Levelling out garden

pledgeX

I posted this in the 'in my home' sub forum the other day but I've just spotted this sub-forum which may be more appropriate.

One of my projects this year is to sort the garden out. The problem is that it's not level.

It's about 11 metres long and 6.5 metres wide. The garden backs onto some allotments. The house and the allotments are pretty much level. The first 4 metres (nearest the house) is also pretty level. The lowest point is about 3m from the end of the garden and is probably about 40-50cm lower than the house at its lowest point.

I'll be paving the area nearest the house so may be able to move a bit of the existing soil towards the end but that's really not going to make much a difference.

A couple of people have suggested that the cheapest option would be to have a two level garden but I don't think that looks very good.

Any hints on how to fill the dip? With the amount that needs filling in I'm guessing that much topsoil would cost a bomb. Maybe fill it with some hard core or maybe even some cheap plastic piping with a large diameter then cover with topsoil?

Any advice as to how much this would cost and where I could buy the materials would be appreciated. Thanks.

wallbash

Sorry , but I am voting for the two level garden , cheaper . easier and you will have a more interesting garden .

SailorSam

Just a thought but if you got in touch with your Local Council about all the green waste they take, maybe you could buy some back.

krlyr

wallbash wrote: »

Sorry , but I am voting for the two level garden , cheaper . easier and you will have a more interesting garden .

It's cheaper and easier to not touch it at all but OP was asking for ideas on how to create the garden they want at a cheaper price.

OP, I've seen hardcore, soil, etc. all advertised on my local Freecycle which could be an option. Maybe ask around on the allotments, they may know of someone doing some work in their garden with excess soil?

walkers-crisps_are_evil

If you haven't any young kids then why not consider a pond. Line it with clay if you can source a load for free or buy pond liner which would work out cheaper than buying tonnes of topsoil (at least I think so). Get old carpet (council tip?) to put under the liner to prevent it being pierced by stones. Remember to create varying depths of ledges around edges so you can plant pond plants- some prefer different depths to others. You can create a wonderful Eco system on the cheap that will attract frogs, dragonflies, birds etc. Put oxygen generating plants in to keep water happy and the rest will follow.