Hey everyone! I just bought a house, and the previous owner had planned to lay down artificial grass, but we decided to go a different route, leaving us with a yard full of sand—probably around 20cm thick—sitting on top of concrete. There's already a separate patio, but we want to create a natural space for our dog to enjoy without having artificial grass. Ideally, I'd like to incorporate some grass and flowers, but I'm not sure how to work with this sandy base and concrete underneath. Any ideas or suggestions?
3 Answers
Actually, don’t stress too much about the sand itself; it can be quite helpful when mixed with soil. It's excellent for drainage! Just make sure you check if that sand has any harmful salts that could affect plant growth. But yes, you will need to do something about that concrete to create a viable garden space. Maybe consider small raised beds?
Concrete is definitely the bigger issue here. Unless you remove it, you won’t have much luck creating a lush garden. If you're open to it, you could dig up sections to create smaller planting areas. Just be prepared that this can get costly and might take some work!
It sounds like you've got a bit of a challenge there! Ideally, you'd want to remove that concrete base because it could lead to drainage issues. If you can, hiring a professional might be a great way to go, as they can help determine the best approach. Mixing the sand with soil could help, especially if you don't have tons of concrete left after removing it, but you'll need to be cautious about the drainage.
Yeah, I agree! If they can dig out the concrete, that would open up a lot of possibilities for planting since roots wouldn’t be confined.
Thanks for the tip! I didn’t think about checking for salts, so I’ll definitely look into that.