one of local farmer friends told us where he piles excess dirt on the farm and we are welcome to it at any time. Depending on the price of all this topsoil I may go half and half.
I’m still planning to go and talk to them at the supply place in the morning (after I finish setting up the church hall for Sunday’s pancake supper) and talk with them. but because my husband has service calls tomorrow - 2 hours and 2 states away - it can’t be done tomorrow. So because of the storms that are coming in Sat night and hanging around all day Sun - I have to put it off another couple of days........grrrrrrrrrrr
Gabz,
I remember when I built my raised beds. The topsoil that was delivered was kinda lousy. Real heavy and clay like. I ended up mixing up a blend of 2 parts crappy topsoil, 1 part peat moss, 1 part sand. Thinking back I should have gone with more peat moss in the mix.
Keep in mind the beauty of raised beds is you can make the soil perfect and you don’t walk on it so it never gets compacted. Invest the added effort now as you build the beds and it will save a lot of effort in the long run.
Oh, one other thing I noticed over the years. Back when I planted everything on the ground, I lost quite a bit to rabbits. I was always chasing rabbits out of the garden. Now that I plant everything in beds raised 1 foot, the plants have not been touched by rabbits in 14 years!!!
Well, there you go! I'd wager that his soil may be better than the stuff you'll buy. I was very disappointed with the stuff that I bought for my raised bed ... and I paid a small fortune for it when you add in the transportation he charged me.
It may very well be cheaper and more productive to get the free stuff and put your money into some quality amendments like a block of sphagnum moss, vermeculite, some coconut coir, etc. And a good soil test before you plant or do too much amending.