Buying Soil for Landscaping: 4 Things to Consider
If you have decided to landscape your garden, one thing you will need is soil in which you can plant new trees and bushes. Soil not only anchors plants and trees in place, but it also provides vital nutrients. Below is a guide which will help you to get the most out of the soil that you use as part of your landscaping project.
Buying Fresh Soil
When purchasing topsoil, you should only choose soil types which are fresh. It is important to remember that soil is a living organism that will interact with the things you plant in it. However, if the soil is stored for a long time, it will begin to lose its vitality as the microbes within it begin to die and the soil will dry out, which will affect your ability to grow things in it.
Calculating the Right Quantity of Soil
Once you have found the right type of soil, you will need to calculate the volume you require. The amount of soil you will need will depend on the existing type of soil structures and if this can be turned over and used for productive planting. You will need to carry out a survey to establish the type of soil which is present on the ground you wish to plant on.
Layering the Soil
Once you have purchased fresh soil, you should avoid using machinery to compact it. It is very important that oxygen and water can pass through the soil so that any organic matter trapped within it can begin to break down and provide the nutrition needed by the plants and trees which are growing in it. When laying new soil, you should layer it by using a spade to spread it on the area you wish to cover and then raking it.
Maintenance of the Soil
When the soil has bedded down, if you want it to maintain its potency, you will need to carry out regular maintenance. The reason you need to occasionally give the soil some love and attention is because it can only contain a certain amount of the nutrients which plants need to grow. As the plants and trees grow, they use up these nutrients which means it needs to be replaced. You will periodically need to add fertilisers to the soil to replenish the level of nutrients.
If you would like further advice about buying and laying soil, contact a soil supplier.