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Bottomless raised bed on grass

Theresa May NotTheresa May Not Posts: 109
in Problem solving
Morning all
i have just had planted a photnia red robin as a tree/shrub (which I am ridiculuouslyexcited about 😀)
I was contemplating buying a large un bottomed raised planter to go round it, then fill it with soil and put some pretties in it.
our soil is rock hard ..even the bloke who dug the  photinia in striggled and he is massive!
anyhow …if i just plonked said planter around the tree and filled with compost …do you think this will be ok. I have attached a photo with plants around the tree to give you an idea
many thanks and happy jubilee weekend .
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  • Theresa May NotTheresa May Not Posts: 109

  • UffUff Posts: 3,199
    I don't see why not but it would make cutting the grass difficult. Are you planting the plants into the soil or leaving them in pots?


    SW SCOTLAND but born in Derbyshire
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    You mustn't raise the soil level around the tree trunk ... it'll really damage the tree.  

    If you want some pretty bedding plants around your tree I'd keep them in the pots they're in and group them around the tree (leaving space around the trunk).  

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    No.  Burying the photinia trunk is likely to make it rot and die.

    You will need to water your tree regularly thru this first summer - 15litres at a time and weekly if you don't get decent rains.   That will help it get its roots down deep and establish itself whereas dribbles of water will encourage roots up to the surface where they can fry if dehydrated in hot weather.   

    Don't let grass or weeds grow in the circle around the trunk as they will compete for nutrients and moisture.   You can apply a mulch to the soil around the base in a 60cm radius to help retain moisture and feed the soil which will, in turn, feed the plant.


    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • Theresa May NotTheresa May Not Posts: 109
    Ooh thanks, you’ve just saved me wasting money. I have some mulch as i wrote about my hedge in another post, so i shall do that thanks.
    Thankyou for all the advice…i shall have to find a more muscular gardener maybe next year then to dig round so i can ultimately indulge my ‘road traffic island chic’ fantasy ! I absolutely love those planted out traffic islands…bit weird uh!

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    If you strip the turf away to give you a traffic island [ ;)] around the tree, and put an edging round that to give you a proper edge for cutting the grass, you can then improve the cleared area as the others describe with compost etc. Next year you'll be able to plant some things directly into that, as the soil will be much better.  :)
    Alternatively, you could have some purpose built planters made to sit around the circular edge, and just fill those for planting into, and just keep the immediate area round the tree clear,  apart from mulching. The drawback of that is that it's harder to make suitable planters for circle. Easier with straight lines.
    I suppose if you had square ones,  and about 8 to 10 of them, they could be arranged in a circle of sorts.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • Theresa May NotTheresa May Not Posts: 109
    Nice idea their fairygirl! I see what you mean about squares in a circle too! I shall have a go and report back.
    (alternatively i could take a tent and move into a traffic island!😀)
  • Theresa May NotTheresa May Not Posts: 109
    Infact i could use that original circle for the edging i guess
  • MikeOxgreenMikeOxgreen Posts: 812
    You need to be more specific about 'rock hard' and work with that.
    Why is it rock hard? Find out why and either improve it or put plants in which will grow there - if there is actually something wrong with it. The further you raise plants up away from the ground the more chance they have of drying out so you'll have to keep up with watering them.
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    edited June 2022
    You could also use rectangular planters to make a square!!  Easier to mow round than a circle and the photinia won't mind being in a circle or a square as long as you water it and mulch it.

    To improve the soil you'll need to mulch now, once well watered, and every autumn so the soil organisms can work the goodness into the soil over winter.  Maybe put some taller spring bulbs in next autumn before mulching.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
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