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What to do with the sieved stones from flower beds
derek.noble
Posts: 6
Hi,
I have recently been busy sieving the first of three flower beds of stones and rubble down to a depth of about 2-3 feet. The flower bed is about 8m x 2m.
I started at one end and dug down to the requred depth of an area about 2m x 2m and sieved this soil. I then sieved the next 2m x 2m area to the same depth until I had filtered all the soil and was left with a 2m x 2m hole at the other end and a lot of stone/rocks.
Now for the question:
I am worried that now that I have removed a lot of the larger stones that this will affect drainage.
Would it be advisable if I add the stones back in at the bottom of the last hole, maybe 3-4 inches of it, and then top off with the filtered top soil and then do this with the next 2m x 2m area until I get back to where I started.
Ill then have about 3-4 inches of stones/rubble and 2-3 feet of filtered top soil on top (This will include about 6 inches of extra top soil I will buy to get it to the level of a recently installed patio).
Would this be a good idea?
I wont be digging this bed too much once this is completed as I plan to add mostly perenials and maybe some bulbs and summer flowers in the front foot or so.
a benefit of this is that I dont have to get rid of all the stones down the local tip.
thanks in advance for any advice/suggestions.
Derek
I have recently been busy sieving the first of three flower beds of stones and rubble down to a depth of about 2-3 feet. The flower bed is about 8m x 2m.
I started at one end and dug down to the requred depth of an area about 2m x 2m and sieved this soil. I then sieved the next 2m x 2m area to the same depth until I had filtered all the soil and was left with a 2m x 2m hole at the other end and a lot of stone/rocks.
Now for the question:
I am worried that now that I have removed a lot of the larger stones that this will affect drainage.
Would it be advisable if I add the stones back in at the bottom of the last hole, maybe 3-4 inches of it, and then top off with the filtered top soil and then do this with the next 2m x 2m area until I get back to where I started.
Ill then have about 3-4 inches of stones/rubble and 2-3 feet of filtered top soil on top (This will include about 6 inches of extra top soil I will buy to get it to the level of a recently installed patio).
Would this be a good idea?
I wont be digging this bed too much once this is completed as I plan to add mostly perenials and maybe some bulbs and summer flowers in the front foot or so.
a benefit of this is that I dont have to get rid of all the stones down the local tip.
thanks in advance for any advice/suggestions.
Derek
0
Posts
However, any stones bigger than an inch or so, won't really aid drainage. It's smaller ones which help. It's really better to mix the small ones with your soil rather than having a thick layer of stones, as that can become a sump.
If you're putting any kind of stones a few feet down though, it shouldn't be a major problem, but just be aware that the soil you put on top will gradually settle around those stones, and your finished level will drop.
You've given yourself a lot of extra work unfortunately!
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I kind of had to do something with the soil as it was like a building site and the addition of the new patio added a load more stones.
Rather than me picking stones out of the soil for the next 10 years I thought I would get rid of them in one go. The mesh I used is 13mm so still leaves smaller stones. Advice from this forum got me to increase the mesh sisze from 5mm.
I thought that this would work as I read when creating a planter that putting stones at the bottom improves drainage. Maybe I misread it. :-(
Ill add the sones at the base so I can at least get rid of them rather than bringing them to the tip.
It looks like I still have a lot to learn...
I'm not in favour of it, simply because , if the drainage holes get blocked, the water can sit there. The roots can then end up sitting in it, and if it's a plant which needs good drainage, it's not helpful. Having grit or very small stones mixed through the soil/compost is a better method, as the whole medium is freer draining.
If the container is really deep, or in the situation you have, it's not such a problem
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...