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Adding Soil:
An annual top-dressing of sandy soil, organic matter and fertilizer, applied in spring, not only provides the roots of the grass with nutrients but by adding humus and replacing surface soil that may have washed away, serves as a cushion to break the weight of falling drops of water that cause soil compaction.Yet another condition that you may encounter, as you dig, is a layer of hardpan. This is soil material so tightly compacted or concreted that it is practically impervious to water and air. It may be caused by the cementing together of soil particles by forms of iron, lime or other materials (true hardpan), by the sinking in the soil and the collecting together at a certain level of extremely fine clay particles (tight clay), or by plowing clayey soil at the same depth year after year (plow pan or plow sole). Whatever its cause it is a disadvantage that can, and should, be relieved. If, in your digging, you strike bedrock, you have determined the full depth of soil and topsoil. There is no way of extending this depth except by adding soil.
When you are ready to fill the space, mix your leftover soil in a wheelbarrow with some builder's sand (available in bags from the local lumberyard) and some good leaf mold or composted manure. For every full load of soil use a half-load of sand and a half-load of the mold or manure. You can use dampened peat moss if the last two items are not available. To every wheelbarrow load of dirt add a 3 1/2-inch flowerpot full of bone meal. After half the depth of the bed is filled with the mix, wet it thoroughly with the hose to help settle the soil in the rubble on the bottom. Let it sit overnight before adding the final half of the soil mix. Then let everything sit for a few days more before starting to plant.
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