All Questions
24 questions
2
votes
0
answers
46
views
How thick does the impermeable layer need to be when grading a yard?
I'm grading my yard and have found a deep layer of sand (at least 2 ft) extending out about 10ft. Perhaps the sub base for a patio? I understand I need an impermeable layer to ensure rain runs away ...
- 21
2
votes
1
answer
237
views
How can I fill sink holes?
We recently purchased a 5-year-old house. It's a 3-acre lot with the house built on a raised hill in the middle. There are a couple of spots at the edge of the "developed" yard where the ...
- 131
2
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How do I fix my muddy, boggy clay lawn?
My lawn turns into mud between October and April every year (UK), and then in the summer becomes almost impervious to garden forks. If I do manage to break the surface, it's still fairly damp ...
- 121
3
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Should I use an open or closed French drain in clay soil?
Around my property is dense, clay soil that holds on to water to the point where the soil will still be damp in hot, dry weather. This has resulted in poor drainage, so I’m currently installing French ...
- 151
2
votes
2
answers
126
views
How do some seeds germinate and flourish in soil filled pots?
I have regularly seen people not recommending plain soil for pots, since the roots of the newly generated seedlings suffocate in the lack of oxygen due to its compact nature and lack of water drainage....
- 667
0
votes
0
answers
119
views
Will the new soil hill in our backyard cause water damage to our neighbor’s house below us?
In order to maximize the amount of play space in our backyard, we recently had many yards of soil brought in. We live on a slope. Our neighbors home behind our backyard is about 3 feet below our ...
- 85
3
votes
4
answers
7k
views
How to make well-drained sandy soil from potting mix?
I want to plant sage, which is said to grow best in well-drained "sandy soil". I bought some potting mix from the hardware store.
Is off-the-shelf potting mix already sandy, well drained soil?
...
- 1,097
2
votes
2
answers
109
views
How should I improve boggy soil where a pond used to be?
I have just filled in a large pond.I Drained the pond and removed the liner. I used bricks and stones to line the bottom and the bought 4 tons of top soil and a ton of soil improver and rotted horse ...
- 21
0
votes
1
answer
121
views
What type of soil do I have
I was digging to see what kind of soil I have and I found this gray rust brown layer.
It's like clay when compressed but kind of crumbles in chunks.
It's around 6" from the top.
I'm curious how this ...
- 1,261
4
votes
1
answer
2k
views
New topsoil has puddles on it
Problem
My new front garden seems to have pools of water on it for a good few hours after rain.
Background
I've just had the front garden redesigned, leaving us with a brand new area for planting and ...
- 43
4
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Side yard flooded, low spots near patio, nasty bare clay spots.. best route to take?
I've always loved reading these posts but never thought to make an account. So here goes nothing.
New homeowner, want to fix the drainage issues and get some trouble areas growing.
-My side yard ...
- 41
6
votes
1
answer
1k
views
What’s the ideal slope for draining a garden with clay soil?
Our garden is in the central region of Thailand which has very clay soil. The house is built on a raised plot of land, about 70cm higher than the surrounding area. The land was raised because this ...
- 163
4
votes
0
answers
517
views
Improve drainage of lawn and boggy border
The lawn at the front of my house slopes down to where it meets with my neighbours half. Running down one side of it and in front of the garage is a border.
In one of the photos you can see the end ...
- 303
5
votes
3
answers
3k
views
What's the best way to get turf to grow on stone-filled 1m high gabion retaining garden?
I'm in the UK. We have leveled the bottom of our garden by means of using 1m high gabion baskets filled up with stone, and back filling the whole area again with stone which is about 30m2. The reason ...
- 71
7
votes
0
answers
202
views
Is there an ideal drainage to soil layer ratio in terrarium etc.?
The question is about the size, ratio and composition of the drainage and soil layers in some improvised terrarium. It's made out of a 8'' (20cm) truncated/shaved off glass sphere (basically a cookie/...
user17747
5
votes
2
answers
87
views
Holding water and good drainage contradiction?
I've looked at some youtube videos, where they say that mediums such as vermiculite allow good drainage, but also have great water holding capabilities.
I am newbie gardener, and to me, this is ...
- 1,673
5
votes
2
answers
518
views
What exactly is garden soil, and why shouldn't it be used for potted plants?
Okay, I searched internet but didn't help much, so here is my question, I hope for a detailed answer.
What is garden soil? I mean, why it is not recommended for potted plants? Is it because it's heavy ...
- 3,207
11
votes
1
answer
3k
views
What's the best way to remove grass/topsoil to prepare for grading?
I want to remove about 250 square feet of grass/topsoil and then lightly grade for drainage below a future deck.
Should I:
Man up with a spade & a rake?
Rent a sod cutter & go deep?
Use ...
- 111
7
votes
2
answers
6k
views
What soil mixture should I use for my office Schefflera?
I'm on here again, asking more questions about my office's Schefflera that I'm in charge of. You can find pictures and a previous question here:
Whats the next step to improving my schefflera?
I ...
- 5,122
2
votes
2
answers
4k
views
How deep should the soil be above a new retaining wall to allow shrubs to grow?
We have recently needed to build a retaining wall to prevent the garden sloping off into our neighbor's garden at the rear. We had to back-fill the gap created in building the wall with rubble and ...
- 21
7
votes
3
answers
9k
views
How to grow Trailing Rosemary as a ground cover in very heavy clay?
I want to cover a large area that is on a steep slope with ground cover. There is absolutely no soil at all, it's all pure clay: hard rock when dry and soft when wet.
I was thinking of putting a ...
- 203
12
votes
6
answers
2k
views
How can the "soils" be improved on coral atolls.
My Parents are currently living on a small pacific coral atoll. Coral atolls, for the most part don't have much soil. Mostly they just have coral sands. These "soils" are very well drained (and they ...
- 221
7
votes
6
answers
50k
views
What should I consider when putting raised garden beds on concrete?
I have a bunch of raised garden bed frames, and I'm considering putting them on a slab of concrete that I have in my back yard. I wanted to avoid putting them on the grass, as when I've done this ...
- 435
16
votes
4
answers
21k
views
How do I improve drainage vertically through clayey soil?
I live on a hill where the soil has lots of clay. My back garden has been terraced with small (1m) retaining walls. The net result is that we have several lawns / gardens with the following ...
- 477