how do ya make the nice small hills?


  #1  
Old 06-19-01, 02:19 PM
cmb60631
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I am trying to make small hills, slopes, etc. in my garden to place various small plants. I see them all over in Chicago they aren't very extreme, just about 45 degrees and less.

How do you keep the soil from wasting down to the bottom? I tried balck landscape fabric under the top soil, but with the hot summer sun, some of my plants burned.

Cedar mulch kind of does it but only on a very small long slope.

Any suggestions?
 
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Old 06-19-01, 08:02 PM
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cmb60631,
There's really not much advantage planting in a 'hilled'
configuration, unless you're hilling potatoes. You were right, the water washes away from smaller plants' roots. I actually gp the other way and circle some of my veggies with a small trench, so as to catch more water for the plant.
What you may want to do is try a raised bed and surround the plantings with some type of wooden or rock border.
fred
 
  #3  
Old 06-19-01, 09:09 PM
Gami
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Hi cmb,

What you are talking about is a berm. I've had the same question. How do they keep the soil from washing away? Our yard slopes, and I've had trouble with mulch washing down the hill in newly planted areas and my veggie garden doing the same thing.

I agree with Fred. I recently found a couple of interesting sites on making raised beds -
http://www.muextension.missouri.edu/...ort/g06985.htm (how to)
http://www.iocc.com/~twash/raisedbeds.html

Gami
 
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Old 06-20-01, 04:15 AM
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If you had a mulched only ares that the rain was washing the mulch down, you could use some type of nylon netting, tacked into the ground. Spread a light mulch, cover with net and finish mulching over. I've seen VDOT use one that is configured like chicken wire. But if you plan on moving plants in and out of the slope, that presents another problem.
fred
 
 

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