Undoing a Gravel Roadbed

[ShenandoahJoe]

The Electric Company removed some trees along the creek this winter. Now, I have a new sunny stretch, where I figured I could plant some summer vegetables.

I went over it with the rotary cutter as low as it could go. Then I put the scarifiers on the box blade down all the way, and did some ripping. It was tough, but my little Kubota didn't complain as long as I took it slow. At the end of the first pass, I went around to take a look, and saw I was pulling up half dirt, half 2-inch gravel. Oh, well, that's life in the mountains. I can handle some rocks.

Exchanged the box blade for the landscape rake. Pointed one end forward and the other end down, so I'd be digging a bit as I pulled out the gravel. Nothing doing -- under the gravel I found a lot of rocks half the size of my fist. At this point, I remembered some threads I read here, and realized that I was unearthing an old gravel roadbed.

Looks like I've got a lot of work ahead of me, if I want a decent garden there. Not sure what to do next. Any suggestions?

 

[Egon]

Switch over to raised beds.:thumbsup:

 

[Perplexed]

Looks like you're in the Shenandoah Valley? Maybe you can "find" a Revolutionary War musket ball or other artifact along that stretch of ground. Then the folks from a nearby university will come excavate the site, looking for more artifacts. When they're done...



Kidding, of course!

 

[Egon]

Then the folks from a nearby university will come excavate the site, looking for more artifacts.

Up here it's some drugs hidden in fire wood that has not been split. The search will entail the splitting of the wood!

 

[ShenandoahJoe]

You all may not be solving my problem, but I'm sure enjoying it a lot more, now.

Will a raised bed be enough, when there's just rocks, 8 inches down?

 

[Egon]

Should work if there is moisture present.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

Almost sounds like an old railroad bed that got overgrown...

 

[TripleR]

We had a similar situation on one of our farms ad brought in a track loader and some trucks and dug it all out to put it into cultivation. We got a lot of rock for road building and split the material with the operator.

 

[moored4]

I do not know how big a garden you were planning but if small the raised beds sounds great. Is the adjacent creek a year long creek are just seasonal? If it has some drop to it you can put a line up hill and water it using gravity.

 

[638]

It may not be an old road bed. I would suspect an old stream bed. You did say that it was located next to a creek, and creeks do have a tendency to meander over the years. Are the stones rounded like river rock or sharp like crushed limestone. That would give you a good hint.