Without any experience, I am facing a ruined garden

My back garden is in very poor situation.

It was a very nice garden. But the extension building work ruined everything. The ground was dug 7 feet deep for the foundation. Due to the narrow passage to the front of the house, the dirt wasn’t able to be moved out quickly. So it was spread on the far side of the garden. I should have known better…

Now I have to start from scratch. I don't have any experience besides some gardening books reading. Where should I start? Should I remove all the covering dirt that was from underground? The books suggest that this kind of dirt is "subsoil" and isn't suitable for plant growing. But that *a lot* of work. Should I clean the weeds now or wait to winter? How to cut the grape vine back? ... Oh too many problems. I think this is probably a multi-year project...

Weeds and dirt are everywhere



Naked soil and some building materials



The dug out dirt was spread in this area. Now also covered with tough weeds.



Luckily I still have some trees.



This is the soil I got in the back garden. Clay, clay and clay.



Nasty patches on the ground



Shrubs need a lot of trimming too.



The grape vine is going crazy.



Today I build 2 small raised beds. But it is not easy to fix them on my sloped garden. They will be used for vegetables. Compost, farmyard manure and sharp sand are supposed to arrive tomorrow.​

 

Correct. Sub-soil on top of the original Top-soil won't grow much ... weeds will grow and over time the sub-soil will improve, but it will take years. But to remove it and have it carted away

Was it piled up around the trees at all? Tree trunks are not designed to be under-ground, so if there is any soil around their trunk it needs to be removed [i.e. urgently] otherwise it may kill the trees.

 

Don't panic blacktulip! Just take steps methodically and your garden will soon recover.
First of all, collect up any visible building materials. If you need to construct a path or patio anywhere, leftover rubble can be used as a base. You'll probably keep turning up bits of brick etc but just keep piling it together somewhere fairly hidden and either dispose of it at the tip from time to time or level it out and compact it where it will be useful. As Kristen said, make sure that no soil is piled up around the trunks and stems of existing plants. To tackle the weeds, if you don't mind using chemicals, treat with glyphosate (buy concentrate and mix it yourself, that way you know it's not over-diluted!) Leave for a few weeks if possible to ensure that roots are dead and if any re-grow, treat again. The residue will help improve the sub soil a bit and glyphosate breaks down to nitrogen which helps too. Then start levelling....either rake or shovel. If you want grass in the bare areas, autumn is the ideal time to sow or lay turf. You can even sow grass on subsoil but the more you improve it beforehand, the better the results will be.
Don't worry too much about pruning for now....that can wait! You have some lovely trees and shrubs, so once the ground is tidied up it will all look a lot more positive :-)

 

As above

It may look daunting BT but I suggest a sit down in a sunny spot with a cuppa and a pen and paper and draw some plans of how you'd like your garden to look.I'd start with hard landscaping,where you want paths and borders then start clearing from there.
You've a lovely garden in the making there

 

Be careful when using glyphosate as it kills almost everything it touches including grass. Use on a windless day to stop it drifting.

Good luck with the garden!

 

Thanks everyone! Really appreciate your advices and encouragement.

Today the bags arrived.



So I start to dig on the sloped ground in order to level the raised bed. And planned to use the dug out soil to fill the bed. Got some really heavy clay here:



I threw 2 bags of 50L compost, half a bag sharp sand and all the soil in. However...... the bed is still only half filled:


I have a few questions...

1. How to efficiently break clay lumps? Today I crush them one by one using my hands. There got to be an easier way.
2. Do the soil, sand and compost need to be a very good mixture? I find it hard to do mixing actions in the bed.
3. Can I fill the rest of the bed with compost only (things like the £6/125L compost from B&Q) ? It seems to be the most economy way. Bagged topsoil seems expensive and only has small packages (20L)

Thank for your help in advance!

 

You could fill it with bought compost but it would be a bit pricey and the nourishment in it soon runs out. You could use your bought farmyard manure but it also works out expensive. Otherwise try using home made compost if available or use horse manure bought from a stables- usually very cheap. You would need to leave it on the soil all winter before sowing or planting though, unless it was really well rotted.

 

You may find it easier to make up a mix some at a time in a wheelbarrow if you have one and break down the lumps in the process. Use fairly even amounts for soil and compost and I would say about half of that for sand.

As Madahhlia says the compost will eventually run out of nutrients. Compost also rots down eventually so will need to be topped up from time to time. If you start your own compost heap it will make a big difference in supply and obviously free of charge.

 

Thanks Madahhlia, Thanks Sheal.

Today I bought 200L topsoil for £20 and mixed half of it into the bed. It looks better now.





Next up I will follow Noisette and Kristen's advices and begin to clean up the site, remove the subsoil etc. It was a tiring but fun week. Thanks all.

 

You're off to a good start blacktulip. Don't expect it all to happen quickly, take your time and the ideas will come as you're working.

 

I've only just come across this thread myself and have experience with sub soil. When some old garage bases where removed from the garden, we quickly found asbestos sheeting stuck underneath. It was deemed more cost effective to bury the whole lot, so the builders dug a massive hole and dumped a load of sub soil on top. I didn't realise this was a problem until it rained and all stuck together. That was back in 2011 and 3 years on the soil isn't still great quality.

What is you plans besides vegetable beds for the rest of the area with the sub soil on it? Your garden already looks quite established and has lots of potential too.

 

Hi Jane. I think I am going to dig and dump it bit by bit. I may hire a skip for it.

 

Here are some other options for subsoil improvement...(based on experience!)
Leave big clods of clay exposed in the coldest part of the garden over winter...you'll be amazed at how frost breaks it down and it can then easily be mixed with organic matter and sand or grit to create topsoil. It does require patience, though, and a reasonably cold winter.
Quicker but pricier method is to invest in a second-hand rotovator or tiller and hunt around for a local supplier of bulk manure or municipal compost to work into the clay. Sometimes, buying a delivery of sharp sand or horticultural grit from a builder's merchant can be a lot more economical than buying bags of material from garden centres, given the quantities required! It's worth the price of a local call to find out....ditto local farms, studs, riding schools and councils.

 

How thick a layer of sub soil are we talking? I couldn't really remove mine so just learnt to live with it. If it is a skips worth and you are prepared to do the work then by all means get rid of it, but there are other ways around the problem. Like for example you could freecycle it or do what I did and improve it. That's what I did and it is only just starting to breakdown but I know I will have good soil at the end and the worms are doing the work for me.