Question

HELP NEEDED.  Garden was covered in gravel and membrane sheet for years and heavy clay soil underneath which has now been compacted over the years.HELP NEEDED. Garden was covered in gravel and membrane sheet for years and heavy clay soil underneath which has now been compacted over the years. Following online advice the plan is to turn over the top 10-15cm of clay soil, add gypsum and compost and then top soil, compact and have a lawn. Ground is horrendous and digging by hand. Lumps are the size of footballs in places. Any advice, knowledge or anyone with a rotavator?  

Answer 1

Easier hiring a rotivator

Answer 2

I'm pretty much in the same position im digging the bottom end of my garden to put grass seed down I've ordered some top soil to come next week

Comments

@apiarian248 that looks a bigger area than mine mate. Good luck.  

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@chancechancel66 it's tough going with every dig with the fork you find bricks and concrete

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@apiarian248 I'm finding bits of metal, plant pots, huge chunks of flint. Bloody builders just backfilled when they made the houses. B

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@chancechancel66 yep we have found alsorts even a gold 22 carrot ring

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@apiarian248 I found a 1978 2p today.  

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@chancechancel66 year I was born  

Answer 3

Dig the top part out with the fork and then let it dry a bit. Then go through it with a rotivator

Comments

@lynsey90 that's my plan. Pour all the compost and soil and gypsum and rotavate it all in

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@chancechancel66 yep. Lileninsay let it dry out. I did mine when the soil was still wet and it was a muddy disaster

Answer 4

Watching as im am doing the exact same! Had a few hours turning over today!  

Comments

@dupre9 it's a killer!  

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@chancechancel66 iy most certainly is mate  

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Tip for the stones is a good stiff broom. I found it a lot easier to the stones in to small piles and then shovel them up

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@chancechancel66 did you have any isue with water? I had to dig up some old posts that had been concreted in the ground and was about 5" deep with water

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@dupre9 our garden is on a slant so the drainage isn't that bad. I haven't got to the bottom of the slant yet but considering it's rained once near me on two weeks and I'm having to water the surface cos I can't get the fork in the ground. About 3 inches down the clay is wet enough to mould in your hands.  

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@chancechancel66 ah im flat and the houses behind me are higher up so i get there run offs too

Answer 5

I saw this on an early post which I saved for a friend .  

Comments

@chancellorsville cheers Jean. Have seen this. Does it actually work?  

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@chancechancel66 Sorry not actually had to use myself just saved info for a friend . They have not tried it yet so can’t say . As you can see the person who made the post thought it was brill .  

Answer 6

Can hire a rotorvator for £50 a day. You’d get that done in 2 hours max!  

Comments

@seasickness9426 do you deliver and pick up?  

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I don’t hire them out I was trying to say that’s the going rate

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Oh ok. Yeah it's just finding one. Have spent to a couple of local suppliers and they are either all hired out or ridiculously expensive. Some want £100 a day.  

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@chancechancel66 try gardeners local to your area. Some might not be interested because they’d want the whole job but for someone just starting out they can probably do it for you for around £40-£50

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@chancechancel66 That's dear I can hire a big diesel one for £50 a day and have an area of rust size rotovated and preped out in 2 hours no problem take 10 minutes to rotovate it

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@cuirbouilli it's extremely expensive. Some companies want £100 deposit plus like £70 a day. Even found a local gardener who wanted £100 cash to do it. It's ridiculous.  

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@chancechancel66 To be fair I'd want £100 minimum just to rotovate it. Full prep and rotovate it £200 minimum and I'm a Gardner too.  

Answer 7

Rotovate it once then add gypsum, sharp sand, compost rotovate in to a fine tilth rake level add topsoil rake level, penguin walk rake level then turf.  

Answer 8

I raked all the large bits . bagged and took to tip. put top soil on then used a roller them turfed it . my soil realy bad too

Comments

@arnuad How long has that been down?