We don't get any standing water after a solid rain, so I think we're
safe. Thanks much!
Earl

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 14:48:59 +0100, "PETER DAWSON"
wrote:


"earl" wrote in message
.. .
Hi Everyone,

My family and I live in a townhouse, and as you can imagine, we don't
have a lot of gardening space. What we do have is 4'x5' plots, about 3
of them, on either side of our patio, and at our front door. There's a
mulch on top, and underneath is a clay base of some sort. I'm wanting
to rip out the mulch and replace it with soil - will that work with
the clay base beneath? You'd have to dig about 1.5 feet in order to
hit the clay base. Anyone have any ideas?

All the best,
Earl

--------------------------------------------------------------
Hello Earl - 18 inches is not a bad depth of soil and will sustain annuals,
perennials
and most vege but your best judge is whether water stands on the surface for
a long time after heavy rain.
If it does then I would suggest excavating, breaking up the clay and
incorporating organic matter in the from
of farmyard manure and garden compost plus large size grit. If it is not
solid blue or yellow clay and you
want to plant shrubs or a small tree I would think you have sufficient depth
of soil to sustain it while it roots
into the subsoil - a clay soil is potentially a rich one. What you must
avoid at all cost is to plant into a hole
that is in effect a basin that will fill up with water that can't drain
away.



http://p214.ezboard.com/bjustgardening56566

Peter
Yorkshire
UK