It's amazing how many unforseen obstacles are encountered when starting a new garden! Just when you find an answer, another problem pops up.
We started our first year garden. Since nothing (but grass and weeds) had grown in most planned beds, we knew we had to amend the soil. With an abundant supply of top soil, manure and peat moss, and many plants arriving in a week, we started working on the beds this past week end.
Mind you, we are starting small. My husband and I love gardening and plan on adding to our garden in the coming years. It will be a continual project for us.
We decided where we wanted to start and my husband began loosening the native soil by digging down a full shovel blade in depth(about 14"). Well, at least, he tried to! We have several trees in our yard. A few large buttonwoods and several palm trees. These trees provide partial shade to most of our yard and we are dealing with that by getting plants that will grow well in those light conditions. But he had considerable difficulty just trying to turn the soil over because of all the tree roots. Little tree roots; medium roots; very large roots!
Our plan is to continue digging down the 14" and turning the soil; pulling out as many of the roots as we can(cutting the larger roots with loppers)then, adding peat moss to the native soil and mixing it in. Then, we will add 3" - 4" of top soil mixed with some manure over the top. After we put the plants in, we will spread some peat.
The plant I got that needs to go down the furthest are my Lilies. We are also getting in Daylilies, Liatris, Chinese Lanterns, Azalea, and Beacon Silver. Will the roots that we don't get out of the under-lying soil be a problem for the roots of the plants we are putting in? Is there a better answer to getting rid of all the tree roots? Is there anything else we can do to prepare the beds?
Any response will be much appreciated.
Problem with tree roots
Congrats on your new project. I would worry about the damage done to the trees. This time of year would be best to tear at them, I suppose. Some trees will not suffer at all, others will be slowed down badly. The cut parts open the trees to infection. Some palms cannot branch off of damaged roots, and these will die back to the trunk. (Sabals in particular, I understand) Some of those plants you plan on may not perform well if there is shade as well.
For planting things under trees, there are seveal bullets:
>Top-dress for the main-source amendment. Thin but regularly, letting it mix itself. Too thick a layer can suffocate tree roots.
>Avoid damaging too much root area at once, to let the plant regrow into that space. Most tree roots are in the top few inches. A shade garden isn't a shade garden if the tree dies.
>Start small with new plants. They need smaller holes and can establish into the surrounding already occupied soil.
>Competitive plants. Select deep-rooted and vigourous plant types that can successfully hold their own against the efficient and powerful tree roots in competition for nutrients.
>One small area at a time. Amend and plant one spot, let it sit, (and let the tree recover) then amend another spot, until after a few seasons, all of the area is done.
If the flowers are priority over the trees, then judiciously and properly prune the trees to reduce their size (which matches the size of their root system.)
Good luck on your new beds, I think they will please you to no end.
Hope this helps, and isn't too rough.
K. James
You could use Raised beds understanding that the roots of the trees under them will be aggravated but I have covered many established conifers here with no untoward results. You beds should not cover over 10% of the root area of the tree so if the trees are small you will not want to cover them with raised beds. Other sources of opportunity are man made devices like old manure spreaders, wagons etc. that sit up on wheels would work wonderfully. Like JamesCo says small bushes and other plantings can be placed gradually as the garden grows. This bed is built over a ponderosa pine root pattern.
Very pretty, Soferdig!
I didn't explain well enough, I guess. The trees I'm referring to are HUGE buttonwood trees that are very common in FL. I love the palms and won't be doing any planting near their root system. And I don't think the roots I'm digging up from the buttonwoods will even be felt by those huge trees.
I have purchased trees that will do well in partial shade and they are all small. I've thought of raised beds but I have my poor (retired) husband doing so much for me, I hate to ask him to do the raised beds.
Most of the beds I'm putting in are not that close to the trees but they will be shaded by the branches. But the main bed (where I want to put my Daylilies) is close to the trellis which is not that far from on large tree.
I'm willing to work alnong with Mother Nature! I think JamesCO answered one question...that if the lants are small, they will grow in among the tree roots and since I will be keeping them well fed, there shouldn't be much competition for nutrients.
Thank you, both, very much.