Dug down about 8" and keep hitting rock shelf, white rock.
New to Texas so not use to this.
Plan on planting some bushes & shrubs so is about 8" of soil enough for the plants.
Georgetown near Austin

A limestone shelf, maybe. Perhaps relocate further southeast toward Manor and find a spot with deeper soil. Just kidding. I used to live west of Austin and run into that. I poked around until I found a crevice in the rocks, but that's not going to work all the time. I'm not sure how the landscapers handle the problem. 8" isn't going to be enough for a lot of plants though many are adept at finding those crevices on their own.

Maybe I can get @Esperanza to chime in here with a more valid answer. I think she might deal with the same situation a lot in her location.

I could raise beds but prefer everything ground level. I dug 3 test holes and found the same condition. I was thinking it was limestone as you said. I chipped some of it out with a digging bar but seems fairly thick .

Sure sounds like you have a limestone shelf under the topsoil. They can be huge and thick. How do your neighbors plants look?

I'm on a limestone hill. I buy things in 4 inch pots whenever possible. For one gallons, when it is dry, try watering the area well every day for a few days before digging. That will soften it just a touch but it helps.

I've never tried bigger than a one gallon pot. If I can't dig deep enough, I mound storebought dirt around the base of the top, same level as the original soil in the pot - where it sticks up above soil level) then mound an outer circle further out - creating a donut shape. I do the donut no matter what to catch water around the plant, but away from the base or trunk.

It's amazing, but things will grow in the stuff. Be sure when you dig a hole to chip the interior sides of it. Sometimes when you dig, it creates slick inner walls. If you can create little breaks in those walls it supposedly makes it easier for the roots to venture out.

Also, it's always a good idea to plant droughty, alkaline loving things.

And you can always rent a jack hammer.

I agree with Iluvtobake on choosing hardy native type plants and starting out with smaller sized plants. For your shrubs you can cut the root ball into four sections and splay them out. A lot of the times the roots in the pot are mostly circling the sides of the pot and the inner area dirt can be removed. I live on top of a huge rock and the only soil is what I have brought in. I use mostly native and adaptive plants for my garden and use containers on my deck for my fun plants that require better care than my rocky hillside offers.
Welcome to Texas.

We live in west Austin and like Esperanza, we're on limestone. You learn what will grow there and what will slip away when your potting soil seeps into the rock crevices.

Wow!

This photo was from the highway, Loop 360, but our "cliff" is nearly the same.

Great example photo Sandi! Is that off of 360?

Yes, the cliff behind us was "created" with dynamite. Actually, so were the cliffs along 360 on the other side of the lake.

Awesome wall of rock! I'm amazed the rock climbers aren't scaling it.

@pod When we have a lot of rain, some of those rocks loosen and fall onto the highway...and the occasional car.

Thanks for the advice, just moved here so the limestone is a surprise.

Bubbles said:@pod When we have a lot of rain, some of those rocks loosen and fall onto the highway...and the occasional car.

Ouch... Not a wall to rock climb I guess. Not that I would anyway...

@herrwood, the limestone would be an adjustment for me also. I do hope you are able to work around it.

@herrwood Not to discourage you, I just wanted you to know that the limestone may be deeper than you expected.

I can't put a shovel anywhere in my yard without hitting limestone rocks of various sizes. Most 2-5 inches, but some nearly 20" inches.

I think the builders just put a thin layer of fill dirt over the rock and clay and then planted lawn. I'm trying to add organic matter to add to the soil, and If I could, I would have a truckload of topsoil brought in.

Came as a huge surprise to me as well, since I came from the Sacramento valley and we had clay, but also a lot of old river bottom soil from floods before the dams were built.

Definitely an adjustment, but "one wheel barrow at a time" and eventually my lawn will be healthier.

I might have a little limestone. Why not? I've got everything else. Not long after I bought my house I started to notice little shards of glass here and there. Asked a neighbor about it and he laughed. Said the builders used all kinds of junk as fill. I've actually got a bottle collection of small, intact bottles that have surfaced after heavy rains. Just got another itty bitty one from our recent storm.

Was going to post a picture of my collection but maybe I deleted it. Still waiting for a magic lantern or a pot of gold.

My neighbor just dug up a part of their front yard to expand their sidewalk. They found lots of beer cans.

Found it.

Here's the collection minus the 'new' bottle:



Here's my new find:



And size comparison, for what it's worth: