"Hard Soil"
/A healthy soil will be 50% air as the Soil Biology will create pockets of air. This will only feel hard if compacted.
Where soil has its Soil Biology depleted or missing, it is dirt. It collapses on itself and feels hard. It will also drain much worse and support weeds more than grass.
The use of chemical fertilisers will kill Soil Biology and should never be used,. Their use will lead to dead, hard soil.
If your topsoil is clay, it will be saturated and soft for 24+/- weeks of the year in autumn and winter, then after around a 2 week gap, in spring and summer desiccated and rock hard. I will in my next blog explain about clay soils, how to plant, how to mitigate.
So to avoid hard soil, ensure it is healthy, apply Soil Biology (give us a call), decompact/aerate to create the right structure (give us a call), stop using chemical fertilisers and ideally mulch or if lawn use mulching mowers. Composting organic matter will feed the Soil Biology.