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zoe5560

landscape fabric and impacted soil

zoe5560
9 years ago

I moved into a new house in the winter and this spring discovered the old owners had covered the garden with black landscape fabric and decorative wood chips. Now that the snow is melted I want to get rid of this stuff and try to put a garden in (mostly vegetables). I'm not sure how long the black fabric has been in place. The weeds aren't much of a problem so I don't think it's been longer than a couple of years at most, but the soil looks pretty impacted.
I need some advice on tilling and what to add to the soil to make it workable. It's a pretty big area: 10x30 on one side and about 8x30 on the other.
I had planned to get a couple cubic yards of triple mix and borrow a tiller somewhere. Help!

Comments (3)

  • johns.coastal.patio
    9 years ago

    Raised rows? Just remove the fabric in rows and mound your preferred mix?

  • toxcrusadr
    9 years ago

    That would be one way to go and would certainly be simple. Depends on what you want the garden to look like and how much time you have. That's a large area, do you have time to work it all this year? You could start with a portion if not.

    What's the soil like underneath, other than compacted? Clay, sand, silt? What's the organic matter content (I'm guessing not much). Most soil can be rehabbed with plenty of compost, so don't assume you have to buy soil.

    Not sure what 'triple mix' is but if you want to treat the whole area and don't necessarily need higher elevation, you can just till in compost. Till first, lay out a couple of inches and re-till. However I do like john's idea of rows. You wouldn't have to treat the paths between. Or you could lay out square areas with paths between and treat only the planting beds. Make them 4' or less wide and you can reach to the middle from either side.

  • lazy_gardens
    9 years ago

    I like the idea of removing it in rows ... that minimizes the work this season, and holds down weeds.