Tuesday, December 10, 2019

A Soil Building Success Story

Lin has sent us an account of  how she revitalized a difficult area of her garden.


A year ago last Fall I decided that since the vine maple I planted on the slope above our house had survived a brutally hot summer, it must be safe to put a few more things in the vicinity.  This space is little more than a trough of soil in the bedrock. I call it “soil” very loosely; it is a rocky, gritty, clay-infused sand which contains virtually no humus, and which has a tendency to compact into cement. 

To begin, it was necessary to remove heaps of rocks, roots and gravel. This subtraction of mass diminished the minimal soil present. To build up the soil in this slot of ground took multiple barrow loads of pine needles, leaves, moss, weeds, whatever could be scraped up.  Holes were dug and filled with a mix of compost and good soil to prepare a nurturing spot for each planting. Used soil from container pots has been emptied onto this space to help loosen the hard ground. After living in pots for years, several deserving plants finally received their new home.  Now, in addition to the vine maple, this space is home to a lilac, a small linden tree, two roses, iris, hellebore, cyclamen and a fall blooming clematis to tumble down the slope. For the summer I tucked in dahlia bulbs and fragrant lilies and scattered a mix of cosmos, calendula, bachelor button and  nasturtium seeds.  There were no blooms from the lilac and very few from the roses, but the bulbs and wildflowers were glorious. Now this fall there is yet another rose out of its pot and into the ground, and some snowdrop, tulip and daffodil bulbs for spring colour.

This small garden is little more than a path bordered by shrubs, flowers and small trees; so narrow that as the lilac and vine maple grow it will become hard to navigate.  That was short sighted on my part. I have enlisted my husband to help me with establishing a more rational layout. With that in mind we moved some logs out of the way, removed a smallish cedar stump with endless roots, and of course, more rocks for the rock pile.  Now we have a small bomb crater to be filled, which means collecting more leaves, pine needles, moss, mulch etc. The next thing to be done is to shift the big rock which is the main obstacle to re-configuring the path. This rock weighs a ton…..maybe not, but at the very least 1/4 ton.  It is immovable. The plan is to use a jackall, (an extra big, strong jack), and sort of flip the rock out of the way. And there it will rest forever more, a substantial anchor in the future rock wall that will give purpose to all the weight of stone that has been unearthed in bringing this garden into being.

Suddenly this narrow little space just below the crown of the hill, wedged within bedrock, has become a real garden.  Another small section of wilderness tamed; at least until the dandelion, buttercups, chickweed, grass etc discover it.

Current images of the rock and path. Lin is happy for us to visit in the Spring to see the area in bloom.

rock

path

If you are interested in learning more about soil building, the Urban Homesteading School in Powell River occasionally has workshops on the subject. https://fiddlersfarm.com/

If you want to start a new bed: https://www.thespruce.com

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