Let the Gardening Begin!

[GrannyNanny]

Hi -- I have taken two van loads of hostas and heucheras to my new house, and arranged them in their pots along the front strip of garden ground under the front windows. These are BIG hostas -- and they look absolutely puny in that vast space! I'll bring over another load tomorrow afternoon, but in the morning I'm going to begin planting what I have -- large in front, medium in the middle, and small -- alternating with burgundy hucheras, in the front. I'm reaping the rewards of having potted up all those hostas and seed-grown heucheras last spring, in being able to go "hosta shopping" right in my own back yard!!! Here are the pics -- Phyllis

[ViolaAnn]

Thanks for posting and good luck as you plant. Good thinking to get them all potted and ready to move. That's going to be a lovely garden.

[jgh]

thinking of you...

[ogrefcf]

A lot of work, but looks like fun! Good luck with getting it all planted.

[eastwood2007]

It's going to be beautiful!

Your new neighbors will want to know which nursery you shop at to get such large, nice plants!

[GrannyNanny]

Alas, it's going to be harder than I'd thought. I went out this morning to start planting, put my shovel into the dirt, and it went down exactly two inches, which is the depth of the black dirt that the landscapers spread over the top of the garden space. Under that is hardpan, apparently a mixture of sand and clay, and nothing short of dynamite -- or a very heavy-duty rototiller -- is going to shift it. I have an email in to the landscapers, whose fault it is that the ground is so hard-packed, since it was they who smoothed and rolled the whole lot after the construction was done, to see if they''ll send out a guy with the heavy equipment necessary to get that stuff ground up. It'll still be bad soil, but if I put a lot of compost into the hosta holes, maybe they'll do OK. I have been spoiled by the gorgeous black soil in my previous house's garden, which of course got that way because I'd amended it for years with what was probably tons of compost. Ah well, just one more challenge to surmount. The plants are still in their pots, but I did water them, so they're ok until I get this thing figured out. Phyllis

[Marlys]

Phyllis - My garden began in fill-dirt, heavy grey & green clay. I would have to dig out a 5 gallong bucket of clay, maybe 2 buckets, then fill the hole with soil worthy of sustaining plant life (compost), then water, then plant the plant. I was much younger then. Not sure I'd do it again.

Once I had a dump truck load of black dirt delivered and dumped in the middle of the front yard for a new garden. I told Ron to tell the guy I wanted garden black dirt / soil. Well, it was black but far from what I expected. It was like black gumbo clay-crap! I was so discourged and Ron wouldn't complain to the guy that delivered it. I tuly wish I had made him come soop it up and take it away. But I got bales of peat moss and got the little mantis tiler out and worked & worked on that blasted bed. I still amend soil there with the bucket removal method when I plant anything there & use mulch with soil conditioners but to tell you the truth, I don't know how any of those plants actually live out there.

Make them dig it out and replace it with garden loam. I use shredded leaves on the beds too as unfortunately, all the soil here is heavy clay. The plants love those dried shredded leaves.

I feel for you, girl.
MM

[ViolaAnn]

The problem if you dig out the heavy clay and fill the hole with good soil, is that it may act like a bathtub and hold the water. I think you need to break up the soil as much as possible and then bring in new soil to raise the beds several inches. That's what works in the very heavy grey clay around here.

[ogrefcf]

Controlled explosions! Mix that soil right up. Good luck with it Sounds like no fun. I hate when ya go to plant and run into problems, but I guess that's gardening lol.

[Linda P]

Hmm...wondering what the landscapers thought you could grow in 2 inches of top soil? I hope they will come and break it up for you. What a let-down, when you
were all ready to get that garden stated.

[thy]

S T O P !!!!!

Paying the bill

Do you have your agreement on paper ?

Do you remember how I cryed 3 years ago, when we came tpo plant 300 + plants in the new and good looking garden ?

mine had the same amount of compost..and then sand with big stones just under it, but it does not matter.

Tell them to remove the sod from an area around it and remove all the bad soil. Ohervise it will become a bassin.

After 3 years I am still fighting bad soil, my hostas didn't set roots for 2 years even i had removed a lot of stones and added champignon compost and compost and and.

My plants all came in a weekend and we had to plant some of them, yours are in pots.
If they do not agree, keep some of the money ( sign of good intents here and somehow accepted ) and find an other landscaper

Alternative is to raise the beds 15 inch
Pia

[Mark Raw]

Would it be possible for you to grow them in large pots part burried in the soil? this allows chance to move them around if your not happy with the arrangement, creating an ever changing display plus being able to move them from on place to another for a different display and the abilty to hide plants that have not done so well. hope that helps
Mark Raw