Life begins in the soil, it is a living breathing system that supports a busy, hardworking web of life.
Plant quality, life and yield will thrive in a healthy soil containing plenty of humus (broken down organic material). Soil not only supports plants and their roots, but provides a home for worms, bugs, microorganisms, good bacteria, fungi and more. A well structured soil holds water, yet can drain the excess that isn’t used by your plants, is spongy yet crumbly and rich, containing particles of varying sizes, plenty of broken-down organic material and has a sweet earthy smell.
As gardeners we are constantly learning about the best ways to build, create, regenerate and improve the structure of our soils in order to best support the plants we are growing. When I began to really get into gardening I quickly came to realise that there was so much more to soil than a bag of potting mix! In order to improve our soil, first, we must be able to identify what type of soil we have. There are three main types of soil; Sandy, a dry soil which when picked up runs through your fingers and is made up of larger grains and particles. Clay, which is made up of fine particles and therefore contains little air, when water is added it can be easily compacted and will hold its form. Loamy, which is somewhere between Sandy and Clay.
Silt is present in many of our soils, it is granular material between sand and clay in size, whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as sediment mixed in suspension with water and soil in a body of water such as a river.
To test the texture of your soil simply get into it! 
Pick it up, observe it, add water to, try to shape it - and figure out what your soil needs. Take up a handful, moisten it until slightly sticky, put the soil in the palm of one hand, squeeze the soil and then try to make a sausage shape. Is it gritty? (sandy). Is it sticky? (clay). Is it silky? (silt). Is it none of these things (loam).
In more detail, sandy soils are around 80% sand and 20% silt and clay. Clay soils contain around 40% clay. Sandy Loam is approximately 20 - 50% clay or silt with the rest being sand; and Loam is made up of around 40% clay, 30-50% sand at the most, and 30-50% silt.
Once you identify what soil type you have you can begin to amend it's texture, structure and nutrients in order to suit your plants if need be.
Clay's can be improved with the addition of organic matter, some gypsum, lime, crushed rock or sand. Silt can be amended in a similar manner, adding organic matter and gypsum. Sand can be tweaked by mixing organic matter or clay in, a favourite among Western Australian gardeners is a brand called Soil Solver which permanently changes sand into soil. I have used it myself with great results. I will be talking about other methods I have used in a future post. Loam soil can be enhanced with compost as it prevents loam being compacted.
Another important aspect of soil is it's PH level, which indicates whether you are dealing with an acidic or alkaline soil. To plants, the PH level is just as important as the texture and structure that they are living and growing in. The wrong PH levels can cause the inhibition of roots, the nutrients in your soil that are available to the plants, the growth of root vegetables, leaf and fruit growth, life in the soil and the germination rate of seeds.
Typically, plants that prefer an acidic soil are berries, aubergines, potatoes, pumpkins, rhubarb, spring onions, tomatoes and watermelons; whereas plants like asparagus, beans, beetroot, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumber, leeks, lettuce, onion, spinach and squash prefer an alkaline soil.
To change acidic soil organic matter and lime is needed; to alter alkaline soils use organic matter and gypsum or sulphur. It is worth purchasing a soil PH test kit which contains instructions on how to test your soils levels.
In Western Australia we are blessed with sandy soils, which reflects the rock from where it came.
Although some may view our sandy soils as a curse, it means that we can easily install native gardens as well as regenerate our soils without having to break down clay. There is no such thing as a complete soil so the regeneration that sandy soils need isn’t really a problem if we get the ingredients and amendments right for the plants we want to grow.
All around the world, gardeners find different ways to improve their soils. I personally have found 'no dig' methods extremely successful and hassle free. I enjoy digging in the soil as much as the next gardener, but as someone who needs to make adjustments to sandy soil in order to grow produce, is short on time, and lives with chronic pain, I find that the little effort no dig methods require, to be ideal. I have found that the yields are higher and the plants much stronger and healthier as the soil can support more life, having not been continually disturbed by acts such as plowing and hoeing. One of the most important aspects of organic gardening is the building up and protection of our soils - no dig allows us this opportunity.
So now you are beginning to understand the importance of soil, why not go out into your own garden and get to know it?