IN THE GARDEN BEAUTIFY A FENCE, SOFTEN CLAY.

Byline: JOSHUA SISKIN

During the past week, several readers sent e-mails with helpful tips and advice.

Reseda resident Barbara Adams, who lives in a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in the 1930s, improved the look of a chain-link fence by planting nasturtium along the bottom of the fence.

``I planted last year and not much happened except the flowers that grew dropped their seeds. This year, with the abundance of rain, the new plants have grown to be giants with leaves the size of water lily pads. Curiosity led me to simply leave them alone to see what they would do. The spring sunshine has brought out the blossoms, and the vines have wound their way up to the top of my 6-foot chain link fence and over. It is now a wonderful display of yellow and orange blossoms with a green quilt background. This rather old-fashioned bouquet makes a nice welcoming display for my vintage, landmark home.''

Ray Blumhorst of Sherman Oaks shares his experience in overcoming the adversity of obdurate earth.

``I've worked extensively in clay soil, but I've learned the hard way by killing a lot of plants. I also have a lot of plants now thriving in what used to be heavy river-bottom gumbo. Lack of drainage, in my opinion, is one of the worst things about clay soil. Next worst is the clay's unfriendliness to root penetration.

``Root rot is one of the biggest problems with clay soil. Most plant roots have a lot of trouble penetrating clay, and water can't drain, so plants die of root rot even on hot summer days when the tops of plants are burning up in the sun.

``Here are soil amendments that worked for me: redwood shavings; Soil Buster, a gypsum-containing product more effective than straight gypsum; Perlite (commonly known as sponge rock); and Kellogg's Amend. If you can only add one thing, add redwood shavings. In any case, after amending, you should end up with 50 percent of the original soil. Rototilling clay soil as deeply as possible is also helpful.

``Here is some extra advice if you really want to overcome clay soil. I have a small, 7 1/2-pound Makita jackhammer that is perfect for digging holes in clay. Of course, you need to have the 'clay spade' attachment, which looks like a little shovel. You can save a lot of wear and tear by letting the jackhammer dig in the hard clay, rather than using your foot and back.

``Dig a hole at least 2 feet deep - 3 feet is much better - by 2 feet wide for whatever tree or shrub you are planting. You need that depth to get the drainage you need for most plants other than lawns or ground cover. Try to sift the soil through 1/4-inch screen mesh if it is heavy clay or you have lots of rocks. This can be very time consuming, but you sure wind up with some nice plant-friendly soil afterward.''