Raised bed over Leylandii stumps
Rob_M
Posts: 3
Hello, im new to the forum.
I'm looking for a bit of advice. Last year i moved to a house which had 6 large Leyandii weeds at the bottom of the garden, which were swiftly chopped. I would like to create a more subtle natural screen at the bottom of my garden. I was thinking of creating a raised bed, using some old decking boards.
I've attached a picture of the area in question (these stumps are now at ground level)
Is it a good idea to do this? Or will i risk the trees sprouting again?
Any advice is welcome
Excuse the state of the garden, i havent done anything with this area yet
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Posts
They wont regrow, but they will rot. I'd saw the off as low as you canso they arent rotting into your raised soil, filling it with woodlice and, potentially, fungal infections, and then go for it. I'm getting rid of my leylandii hedge this autumn and replacing with fence. I'm gonna saw them off low and then plant between the stumps so they vanish. My bed wont be raised tho, so I'm also gonna use a mattock to remove what roots I can. Only planting a couple of climbers and some low ground cover, so should be ok. Can I recommend willow screening for covering the fence? I used a dark brown one to hide a scruffy view somewhere where proper fence was unneccesary and it works a treat, just disappearing into the background. And ladybirds love it!
Thanks for the response, had the stumps taken to ground level the other day (couldn't upload a recent pic due to the time of posting last night lol)
I was thinking of using a raised bed as I think the ground will choked with roots.
The bamboo screening is a nice idea, the outlook is very open with a large field beyond the path you can see, but I do feel a bit exposed at times.
Its great in windy exposed spots because it lets a bit filter through, so not as likely to blow down. The Gardman stuff is best. Comes in all sorts of sizes - also easy to cut down if buying tall and getting 2 lengths out of each roll works out cheaper... I used it as an excuse to buy the heavy-duty staple-gun I've always wanted
. Getting the stumps sufficiently out may be less difficult than you think tho - I've done several over the years and they tend to be very soft. As I said, a mattock or pick axe works well. Churns up the ground so you can get the matted roots out easily too. Depending on how physically able (and keen) you are (I'm obviously a girl, but quite a big strong one) it may be easier than building the bed.. Good luck anyway - post us a pic when you've finished - I always like a nosey. Bx
It is a lovely sunny site, very promising. But remember the leylandii somewhat
acidified the soil, so it would be auspicious to measure its pH before tilling and
adding manure.
When we moved here there was a huge Leylandii hedge at the front - over 15ft high and 3ft across. It was a pain, and took three days to cut it safely - and then there were all the clippings to get dispose of . . . until the next time.
We decided to get rid of it, but, because it was sited next to a wall which would have been compromised by taking out the stumps, we had the trees cut down to ground level We then did exactly what you are thinking of - namely create a raised bed to cover the stumps. Providing the subsequent planting is of shallow-rooted plants, and provided you add lots of organic matter each year, it is a successful way of dealing with the problem.
It will take a long time for the stumps to rot down, of course, but they will eventually. We have a lovely shrub border there now - a combination of hebes and wigeliia infront of which are smaller shrubs like cistus purpurea and spirea, as well as perennials. Overall it has worked well.
Hey guys thanks for the replies, I really appreciate them
The trees that were here were around the same size, took me and my dad a full weekend to chop them down and get them to the tip... Amazing how much light the garden gets now though!
glad the stumps won't cause much of a problem, will get an acidity test done on the soil soon... Then I can build my bed anf plan what to plant. Will post pics of my progress regularly
The acidity of the soil that is there is almost a foregone conclusion Rob - under the influence of the dreaded conifers it will be acidic. What really matters is the nature of the topsoil that you use to create your raised bed.
We went first to our local garden centre. Big mistake. the soil was rough, lifted from a farmer's field, full of agricultural detritus (binder twine being the least of the problems) and also the horrendous mares' tail. They, the GC, removed it all, and we then bought in better stuff from a national supplier. It took a while to get it all into really good condition, though, so I would be circumspect about the supplier in the first instance.
Good luck! Let us know how it all works.