How to Build a Planting Berm

Gardens and yards include bushes, trees, flowers, vegetables and rolling lawns. T can grow dull and flat when they cover only one dimension. Berms are small manmade hills in home gardens, ideal for creating interest and structure in the landscape and specialty planting. Use the right soil and slope for a berm to maintain healthy growing and drainage conditions, and use smart, decorative borders for soil containment.

Garden fork
Chalk/flour
Rocks
Shovel/rake
Fill dirt
Organic compost
Topsoil/garden loam
Fertilizer

Instructions

- 1
  Choose and prepare your berm location. Put the berm in a site with four to six hours of sun every day for a range of growing choices and construct the berm at least 4 to 5 feet long and wide. Outline your chosen area in flour or chalk for easier construction.
- 2
  Break up the top 2 to 3 inches of soil in the berm site with a shovel or rake to encourage consistent quick drainage. Remove weeds to prevent future sprouting. Build a berm border over your marked line with large stones, decorative bricks or heavy decorative wood. This border helps to keep the soil in the berm during rainfall.
- 3
  Dump fill dirt into the berm area for your base and rake it up into your chosen shape. Aim for a foundation 10 to 12 inches tall, with gentle slopes on all sides down to the natural soil level. Shape the berm so that the high point sits closer to one edge, rather than in the middle, for best drainage.
- 4
  Cover the fill dirt with 10 to 20 inches of organic compost and topsoil or garden loam for planting. Mix 1 part organic compost to 1 part bagged garden loam for a rich, loose and moist base for plants, grasses and trees. Turn balanced 10-10-10 fertilizer into the top 4 inches of planting soil for starting nutrition.

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