks about some of my questions, but I guess I'm just curious about what people here might be able to add to this. I'm looking at land for sale and the soil around here looks very poor almost everywhere, unless I go south or east of the city, but my wife wanted to stay in this area. 

Don't worry about it. Its a pain in the arse to dig, but unless you intend to grow bananas or acid loving plants, your fine.  The soil is alkaline, but that just means you need low phosphorous fertilizers.  The local caliche is fairly permeable and the roots of woody plants will break it up.  A pickaxe is a good tool for digging in the hill country.

Also, the caliche and shallow bedrock actually help retain water during these droughts; I'm on over 10 feet of clay loam and the water wicks away very fast when it is dry.

[SeanK]

Is it easy enough to bore through with a gas post hole digger? 

Is some pH balance needed prior to fertilization?

[RFun]

Sounds like a pick axe is a requirement.

[SailorBold]

2 hours ago, SeanK said:

Is it easy enough to bore through with a gas post hole digger? 

Is some pH balance needed prior to fertilization?

Caliche is common around here too.. lots of different soils here within regions around the city..  hmm.. im curious tho.. although I don't have the problem directly where I am... if you can try to pH the subsoil and it will correct itself..?

[Silas_Sancona]

26 minutes ago, SailorBold said:

Caliche is common around here too.. lots of different soils here within regions around the city..  hmm.. im curious tho.. although I don't have the problem directly where I am... if you can try to pH the subsoil and it will correct itself..?

Not completely...  Say you'r neighborhood /part of town is  in an area where the soil for several miles / several 100s or a few 1,000 ft deep is composed of mainly Sedimentary rock types, Limestone- based esp, you can " adjust the pH ..temporarily, ..but not permanently.  That kind of dirt will always stay Alkaline because minerals from the parent rock will continue to leach into the soil as they continue to be broken down. Removing highly Alkaline soil in say a 5' X 5' X 2' sized hole will buy someone some time, but, won't change the overall pH in that spot much after a few years...

You'd have to dig out all the soil on your property, down to about 8- 10ft  to really see a significant change in overall, long term pH.  That's a lot of work with a shovel, lol!.

While there is some wiggle room ( some plants are able to grow on both  =  " Generalists " ) , all plants evolved to grow on the 2 " basic " soil types, Acidic and Alkaline.. 

Wander around an area where the soil is composed of Granite or other " Acidic -type rocks, and another area where there is a lot of Limestone ..or other sedimentary- type rock ( Usually Alkaline )  out in the desert,  ..or pretty much anywhere else...and  you'll often find a very different group of plants growing on one type of rock vs. plants that prefer the other.

 

Edited November 16, 2023 by Silas_Sancona
edit

[Jack Lord]

I made some trips to Fredericksburg when I lived in Dallas. I saw a few palms including a very nice CIDP.

[Dwarf Fan]

Razor Back Trenching Spade Shovel is the only way to go in Texas Caliche. I have dug out 50’ trenches to locate and excavate water/sewer/gas lines in 2-4 ft of Texas Caliche (Central Texas to South Texas). You WILL break shovel after shovel unless you use a Razor Back don’t bother with a regular spade shovel either you will only get frustrated. A Jackhammer with a spade bit if you have one, (seriously NOT kidding) will be your best tool to add to the Razor Back if you have a lot of Texas caliche to dig.