Hi, 

Irises: They are pretty tough. It isn't ideal to move them right now, you would probably want to wait until it is a little warmer, but if you want to get moving on things, you could start digging up the ones you want to keep and as you do, pull away any weeds/turf that has grown into them. You may want to hose of the roots and rhizomes a little to get any weed seeds off in the process. Then you can just store them in a pot or bucket with drainage in some potting mix, keep in a sunny spot maybe up against the house so its sheltered from any cold nights, and don't let it dry out completely, (not soaking wet either) until you are ready to plant them. 

Cardboard or no Cardboard: The fastest way to get ready to plant this spring would be the cardboard. You can always do sections at a time and accomplish building garden beds in stages. However, keep in mind that the existing weed seeds will get dispersed and potentially travel into the new created garden space. You can see this method described more on our 'Turf Removal' page. Cardboard or newspaper is free - you can often ask for it at large discount stores ( costco/sams club etc) or even check at your county recycling center. Checking social media is another easy way to get cardboard. Make sure to look for boxes that aren't coated in plastic or wax and the simplest plain brown is usually best. Remove any tape too. (From personal experience, I have used cardboard then a few layered pieces of news paper or packing paper - that you get in Amazon boxes etc, and fill in the cracks with it.)  You can get topsoil or compost (LeafGro) delivered in bulk and then spread via wheel borough load to cover the cardboard. If you do this and let it sit for a month or so, you can use a sharp shovel to plant through the carboard. Eventually the carboard will decompose and the topsoil/compost (and then mulch or woodchips used on top to prevent weed seeds that get dispersed through wind or distributed by wildlife) will create a fertile plant area. 

You can also choose to forego the cardboard or newspaper method, and smother using a thick layer of arborist wood chips. You would probably want them about 2-3 inches thick to smother the existing weeds and then as the wood breaks down it will add organic material to the existing soil. This would take a few month or even through the summer and you can plan on planting in the fall. 

For vegetable areas, you could help that along faster by considering a raised bed. (Yes, you would need to purchase materials and then the soil to fill it - so that would be a project - but if you're itching to get started with planting, maybe investing in this for phase one, as the rest of the yard waits to be smothered is a good starting point?) 

You could also start with a simple drawn plan and tackle the areas in phases. Graph paper is good for this. Each box or 2 boxes can be considered a foot and you can map out how many plants per space as to not overcrowd them. You can arrange the vegetable areas that get the most sun, and play around with layout. This could also be something that will help you with waiting for the smothering to be accomplished before you can plant. 

In terms of herbicide, no its not ideal, but when used in limited quantities and with a targeted approach, it can be quite effective. Something like glyphosate (Round up) targets the roots of the plants, and then binds to the soil and breaks down pretty quickly after it has worked its magic (hopefully - sometimes multiple applications are needed for stubborn weeds or wood trees/vines). This by far would be the fastest method, but you would still want to get some good soil amendments to top dress the yard afterwards for planting. 

We are excited to see this come to fruition for you and it sounds like you have some great ideas with the native plants, ground cover and walking paths. 

Should you have further questions on how to proceed, or about the plant selection feel free to reach back out to us. 

Emily

Hi Bruce, 

Irises – If I wait until the weather is warmer, is it OK to dig them up while they are blooming? Or would I wait until August?Also, when I remove them, should I cut the leaves off too, or keep them as whole plants? it isn't ideal to relocate them while they are blooming, as the plants are trying to put forth their energy into the flowers. but as mentioned, german irises, which is what it looks like in the photo, are pretty tough. You could try to transplant them in the heat of the summer and just make sure they are watered well. You don't need to remove the foliage per say, but if the leaves brown up a bit due to transplant shock or the heat, it would be ok to remove those. From personal experience- they are pretty hard to kill! If all the foliage does die back altogether, they should re-emerge the following spring/early summer. 

Weed removal - I viewed the turf removal page that you linked in your message. From your message, it would be cardboard + 2” – 4” of soil/compost (per the web guidelines) + an additional layer of mulch? How think should the mulch layer be? Would you also advise arborist wood chips for that mulch layer. If you are putting down a thick layer of topsoil and/or compost mix and then 2-3 inches of mulch, essentially you wouldn't really need the cardboard. The cardboard acts like a biodegradable weed barrier, but if the top material (soil and mulch or woodchips) is thick enough, it will be enough to smother the weeds or turf anyways. I tend to use the cardboard or newspaper when I want to expand a bed or don't want to use as much material and I have patience to wait to plant. So I put it at the edge of an existing bed and just use a lighter layer of compost, maybe about an inch thick and then mulch about 2-3 inches thick on that, then wait a season to plant - so layer in spring plant in fall - or layer in fall, plant the following spring. Usually the newspaper or cardboard has broken down or full decomposed in that time and the soil is a richer composition for planting. You could most definitely use the wood chips in place of mulch too. They will break down a bit slower than regular hardwood mulch since they are not 'aged' at all and a greener wood. As the years go on and the plant bed becomes established, you wouldn't need as thick of a mulch layer. Again my personal practice is I tend to mulch with a shredded hardwood mulch in about a 3 inch layer every other year since establishing planting beds. I let the fall leaves stay and use those as natural mulch and to add organic mater to the planting beds as they decompose. If i install something new or need to touch up in my 'off mulch years' I can just get a couple bags here and there to do so. 

The raised beds are an attractive suggestion, but from what I read on that page, it would still be necessary to treat those areas with the turf removal process above, is that correct? Are there any biodegradable kinds of landscape fabric? I read the raised bed page that you linked, that the fabric would have to be removed before planting. If so, cardboard seems like a better alternative, but the fabric would be easier for me to apply if were biodegradable. For the raised bed area, you could use cardboard in this scenario to help smother weeds and create a biodegradable weed barrier. Fabric shouldn't be used in this situation. You could layer the raised bed area with cardboard then fill the soil on top. There are so many different options for raised bed materials these days. One of the inexpensive kind is the use of the cement corner forms and buying your wood of choice to build the walls (you can find these at most of the big box home improvement stores) or there are so many kits you can purchase and assemble for different looks, depending on your taste. You can also just build us a mounded bed on top of the ground, but it will be easier for the weeds to creep into the edges of the  planting soil then. 

As an alternative, would a simpler solution be the arborist wood chips? I’m assume I could either plant through them after a couple of months, or clear it as I go? Could the wood chips be left in place and then covered with topsoil for the raised beds? You would only want to use the woodchips on top of the soil since they will be fresh. If you put them on the bottom or mix in, they will actually deplete the amount of nitrogen in the soil buy using it for the decomposition process. Then what plants are planted in that area could suffer. You could, like you mention, just dump in place and wait a few weeks and move the chips aside for planting. For edible planting though, using at least some compost to incorporate into the raised bed would be beneficial for growing plants from seed or transplanting small vegetable plants. 

I’ve made a diagram with graph paper, as you suggested and copied the diagram so I can create multiple plans for the garden. Is this kind of planning something that the extension or the Master Gardner program can help with? Unfortunately we don't have the capacity to offer design services. You could take your diagrams to a Master Gardener plant clinic and see if they could offer advice or suggestions. You can see when there is one on your area by checking their website. If you are thinking of more detailed design help, we would suggest reaching out to a Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional. You can search for one under the 'Find a Pro' tab. 

One final question, about the plant selection. I’d like to have a tall screen of hedge on the perimeter of the yard for privacy and bird habitat. I want to use native plants. Is the Inkberry Holly (Ilex Glabra) a good choice for a hedge that is about 6’ – 7’ tall? I’ve read that the berries are good for birds, but that it may not be as dense as other native shrubs. Are there other options I should consider? Explore our Plants for Mixed privacy screens webpage to get some ideas on screening trees/shrubs. We recommend not planting a row of many multiple plants of the same species to help reduce loss should weather, environmental conditions, or pest or disease come into play that should affect the health of the plants. You could incorporate some Ilex glabra with the addition of some other plants. Even if the trees don't have berries, they could provide nesting and shelter. Something like Thuja occidentalis , 'Emerald green Arborvitae' is a species commonly sold. Could be used as a dense screen and layered with the Ilex glabra.  Sambucus canadensis (elderberry) is a fast growing shrub that has edible berries that the birds also love. It would lose its leaves in the winter but could provide some barrier and sense of privacy even when not in leaf during winter months. Ornamental grasses could also be incorporated to help screen faster, or fill gaps while other trees grow and mature. There are many native cultivars available and birds will use the grass as nesting material, as shelter, and eat the seed heads. 

I’m on the Eastport peninsula so the soil tends towards sandy. - Adding any organic material to help improve soil structure and will improve the growing environment for new plants. We have a few links to explore that discuss this is more detail: 

https://extension.umd.edu/resource/soil-health-drainage-and-improving-soil

https://extension.umd.edu/resource/organic-matter-and-soil-amendments

https://extension.umd.edu/resource/improve-soil-health-climate-resilient-garden

https://extension.umd.edu/resource/sustainable-gardening-solutions-climate-change

Please let us know if you would like more clarification with the soil amendments or building up raised beds. 

Emily

You're welcome, feel free to ask more questions.