We just moved in last July. This yard doesn't have proper drainage so after being here a bit and watching how things go we're in the process of getting the back yard re graded, putting in some sunbeds and cutting some of the shade beds back a bit to make up for taking some of lawn out in other areas. While we're at it, we decided to scrape off the bermuda and put in St Augustine.
We're also redoing all the gutters on the back of the house to make the roof water drain to the sides and then out front, that should also help the drainage in the back.

Once that is all done, then I start the work on building up the soil in all the beds.
I plan on bringing in truckloads of horse poop and stall cleanings. That did wonders for my beds at the other house. Its lots of work, but it really pays off.

Hey, Mel, I have a couple of stalls that need mucking......just a thought !!!! You will probably have to fight JD off though.

I will get to the mucking as soon as grading and bed layout is done.

JD won't be a problem. I'm sure a bass boat (or a hummer sighting) can distract him long enough for me to get all I need. :)

You are so right ..... very easily distracted by hummers....

melva,

How do you plan on scraping up the burmuda? I'm needing to do the same?

Bluelake,

Its not going to be easy. In the lawn area, we're going to get a sod cutter and scrape it out. Then the dirt will be moved around and lots of it hauled off. Soon as that is done we lay down sod and over time the St Augustine will take hold and the Bermuda will go away.

In the areas where the flower beds will go I'll have to dig down and remove a lot of dirt, then do the lasagna compost method.
I've been saving cardboard and newspaper since the move.. I'll lay down as thick a layer as I can manage to put down. Then some good dirt and lots of compost, stall muckings and what ever else I can get my hands on. I'd prefer to use lots of grass clippings if I can find them, but that won't be until Mayish... when people start cutting their grass again.

There might be some Bermuda eventually poke up in the flower beds but, I'll deal with that if and when it happens...use round up for that. :)

Hey Bluelake... I just thought of something else...

Take a look at the thread over in the gallery called:
RoundUp in the yard
it should be in the first several posts over there. This is part 2 of the story... part 1 is gone into never never land, but it was quite funny with (ahem) "people" photo shopping all kinds of things into the pictures of JD's yard.

Do a search for 'round up in the yard' and you will see several good threads about killing off nasty Bermuda grass, and some weeds and how to build up flower beds after killing everything off.

We chopped all of our fallen oak leaves with the mulching mower and layered them under the mulch a couple of months ago. We'll probably pull that back in the spring and use regular compost on the special plants, then pull the mulch back in place. Yesterday was so warm and nice, we used the last of our big pile of mulch!

Pam

Melvalena,
Good luck with your new yard, and with your new flowerbeds. Be sure to post a picture when they get going so we can all turn green with envy!
Since you are having the guttering replaced, have you thought of having a downspout or two empty into a large barrel? You can use the rainwater during our dry months (pick one, pick any month!) on your new flowerbeds. We have three so far, and that is what kept our vegetable and flower gardens going last summer.
If you run out of horse manure, we have an abundance of cow manure around here, and with the politicking season coming on, there will be a lot more!

Yeah, but that is the kind that does NOT do well in the garden, well, except to keep me out there so I don't have to listen to it !!!

haha! all sh*t isn't equal. :)

Horse manure can be applied directly to the beds and around plants. Cow manure has to be aged/composted. It will burn or kill your plants if it isn't. And the political sh*t isn't good for nothing.

I have lots of before shots and will be taking during and after shots of the progress. I'm sure this project will be like all my others. It will start off one direction and then morph into something totally different. :)

We've discussed collecting rain water and have decided against it. Its the storing it that's a problem. To get enough of it to make it worth it, would take an awfully huge container,and where do we put that? Not to mention our aversion to mosquitoes. :)

Oh the topic of rainwater harvesting. My DH put these 250 gallon containers in for some friends. They feed a drip emitter system for their garden. Totally closed (the top entry is screened) so no mosquitoes. Granted, the exterior is rough, but I don't see why they couldn't be covered with cedar fencing or even siding.

They do look ok there... but my hubby would never go for it --neither would the HOA. Maybe one day, if we ever get that place out in the country we could do something like that..

I see your point and I'm sorry that I stepped on your thread. I guess that they are unsightly. That yard is in the country and they have no HOAs to worry about.

Pam!!
You have nothing to be sorry for! Threads creep.. and morph.. :)

besides, its not 'my' thread anyway. :)

as water storage goes, I don't think they look all that bad.. but I know it would never fly here. :)

Melva, be very careful about putting grass clippings in your flowerbed -- you could inadvertantly be putting Bermuda seed down. Make sure the grass clippings are St Aug only (no weed seeds, no Bermuda). A cheap alternative is to use Alfalfa pellets.

Vannie, I started my flowerbed prep early in the winter. I put down a lot of used Starbucks coffeegrounds, covered with mulch, and left it to sit all winter long.

Carla in Rowlett

I've used grass clippings in the past for killing off grass and building up flower beds.. didn't care what kind they were or where they came from. I think the heat generated by them composting killed of whatever seeds might have been there.

I don't expect to see much in the way of grass clippings for at least 2 or 3 more months though. Maybe some winter rye clippings if I'm lucky.