rebuilding flower beds
I am currently rebuilding my flower beds. if I want to mound them about 3 feet high, how much will they compact if I am using all top soil? these beds are approx. 5.5 feet across and Lshaped for a length of 9 feet and 6 feet on the small part of the L.
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bullthistle
- Greener Thumb
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rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
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3' high of mounding sounds like a whole lot.
MaineDesigner (a professional landscape designer) recently did a nice post about building up flower beds, here:
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=128452&highlight=#128452
In it, MD suggests no more than 3" rise per foot of run. So for 36" of height, you would need at least 12' of length. Really, 3' is very tall, in a small flowerbed it will look like a mountain.
Your topsoil will compact, the lighter the soil (like potting soil) the more compaction, the heavier and more clay-ey, as bthistle noted, the less.
MaineDesigner (a professional landscape designer) recently did a nice post about building up flower beds, here:
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=128452&highlight=#128452
In it, MD suggests no more than 3" rise per foot of run. So for 36" of height, you would need at least 12' of length. Really, 3' is very tall, in a small flowerbed it will look like a mountain.
Your topsoil will compact, the lighter the soil (like potting soil) the more compaction, the heavier and more clay-ey, as bthistle noted, the less.