PeachLily said:Oh thank you!
I have timbers two deep and it is 3 feet by 30 feet.
It's 50% peat and 50% clay/sand right now.
I can build it up. That's what I will do with your very helpful suggestions.
I spent all that money...but I'm spending more to get it right.
I have GOT to have this garden!
Now then, I can also bury scraps and add the conditioner/compost from Lowes...
I'll think about it, but I'm either digging it all out or I'm building up!
Thank you for your help!
<My mileage always "varies"!!
I totally missed the b-day thing in your first post. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
If you'd like a b-day gift, I have a daylily that's on your want-list. Figure out which one it is and t-mail me, and I'll send you a DF of it. (all I remember is that it's peach, and last time I looked, you and I were the only 2 with it on a list)
Is the bed landscape timbers? Which means it's at most 8 inches high? I'd dig it out and start over. The sand is what's killing you, probably. Everything I've ever read says it has to be pavers sand, and most folks dont' make that connection and use playground sand instead. I learned that there are way better options than sand.
So here's what I would do, if it was my bed and my back would support my ideas.
1. dig out as much of the clay/sand/peat as you can. Separate the peat for re-use.
2. as stated above, spread several layers of cardboard/newspaper on the floor of the bed. Wet thoroughly (personal experience has shown it's easier if you lay it first, and then spray it with a hose. Laying out wet newspaper is challenging, to put it mildly) You can add leaves too... either over or under the papers
3. Add a layer of kitchen scraps, bags of soil conditioner, and /or compost over the newspaper/cardboard. You might sprinkle your alfalfa pellets on the paper before adding the next layer, or you might want to put them under the papers. Your choice.
4. Add a mix of your salvaged peat, Lowes topsoil/potting soil (generic brand - check HD and see what it looks like in your area, but I won't use HD dirt here), and some good compost (mushroom compost? chicken compost, horse manure compost -- the generic Lowes compost is not really composted manure, it just has *some* manure added, per the garden guy at my Lowes).
5. plant whatever you want.
6. Continue to spot-compost over the summer, burying your kitchen scraps in the rows between the plants (but not fats, bones, meat or dairy).
If you wanted to be *really* cool and ensure the soil continues to improve with minimal hassle, I'd add 2-3 layers of timbers to the height (assuming landscape timbers), and start out with putting tree branches/limbs/leaves/old firewood that has started to rot as the bottom layer. That's what I call a "modified hugelkultur" concept. Dave explains hugelkultur over in the permaculture forum. Basically, all that wood will decay over time and make rich soil. AND it helps fill in a deeper bed so you're not buying as much soil to fill it in.
all the disclaimers above still apply.