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 GMC Sierra 3500 2003 GMC 3500HD Landscape Dump Bed Work horse in great condition $7,600.83 (3 Bids) Time Remaining: 16h 23m Buy It Now for only: $12,000.00 |
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Muck Truck GXV Heavy-Duty 6-Cubic-Foot 550-Pound Capacity 160cc Honda GXV 4WD Gas-Powered Self Propelled Dumping Wheelbarrow (CARB Compliant)
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DescriptionThe Muck-Truck Mini Pedestrian Dumper is a hauler and dumper that's simple to operate and maintain and yet durable enough for commercial use. Designed for landscaping, gardening, construction, and more, the Mini Pedestrian Dumper features a small profile for easy maneuverability, a powerful Honda engine and large tires for driving over difficult terrain, and a wide range of accessories to fit your needs... |
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Tricam GOR108-SC Gorilla Carts 1,000-Pound-Capacity Dumping Cart
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DescriptionIdeal for lawn and garden projects, landscaping or yard work. Quick-release dumping mechanism allows for balanced and easy dumping of loads up to 400 lbs. Patented one step pin removal quickly converts the pull handle to a trailer hitch to haul the cart behind your lawn tractor and ATV... |
Anytime that I see a bare stretch of dirt or an ugly patch of lawn, I have an itch to improve the area by transforming it into a landscape bed. Strangely, this itch occurs whether or not the lawn is mine. To date, thankfully, I have yet to trespass to beautify someone else's yard.
In my own yard, one of my favorite things to do is to create a new landscape bed. In most cases, the area selected is covered by grass. To many people, this may present a challenge too cumbersome to take on. I have found that there are many people who do not like the idea of "killing grass". To them, "killing grass" means having to use harmful chemicals. This does have credence, as most products used to kill grass and weeds are harmful to people and pets. The purpose of this article is to detail a simple process that will allow anyone to create a landscape bed without having to use any chemicals.
The first step to creating a landscape bed is to identify the area to be transformed. This is important because you will be covering this entire area in step two. In my experience, the best way to identify the area that you want to convert to a bed is to visualize what you want the bed to look like when you are finished. What shape do you want it: square, rectangular, or curved? Will you include plant material in the bed? If so, what soil, water, and light conditions do the plants require? It is very important to consider these requirements before creating your bed. Will the bed be created without plants simply to improve poor drainage or to provide foot traffic and will only include mulch, stones, or other material? I have created many landscape beds for these purposes, and they have served me well.
After you have decided the purpose for your bed and have selected the site, you will go to step two: remove the existing grass, weeds, or other plant material. To me, the safest, easiest, and most long lasting way to remove the existing plant material is to cover the area of your new bed with a material that will block out the sun and water and will create enough heat to kill all existing plant life. This material can be the standard weed block sold at any home improvement store. However, this material is expensive. I have used polypropylene painter's tarp very effectively. This is a very inexpensive option which can be reused, as you will find out in step four. After you cover the new bed area with whatever material you choose to use, be sure to weigh it down temporarily with rocks or bricks so that the wind doesn't blow it off of the bed area. Step three will eliminate the need for the rocks or bricks, so this is a temporary procedure.
You now have your new bed covered with material and weighed down with rocks or bricks. The tough part is over, and you are ready for step three. You will now cover the material, weed block or polypropylene, with shredded bark mulch or rocks, depending on what purpose your bed will serve. If you will be placing plant material in the bed, use shredded bark mulch. It your bed's purpose is to improve poor drainage or to provide foot traffic, bark mulch or rocks work fine.
If your bed will eventually include plants, you will need to wait a while, three to four weeks, for the existing plant material to die before you include plants in the soil. In the interim, to make your bare bed more aesthetically pleasing, I suggest that you place some containers in the bed planted with some colorful plant material. Remember: it is much more effective to stick to one or two color themes than to have a rainbow of colors, especially when gardening in containers. For example, yellow and purple look fantastic together, much more so than a bunch of plant colors that would rival a Crayola box.
Step four is the fun part. After the previously existing plant material has died, you will need to remove the polypropylene tarp so that the plants can receive water and sun light. The best way to do this is to push back some of the top covering, bark mulch in this case, and pull the tarp out of your bed. You may now reuse the tarp for your next bed project! You will probably have some tidying up to do afterwards. However, it is well worth it, now that your bed is grass and weed free and ready for all of the plants that you want to add. If you are creating a bed that will not include plant material, it is alright to leave your weed block/polypropylene in the bed; there is no need to remove it.
Creating landscape beds can be fun and really worthwhile, as long as you know that it is not as daunting to do as you once thought. Happy gardening!
Scott is a happily married father of 6 (5 girls and 1 boy). He is an avid sports fan and spends time studying and writing about the online community. You can visit his most recent work at http://www.squidoo.com/growingblueberriesathome