How much top soil.

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salaried

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Hi, I have so far bought some sleepers and had them cut down to 24 inch pieces, I have buried them 6 inches underground with 18 inches showing above ground side by side and screwed together, the wall of sleepers is 24 inches from the hedge. My next job is to fill the area before I buy the plants. The area in question if you could picture it is 18 inches high x 24 inches back to front and 12 feet long, What I would like to know is do I need to fill the whole area with top soil and if so would it be expensive to do or could I fill the area with earth and then some top soil, Any help appreciated thank you.
 
It depends! Most plants grow in the first 5 -10 inches, few reach much beyond that. And top soil,whilst essential, is part of a good growing enviornment. Imagine a layer of 18 "". Max plant root systems will generally be around 12 inches max. You could fill 1st 6 inches with earth, and remainder with a mix of well-rotted manure and topsoil layer at a ratio of say 80% topsoil 20% manure.

Or, you could mix well rotted manure with sand ( good for carrots/onions/lettuce etc ratio of sand around 5-10%) and top soil. Bear in mind two other things. You will need an inch or so "edge" to allow for watering and avoid overspill. You will also want to have an inch or so to add manure at winter-time to rot in.
 
The grass that I have growing in my front garden has always been bad. I have wasted money feeding it every year, getting rid of moss etc. I have thought of digging the whole thing up and putting down new top soil on the top. Would 6" to 12" of topsoil be enough. Or as Salaried thought I was going to dig down 2', Re-use the soil that I have taken out mixed with last years grass cuttings plus last years garden leaves mixed with a few bags of shop bought compost...then I wouldn't have to buy in expensive topsoil?
 
Grass grows in the 1st 5/6 cm of soil. This is the minimum depth of topsoil. needed. I would avoid using old grass cuttings and leaves, unless they are almost pure compost. If the lawn area is sunny, topsoil alone should be used. If it is shady, mix in 5-10% sand. Select a good quality seed appropriate for area and use. ie grade 1 = golfgreen standard, grade 3/4 hardwearing and good if you have kids or pets.

Preparation, good soil & good seed are 99% of good lawns. Ground should be worked to a fine tilth, firmed, lightly raked, firmed again and levelled.
 
I have used the golf green standard of grass seed in the past but I found that unless it is watered regularly it goes very bad very quickly in sunny weather. I was actually thinking of getting the grass that you see it Spanaish municipal parks. It has a thick leaf?
 

I know this type, but not the name of it. It probably is adapted to high heat and would do poorly here, as it's often damp and cold. Grasses are mixes of various seeds in different proportions. Get one appropriate to Ireland and your needs is the best idea. A tougher grade 3 grass will withstand a fair amount of abuse. But there are loads of options in all the hardwares like woodies etc.
 
Horusd, Thanks for your reply to the above post. It is still a work in progress and I will follow your advice, I dont want to do this job in half measures so again thanks for going to the trouble of letting me know what I need, Regards Salaried.
 
Hi Salaried. Since we last spoke, I was told that one ton of topsoil will raise around 25 square yards by one inch. That bit of information may come in handy when you're deciding on quantity.
 
Brilliant Lex, I will be getting some next week and could not for the life of me calculate how much to order for the lawn area, I have it almost dug out now and need the topsoil for next weekend so thanks a lot for the easy way to calculate it, Cheers Salaried.
 
salaried, you probably know this already, but make sure you have good drainage under the topsoil, and make sure it's stable; ie won't sink etc. Level it carefully, water it, and leave it for a few days.
 
Thanks Horusd, How can you be sure you have good drainage, Is it good enough to spread builders sand before putting down the topsoil. Sorry for all the questions but I would like to get it right and not have to redo the whole thing again, Cheers Salaried
 

No problem. I would avoid builders sand and use horticulural instead. But you mightn't need to do this. Just include stones (if you have some from your excavations!) as a thin layer or even better, gravel. What you want to achieve is a balance between free-drainage and an ability to retain enough water for plants. You don't want too much drainage or too little. A thin gravel layer and good soil should achieve this.
 
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