[Closed] Whats Loam? is it the same as soil or dirt?

Brown Pow

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loam

loam

noun
a fertile soil of clay and sand containing humus.

GEOLOGY
a soil with roughly equal proportions of sand, silt, and clay.
a paste of clay and water with sand, chopped straw, etc., used in making bricks and plastering walls.

Doesn't paint the picture of loam I have in my head..

Thanks all, just read the wiki article, there are several types of loam:-

[b]sandy loam, silty loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam, silty clay loam, and loam.[/b]

I'm going to need a different bike for each of those arent I?

I've always thought it was soft muck almost a mulch but drier and a mixture of muck and rotting leaves, vegetation, that kind of stuff.

... a fertile soil of clay and sand containing humus.

does it taste of chickpeas?

daveagiles - Member
Brown Pow

Prime conditions indeed

Loam is a type of soil, as in chalky, clay, sandy and loam.

Gardeners love it because it's a jack of all trades with no real weaknesses. it's easy to work, drains well yet still manages to hold onto moisture and also it's nutrients.

edit: from the RHS [i][url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=179 ]Loams are comprised of a mixture of clay, sand and silt that avoid the extremes of clay or sandy soils and are fertile, well-drained and easily worked. They can be clay-loam or sandy-loam depending on their predominant composition and cultivation characteristics[/url][/i]

I'm going to need a different bike for each of those arent I?

The ultimate guide to UK tyre selection...

[url= http://mapapps2.bgs.ac.uk/ukso/home.html?layer=NSRISoilscapes ]UK Soil Type Mapping[/url]

Now, what tyres for 'slowly permeable seasonally wet slightly acid but base-rich loamy and clayey soils'? (actually I know the answer, and they're 4" wide 😀 )

loam only works in slowmo on your gopro

Thanks for the link!
I have
"Slightly acid loamy and clayey soils with impeded drainage"
aka
Mud.

Kimbers, not entirely true there, if I may correct you.

Suspended from wires OR if on board a drone, otherwise it has little GNAAAR,

I'm going to need a different bike for each of those arent I?

Just tyres...

Not quite - it's different wheelsize. 650B makes the loam come alive.

Sorry kittens...

hmm is that a post Sept 18th map of UK soil types?

Hero dirt.

It's grippy but not sticky,
Loose but not sloppy,
Soft but not sucky.

Loam is lovely. Best if slightly damp if it's been very dry just to firm it up a little for grip, but still loose enough to drift.

To be found on real trails, not trail centre hard pack 😛

Perfect soil for ferns to take over if not ridden enough though.

It's an ideal farming soil with 40% sand, 40% silt and 20% clay. Sand aids drainage, silt holds moisture accessibly for roots and clay forms bonds with nutrient/minerals aiding fertility. Sandy loam slightly more sand, silty....you get the gist.
In MTB terms it's a soil that drains quite well and doesn't dry up and fall apart like sand. Forms under mixed/decided woodland.
Dull eh. I prefer a peaty stagnogley myself

forms bonds with nutrient/minerals aiding fertility.

I always like a good podsol myself or a chernozem...

Dan always describes it as looking like "used coffee grounds"

cation exchange

Old tioga dh tyres are good for loam! It's the only type of surface they are not complete crap

Chalky loam round our way, it can be lethal in the wet 😆

"Brown Pow" indeed. Had those conditions on a day out with mates pushing up at Hopton many years ago. Apparently I had a far away look in my eyes and was heard to use words like "dreamy" when describing it.

mmmmmmmmmm loam