When it comes to landscaping or construction on poor soils, the traditional solution has often been simple: bring in new topsoil. But topsoil is heavy, costly to transport, and its extraction damages the environment. There’s a smarter, more sustainable alternative: biotic soil amendments.
Why Importing Topsoil Isn’t Sustainable
Bringing in topsoil might sound like a simple fix, but it comes with significant hidden costs and long-term impacts that often go unnoticed:
- Environmental damage from extraction - Topsoil is a finite resource, and removing it from donor sites disrupts natural habitats, destroys ecosystems and depletes soil fertility where it’s taken. Once removed, these landscapes can struggle to recover, contributing to biodiversity loss and long-term soil degradation.
- High carbon footprint from transport - Moving large volumes of soil involves heavy vehicles travelling potentially long distances. This transport process consumes fossil fuels and releases substantial CO₂ and other emissions, making the practice environmentally costly and contrary to sustainability targets.
- Significant costs beyond purchase price - It’s not just the cost of buying topsoil itself. Projects also face expenses and additional time linked to loading, transport, site preparation and spreading. For large areas, steep slopes or remote sites, these costs can escalate quickly and strain project budgets and programmes.
- Uncertain quality and suitability - Imported topsoil can be inconsistent in composition, nutrient content, and texture. In some cases, it may contain contaminants, invasive weed seeds, or simply not match the specific requirements of your site, leading to poor plant establishment or ongoing maintenance issues.
Faced with these drawbacks, many developers, contractors, and landscape architects are rethinking how they manage poor soils on-site.
How Biotic Soil Amendments Change the Game
Instead of replacing existing soil, biotic soil amendments regenerate and enhance the soil already in place, turning low-quality or degraded soils into a healthy foundation for vegetation. Here’s how they work:
- Rich organic blend - Carefully formulated mixes of compost, wood fibre and tackifiers improve the soil’s physical structure. This helps it hold water, resist erosion and create a better growing environment for seeds and plants.
- Microbial boosters - Beneficial bacteria and fungi restore the living part of the soil, breaking down organic matter, releasing nutrients and building a resilient soil ecosystem. This supports healthier, faster plant growth and strengthens long-term soil fertility.
- Hydraulic application - Applied as a spray via a hydroseeder, biotic soil amendments evenly cover steep slopes, embankments or difficult-to-reach areas. Followed by a tackified wood fibre mulch application, this method locks the amendment onto the surface, immediately reducing erosion risks while the soil recovers and new vegetation establishes. This method is more time and carbon efficient compared to traditional topsoil applications.
By investing in the soil you already have, you avoid the environmental, logistical, and financial challenges of importing and spreading new topsoil, while building a healthier, more sustainable landscape from the ground up.