Hello everyone,
Our construction project is almost finished, and we will soon start working on the garden.
Due to the installation of our trench collector system and using the garden area as temporary storage for topsoil and other excavated material, our future garden is currently in a rather unfortunate state (see attached image).
Basically, the topsoil has been removed almost entirely. Because of the trench collector, there are now some settlements and cracks that need to be leveled out. Unfortunately, the topsoil was not handled very carefully during removal and temporary storage, so it’s certainly not all sorted properly. The soil here is generally very clayey (slope clay).
I would like to spread out the existing excavated material first and create as even a surface as possible, especially towards the house. Whatever cannot be spread will then have to be moved in front of the house to shape the front yard there.
I assume it would be wise to sift the soil. Should I do anything else, like mixing in additives? Should I basically till the soil? Can or should I use a lawn roller afterward, or would that be counterproductive since the soil is already partly compacted by construction vehicles and excavators?
I would appreciate it if someone had a simple how-to guide on how to create a proper foundation from the current state for later use as a garden (mainly kitchen garden, partly fruit trees, also some natural meadow). Please explain like I’m a complete beginner, as to be honest, I’m not quite sure where to start.
It doesn’t have to be “quick”; theoretically, we could even let it rest for one growing season if that would be beneficial for its future use.
Thanks for your time!
Our construction project is almost finished, and we will soon start working on the garden.
Due to the installation of our trench collector system and using the garden area as temporary storage for topsoil and other excavated material, our future garden is currently in a rather unfortunate state (see attached image).
Basically, the topsoil has been removed almost entirely. Because of the trench collector, there are now some settlements and cracks that need to be leveled out. Unfortunately, the topsoil was not handled very carefully during removal and temporary storage, so it’s certainly not all sorted properly. The soil here is generally very clayey (slope clay).
I would like to spread out the existing excavated material first and create as even a surface as possible, especially towards the house. Whatever cannot be spread will then have to be moved in front of the house to shape the front yard there.
I assume it would be wise to sift the soil. Should I do anything else, like mixing in additives? Should I basically till the soil? Can or should I use a lawn roller afterward, or would that be counterproductive since the soil is already partly compacted by construction vehicles and excavators?
I would appreciate it if someone had a simple how-to guide on how to create a proper foundation from the current state for later use as a garden (mainly kitchen garden, partly fruit trees, also some natural meadow). Please explain like I’m a complete beginner, as to be honest, I’m not quite sure where to start.
It doesn’t have to be “quick”; theoretically, we could even let it rest for one growing season if that would be beneficial for its future use.
Thanks for your time!
Thanks for the ideas and instructions, exactly what I was looking for.
The backyard is about 620 m² (6,675 ft²). We don’t have any machinery – so ideally, it should be doable without.
It’s a bit hard to estimate how much soil is there – I’ll have to try measuring and calculating. Ultimately, everything has to be removed – if there’s too much for the backyard, we can definitely store the excess in the front yard (another 80-100 m² (860-1,075 ft²)).
We only have a rough plan: behind the house, there is a terrace and a small lawn area, then in the middle section the vegetable beds (probably mostly on the left and right sides where the ground-source heat pump collector is located), and possibly a few fruit trees in the center. In the back section, a few more fruit trees and the compost heap/tool shed, etc.
The garden should be as flat as possible – we already have enough “3D” landscaping around the house to separate it from the neighbor, so I don’t want to start anything else in the garden unless necessary.
To summarize, if I understood everything correctly:
Settling will definitely still occur, although I hope that all the movement related to the ground-source heat pump already happened – it has been there since autumn 2020, and last winter it even started heating and was “stressed” with a (gentle) screed drying program, so I assume the biggest shifts are behind us.
The backyard is about 620 m² (6,675 ft²). We don’t have any machinery – so ideally, it should be doable without.
It’s a bit hard to estimate how much soil is there – I’ll have to try measuring and calculating. Ultimately, everything has to be removed – if there’s too much for the backyard, we can definitely store the excess in the front yard (another 80-100 m² (860-1,075 ft²)).
We only have a rough plan: behind the house, there is a terrace and a small lawn area, then in the middle section the vegetable beds (probably mostly on the left and right sides where the ground-source heat pump collector is located), and possibly a few fruit trees in the center. In the back section, a few more fruit trees and the compost heap/tool shed, etc.
The garden should be as flat as possible – we already have enough “3D” landscaping around the house to separate it from the neighbor, so I don’t want to start anything else in the garden unless necessary.
To summarize, if I understood everything correctly:
- Distribute the soil, removing weeds and stones while doing so
- Level with a rake
- Apply green manure, let it work, mow it & leave it as mulch
- or rototill?
- In autumn: plant trees and shrubs, possibly lawn
- Late winter/spring: vegetable beds
Settling will definitely still occur, although I hope that all the movement related to the ground-source heat pump already happened – it has been there since autumn 2020, and last winter it even started heating and was “stressed” with a (gentle) screed drying program, so I assume the biggest shifts are behind us.
I was about to correct someone by saying, "not a rake but a garden fork, otherwise it gets difficult!" and then I looked it up again. I didn’t realize that in southern Germany the garden fork is called a rake. What I still haven’t figured out is what a northern German rake is called in southern Germany.
Northern German
Garden fork:
Rake:
Northern German
Garden fork:
Rake:
W
WilderSueden13 May 2023 16:56In the Aldi (South) flyer, it’s also being sold as a "fan broom." However, I had never heard that term before.
Harakiri schrieb:You will hardly be able to remove weeds by hand. Most weeds exist as seeds in the soil and will germinate as soon as soil cultivation brings them to the surface. The only effective method during the fallow year is to mow 2–3 times before the weeds go to seed. Most weeds do not tolerate mowing well. Rototilling will bring weed seeds back to the surface. Regarding sowing under mulch, I don’t have much experience; it sometimes works, sometimes not.
- Distribute soil, removing weeds and stones
- Smooth with a rake
- Apply green manure, let it grow, then mow and leave as mulch
- or rototill?
- In autumn: trees & shrubs, possibly lawn
- Late winter/spring: vegetable beds
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