Landscaping - New flower bed / weeds grass question

Hi all
New to forum and have a quick question!
I have a new 75 ft by 5.5 ft deep flower bed that I put in. right now it still has some grasses and some weeds in it..My plan is to just put fabric over this and then put in 6 or 7 inches of topsoil over the top of that...

a)will that be enough to kill anything underneath the fabric...
b)will that be enough soil to put in plants? I will be putting in 2 trees, but I have those marked out and will cut the fabric...

Thanks in advance for any help...

Sounds good..shouldn't be a problem. You could treat the weeds with something like Round-Up first..but theres really not a need if you are going that deep with soil on top of the fabric.

As long as you leave something down over the weeds for awhile and air can't get through, it should smother them. You don't want to do round out of anything like it if you're going to plant soon, so this is a good approach. You probably realize that is one large flower bed. If you haven't thought of it already, add in some structure, such as boxwood or arborvitae so you have year round greenery and don't take on too much with perennials!

and yea...I do realize how big it is... I have two of them that I laid all the stone work for ...grr...that was a lot of work...which is why I dont really want to have to dig up every last bit of weed and grass inside :) So from what I am hearing...as long as I cover well and put enough topsoil down, I should be good to go. I feel like cheering!!!

Good advice on paying attention to what I put inside of it!!!

Hi Ekseattle,

I wouldn't recommend you put down landscape cloth or a weed barrier. The roots of your plants won't be able to go deep into the soil, and if there are drought conditions, they will suffer. The 6" just won't be enough depth for most perennials, and when you have to dig and transplant you will find the landscape cloth or weed barrier a real problem.

I agree with the idea of smothering the weeds and grass, so why not use several layers (6 or so) of dampened newspaper? Be sure to dampen it as you work or the first wind will have you chasing it all over the yard. Been there... You would only need to use the newspaper where you see grass or weeds. The newspaper will smother them and break down over time.

I would also recommend a mix of 60% screened topsoil and 40% compost. Your plants will love you for it. :) Here's a compost calculator, soil calculator and mulch calculator.
http://www.cedar-grove.com/compost_calculator.asp
http://www.millergroup.ca/compost/lme.html
http://www.atstecks.com/mulch.htm

If you need sites on how to plant, mulch and water trees just let me know.

Happy planting!
Newt

Hi there;

I would have to agree with Newt, I started 2 new island beds two years ago, although I ammended the soil first by adding compost and some new enriched soil, I planted shrubs etc, then added 4-6 layers of newspapers, wet them down then applied about 4 inches of forest mulch on top. Its been weed free for two years!

I dont think putting soil on top of the landscape fabric is correct. Seeds from weeds or grass will re-frow in the soil, if i am not mistaken the mulch or decorative stone etc goes directly on top of the fabric the soil remains underneath.:)