Gypsum boards do not make good soil amendments.
Clay soils are dense, and so have poor drainage and poor aeration. This is not good for plants, which need good air circulation around their roots. Clay soils need to be amended with sand, organic material and even gypsum. However, gypsum boards do not make ideal sources of gypsum for soil amendment.
The Theory
Gypsum boards are, essentially, sheets of gypsum covered in paper on either side. Theoretically, you could use this gypsum as a soil amendment for clay-heavy soils.
Labor
One drawback to this idea is that the gypsum needs to be crushed up enough to work it thoroughly into the soil. Gypsum boards are solid, and would need to be broken up before they could be used. This involves not only labor, but also the problem of breaking up the gypsum plaster without losing too much of it in the process.
Unsuitable Additives
The other major drawback to this idea is that gypsum boards do not always contain pure gypsum. Different kinds of gypsum boards are manufactured with different additives to give them properties, such as water resistance, fire resistance or low weight. These additives are not necessarily good for the soil.
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