Can you grow in sand?

Hi there,
I'm a relatively new guerilla grower. I have found an ideal spot nearby a riverbank, however the soil looks and feels like sand (but is not near a beach). Generally, I'd agree that sand is not the best medium for growing, but in this particular spot there is a lot of green vegetation and thick grasses growing. Does this mean that weed could grow here as well? I've heard that you should plant where grass grows, and grass does grow in this sand. Can sand hold nutrients?

sand is very porous so if you were to try to stick a plant in the ground and not do anything to amend the soil (sand) then no...it wouldnt hold nutes well. i bet its sandy loam, and ppl pay good $ for that stuff, but they buy it to mix with more fertile soil before its considered a useable growing medium......
coco coir works when mixed w\sandy soil. it retains vital nutrients that would otherwise be washed away.
anyway, to answer yr question, yes, you can grow in sandy soil, but it must be amended

Sandy soils are great... I used to live in a different state and it was all clay which blows... Here in Michigan its real sandy, plants love it..it drains real nice.


Just be careful by riverbanks..a couple of heavy rains and your roots will suffocate in a wetland or low area that takes on water.

I live literally on the beach. Another hobby of mine is collecting rare tropical plants, palms and cycads. My substrate is entirely sand on my property. I have no problem growing whatever I please. I will say that I regularly have to fertilize, and had to plumb extensive irrigation and outdoor fog systems, but in regards to amending so as to "retain" nutrients? Going to have to disagree. You just may need to water more often, with a more regular fert regimen.

Dankfactory said:

but in regards to amending so as to "retain" nutrients? Going to have to disagree. You just may need to water more often, with a more regular fert regimen.

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you "may" need to water with a more regular fert regimen BECAUSE sandy soil dont retain well...

guess i shouldnt had said it MUST be amended...
more like, should be, if you dont wanna piss valuable nutrients down the drain

GreenThumbsMcgee said:

you "may" need to water with a more regular fert regimen BECAUSE sandy soil dont retain well...

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"Sandy soil dont retain well."

Lets explore that quote with some real world application. Theres a reason why there are mudslides after a wildfire. Why? because the liviing root systems are what are responsible for retaining the integrity of the hillside. Once the root system is compromised, the substrate loses that integrity. This transcends directly over to even indoor growing in pots. The substrate is secondary to an established root system. A mass of roots will inhabit the subsurface layer and offer so much more surface area, that the root system itself is what is retaining nutrients. Not to mention OP is engaging in a guerrilla application, which, having done three seasons on a hillside myself, you dont exactly hike in approx two tons of amendments. Salts, especially timed release, perform absolutely fine in sand with zero amendments.

Dankfactory said:

You just may need to water more often, with a more regular fert regimen.

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elaborate on this.
if roots retain on their own, why the need to up the regimen?

GreenThumbsMcgee said:

elaborate on this.
if roots retain on their own, why the need to up the regimen?

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Simply for younger starts or for plants/trees that are not yet established.

Cheers for the replies, I'll probably mix it with some compost and good soil

Dankfactory said:

I live literally on the beach. Another hobby of mine is collecting rare tropical plants, palms and cycads. My substrate is entirely sand on my property. I have no problem growing whatever I please. I will say that I regularly have to fertilize, and had to plumb extensive irrigation and outdoor fog systems, but in regards to amending so as to "retain" nutrients? Going to have to disagree. You just may need to water more often, with a more regular fert regimen.

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Yup. I live right next to a beach too. Plants are growing out the sand like nobodys business but im pretty sure they all get ocean water fed at the bottom of the roots simular to a supersoil style grow.


Im sure one can grow in sand as long as you have compromised the feed and water for that style of grow.

Just dig a damn 15 (ish) gallon hole & fill it with super soil.

Boom - done.

What he said ^

Dankfactory said:

I live literally on the beach. .

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.....And that must be damned nice to be you eh ?

No matter what soil you have, if you can amend it with good things why would you not? Little shit, little peat, perhaps some other stuff like worm castings, and then some good old tea. Sorry I can't come up with anything else at the moment. I'm the guy that dragged 100's of 5-10 gallon bags into a deep, dirty swamp so I know about amending lol.

stop being a tight ass . buy a few bags of soil dig a hole put the soil in plant your plant no need for pots .

grohlitup said:

Hi there,
I'm a relatively new guerilla grower. I have found an ideal spot nearby a riverbank, however the soil looks and feels like sand (but is not near a beach). Generally, I'd agree that sand is not the best medium for growing, but in this particular spot there is a lot of green vegetation and thick grasses growing. Does this mean that weed could grow here as well? I've heard that you should plant where grass grows, and grass does grow in this sand. Can sand hold nutrients?

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It can be done. But if you were at the riverbank so are a ton of others. Drainage would be the problem. You are looking at plants adapted to an aquatic environment. Figure out how much you would spend doing that and just throw that much out the window.

hotrodharley said:

It can be done. But if you were at the riverbank so are a ton of others. Drainage would be the problem. .

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^^^^ FTW ^^^^^

Yes one can grow in sand but the question is whether or not sand is an effective medium. In sand there will be a stagnant water table that will not drain because of the particle size and density, a great place for roots to drown and/or rot. Aeration is an extremely important factor that sand does not have. Water and nutrient uptake will also be compromised in sand due to the lack of aeration.