what do you think of this idea?m

15 years ago

Okay, so I have this large mulched area in the front of the house(used to be all grass/weeds). I hit it hard w/ weed and grass killer, put down weed fabric and 3-4 inches of mulch.

In the middle of this large mulched area (60' x 40')is a laurel oak (about 25 yrs old)and since this area faces south, it gets alot of sun,though shaded by laurel oak around noon. The oak has been "limbed up" over the years, because there is a large space(at least 8' close to the trunk and higher up further out)under this oak vertically.

I was thinking of just getting a truckload of soil/compost from St Pete Sanitation dept(it's that black stuff they give out for free) and making some raised beds ON TOP OF THE MULCH. I don't want to mess with anything under the mulch because I sprayed and the roots of the tree and the soil is not good anyway,etc.

Does this make any sense? It just is this big open mulch area and I feel I need to fill it but not sure how.

HOw thick of a layer of soil/compost would I have to lay down to put in some nice perennials? would they hold well, do you think, over the mulch?

Since this area gets so much sun, I have a strong feeling that if I leave this mulch with no plantings, it will be no time before weed seeds start taking up root ON the mulch.

Any ideas other than this one would also be welcome!

thanks! teeka

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Comments (8)

katkin_gw
15 years ago
I would becareful of how much of a raised bed you try to do as you might kill the tree.

Maybe you could just add some bromeliads. Dig a hole through the fabric add some composted manure and plant the bromeliad. You could dig out the soil for any thing you want to plant and replace it with better soil, just hole by hole.

Or put a bench and some potted plants. Maybe a fountain or some other hardscape.
chuckorlando
15 years ago
Dont do it.If you place soil or even to much mulch over a trees trunk you can kill the tree or at the very least cause the trees roots to grow up and into the soil.Laurals are known for their weeker roots(think charlie)so I think it best not to mess with it.I would rake back the mulch and get out some of or as much of the dirt as possible.Then take yourr compost and regrade it making sure not to bring the grade any higher than 1in. higher than it use to be.Use only shallow roted plants close to the tree if you plant.You dont want the plants to steal the water and nutrients from the tree or the other way around.Lets say you wanted to use azaelas around the tree with a lower perenial boarder,you could take 4 7gal. pots and put you woodies in them then use the perenials in front of the pots to give it a planted look.Pay attention to growth specs of any plants.
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imatallun
15 years ago
Teeka, I think you're going to Ricky's swap, right? If you want some broms and/or agave century plants to go in that mulched area, let me know. I think all of my ground orchids are spoken for, but I could perhaps get some from neighbors...

These plants will make an interesting addition and will probably tolerate the weed kill, especially if you follow Katkin's planting advice. And I don't think these specimens will steal the water or nutrients like Chuck mentioned.
babalu_aye
15 years ago
Teeka, I too have seen large trees killed by having soil piled up over their root systems.

I've got a big laurel oak that I'm training a monstera philodendron to climb, with assorted bromeliads planted in the mulched area around it. I figure the monstera will add some vertical interest, and the different sized/colored broms will keep it from being monotonous.
manature
15 years ago
I agree that you will have to be VERY careful with what you put under or against your tree. Even a little bit of extra soil can bring the tree down in a few years. I would suggest waiting a bit and talking over your plan with lots of folks, and considering all options before doing anything really drastic. It will be worth it to go slow and not do anything you can't fix later.

Marcia
tomkaren
15 years ago
My 2 cents for what it is worth, Be careful of the compost from a landfill. The last I got was full and I mean full of weed seeds. what a mess.
fawnridge (Ricky)
15 years ago
As the others have said, don't cover the roots of the tree. Since you've already killed the grass and weeds and covered the area with mulch, you can just pull back the mulch and dig holes without worry. Or you can fill the area with bromeliads as has been suggested and if you remind me, I can harvest a bunch of them when you get here to get get you started.
teeka0801(7aNoVa)
Original Author
15 years ago
Unfortunately, I can't make it to the swap, too far away for me, but I appreciate all the bromeliads offered!

I will reconsider my plan now, not do the covering on top of the roots and definitely not get the compost from the landfill, I definitely DO NOT want any more issues w/ new weeds!

I don't have any bromeliads so I'll have to start studying up on them!

Maybe I'll go for some containers(should I worry about people stealing them off a front yard?) and I love the idea of a water feature, but can't figure out how I'd plug it in that far away from the outlet...

You got me thinking of some other things, like a nice bench(I saw a cool bamboo bench on the Gardening by the Yard show this weekend) and I was thinking of a hanging basket maybe? what would do well in shade/some sun in a basket?

thanks everyone, you are awesome! teeka

what do you think of this idea?m

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katkin_gw

chuckorlando

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what do you think of this idea?m

Comments (8)

katkin_gw

chuckorlando

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