Flower beds where slabs were

[MaryLennoxsScowl]

I’ve just bought a house with a paved garden. The slabs are concrete and we were told we’d have to lift the ones by the house and lower the ground level to stop water pouring in the air bricks, which we’ve now done. We dug 6 inches of rubble and road chippings out of the trench and I’d now like to turn it into a flower bed, but when we eventually hit soil it was compacted clay, which had been buried for at least ten years, so far as we know. We’ve dug this around and it’s solid clods of clay with no worms or beetles. What do I do now? I can get some top soil and compost but it can’t be a raised bed because it had to be lower than the air bricks. Do I just mix in as much soil and compost as I can (probably a couple of inches) and start planting things (was thinking a climbing rose to grow up the house wall), or will the soil need time to recover before I can plant anything? Would adding miracle grow or something like that help, or does the compost do that? I have never had a garden before and my results with house plants are mixed at best. Thanks for any advice you can give!

I dug up a brick path that had compacted clay underneath. It was back breaking work to dig it to improve the soil but I remember seeing Monty on gardeners world recommending digging a trench to a spades depth then adding organic matter to break up the clay, then dig the next trench & do the same, all the way along.

Worked like a charm. I did it last spring & last summer it was blooming with flowers from the bee friendly mix I scattered and was buzzing away with bees all summer. I also planted a couple of small shrubs last spring & they are now thriving. The soil is teeming with life of all sorts & worms a plenty.

@Tasteslikeregret thank you very much! Stupid question - does a spade’s depth mean the entire length of the spade including handle? I’ve only dug down the depth of the blade so far. And what is organic matter? Is that compost or something more specific? Yours sounds hugely successful so that gives me hope!

It's called double digging OP, and this RHS link shows you how, and what to use. It's hard work, but so worth it (clay soil here too).

www.rhs.org.uk/soil-composts-mulches/double-digging

You can also plant lupins/phacelia to loosen up the soil and add structure and organic matter. Will take a season, but you will be enriching the soil. Could you delay a proper planting till the autumn, and just work on soil improvement for now,

Thanks everyone! I can definitely do double-digging, just have to wait for it to stop raining first. It’s meant to be dry this weekend.
@AppleButter I could do that if you think things won’t grow properly this year, do you think that’s instead of double-digging or as well as?

You don't really need to dig at all. Just put say about 20cm of well rotted manure on it. Let the worms do the work!

They'll take it down a bit. By May you can plant into it and by next year you'll have a decent topsoil. Keep adding a layer of manure in the autumn and spring and you'll have the best soil.

However, if it's next to the house I'd put a line of gravel so that roots don't go too near your house foundations.

I’d dig down as far as you can, add lots of compost, manure and sprinkle wild flower seeds on it. And plant your rose, water well. beds next to houses often get dry as in a rain shadow, that is the rain doesn’t get to them, so keep watering regularly. Put your finger in the soil and if top inch or so is dry, water, but don’t saturate it, Add more manure compost next year.

A pick axe might be useful for compacted soil.

@MereDintofPandiculation

A pick axe might be useful for compacted soil.

That made me laugh, just the mental image! I double-dug a previously slabbed solid clay area last year OP (and wish I’d had a pick axe!). DH had his arm in a cast so just made the tea and got on my nerves 😂 getting the first spade in is hardest (I stood on it and used my weight to wiggle it down into the ground, then yoinked on the handle to loosen it. Not a professional landscaper you’ll be surprised to hear! I stuck the spade in only max 5cm back for the second strike, and so on. It’s infuriatingly slow but I’m not blessed with superman’s strength so it made it manageable.

Posted too soon. That was about this time last year. I planted the week after and have geums, crocosmia, a rose, salvia, foxgloves and the tall rudbeckias in that patch all doing very well.

Thank you all very much - very reassured to hear all your tales of things growing! The hard labour I can manage, and I’ll get manure and more compost and a bit of top soil and get my rose ordered. @SockFluffInTheBath After digging out rubble I’m hoping the clay will be less bad - at least it doesn’t need bagged up and taken to the tip, and my DH has no such excuse for not helping!

This is so much fun - I’ve made a long list of things I’d like to plant, and have plans to unearth another bed by the garden wall next (taking up all the slabs is probably not feasible as it doesn’t get any sun in winter though is a southwest-facing sun trap in summer when the sun can clear the surrounding buildings), and maybe a raised bed somewhere!

@BarrelOfOtters2 love the sound of wildflower seeds too!