thank you! I will check out the other forums you mentioned. I did get some great advice on plant choices from someone in the midwest regional forum. I don't know how to insert a picture directly into this post, but I'll try the URL link below. Maybe that will help with any suggestions on where the raised bed should begin and end, since right now it abuts the sidewalk. I'm stumped about what to do on either side of the front porch step, since at some point we'll be adding a railing and replacing the concrete. The bed is against the house, runs the whole length of the house and to the porch, with the sidewalk breaking it. I'm actually not sure how to handle the part where it meets the sidewalk, I guess I will have to push it back, since I'm not sure I'd want the bricks right up to the walk. I have to say I did search a lot last year for info on this type of raised bed with the drainage issue in mind - my paranoia about directing water down around the foundation and having mold problems - we already get a musty smell in the basement in warmer weather, despite the dehumidifier I run 24/7. I was not able to find anything addressing that issue - we have a brick house with a flagstone facade on the front all the way to the ground, and I was unsure about banking dirt up higher against the house just because of the moisture/drainage concern. Possibly my concerns are unfounded. My other lingering question is - aside from the maple, which will probably get moved (cute, but way too small it's to the right of the porch), what about the other plants, like the grasses and perennials, in terms of whether they have to be removed for this project, or can I just add more soil around them, considering there has been some erosion and heaving, anyway? Here is a link that might be useful:

Well, sometimes you can only do the task at the wrong time; you just have to know what the risks are so you can mitigate them. If you decide to do it now, which I agree is less than ideal, and to lift the plants, which I agree would be ideal, then it is like planting a new bed, and the plants will not be established for summer so you will have to water a lot to get them through. If you don't lift the plants, you will lose some of them if not all; it depends on which ones they are. Some will not be bothered at all, but their growth may be altered. Let's take hydrangeas, which root quite well from the stem and so likely won't rot. So even if you kill off their original roots by piling on the soil, chances are at least some of the stems can form new roots and your bush, or what appears to be your bush but is really cuttings from it, will survive. But the story may be different for any grafted shrubs, say Japanese maples or a contorted filbert, and may be different still for shrubs prone to suckering. In perennials, some will succeed in growing through the additional soil, others not. Or peonies, for example, will grow but not flower if they are planted too deep. If you do keep the new dirt pulled back from the plants, you can make little rock wells around each plant you won't have the dirt rotting the stems, but it won't quite be the look of the full hilly beds you want. Life is a series of compromises! Question is which ones you want to make here. KarinL

One has to be careful around established trees, since most do not do well if you suddenly add 3" of soil on top of their root system. However, 3" - 6" of coarse organic mulch will gradually decompose - raising the general level of the bed, while not upsetting the tree (keep the mulch at least 6" away from the trunk). By adding more mulch every year, you could have the height raised about an inch per year. Vertivert's right about lifting the bulbs, although most common bulbs will adapt to a gradual depth change, just being slightly later to bloom, and not multiplying as rapidly. Another thought is to deeply edge the bed [like a miniature drainage ditch], although you do want to arrange the mini-ditch so the water will run off, away from the bed. A local friend took care of his problem by making a pebble-filled dry stream wander through the wet area. I don't remember the details other than that he dug a trench and filled it with very coarse rocks; topping with white gravel and local stones; it wanders more or less diagonally across a wet area and ends at the edge of a stream. He planted bulbs, hostas, and various grasses along the edges... very realistic. What I especially admire is his little Japanese-style bridge that crosses the 'stream' from the edge of the lawn into the shady, moist area. Fair to note, though, that he spent about 3 years doing all that.

i'm in the same boat. i have several beds that have been dug out and refilled with a mix of what was there and a ton of compost. i just add a layer of compost every year, not wanting to dig up any old seeds, and i get better results every year so it must be working. i had much more luck than i thought i would with straw bale gardening for my viney things like squash and pumpkin and other thing like tomatoes and peppers. i did not try flowers but have seen some amazing photos of flowered covered bales, so i know it works with annuals. i was encouraged enough to want to do it again this year, but i am buying my bales the next time the snow melts. it took much longer than i thought to get them ready to plant, longer than directions said, but despite the late start i had decent results. and the best thing is it just breaks down and after a few years you have a nice bed. worth looking into.