A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 Rocks!!!

Today was soo nice so I decided to go out and turn the soil over in the veggie garden. Problem!! There are ROCKS everywhere! Not just little ones...bigger ones...like the size of canned food! Is there an easy way for me to go through all of the soil that I just turned over to get alot of the rocks out before I put the compost in? Is one of those heavy rakes my best option?? Help!!

Hi Jennifer -- Here in New England, the early settlers used to swear that rocks actually grew in their gardens. It seems that way because the freezing and thawing of winter forces up buried rocks to the surface, so even if you succesfully get rid of them all in the spring, there are always more waiting for you the following year. I would guess the same would be true for Pennsylvania. I usually use a heavy rake and my bare hands. It's a lot of work, but at least you can use the rocks you remove for other landscaping purposes. Good Luck! TONY

My soil is a lot like yours from the rock aspect. I get every size rock from marbles to Volkswagens (and every size in between) when I dig here.

I built a 3 ft by 6 foot frame and nailed 1/2 inch mesh, welded wire onto it, with some trim to protect the edges and legs and braces to set a desired angle.


Any time I am going to get into any serious digging (especially when I'm building a new garden) I dig the entire area to a depth of at least a foot, and pitch each shovelful through the screen. The rocks roll down to the base of the sifter (or into a wagon) where they are carted off to be used for potholes, paths or rock borders.
Add your compost to your mound of sifted soil, mix well, and redistribute the soil over the area. Voila!



I also use the sifter to take the course matter out of my compost. The wheelbarrow fits right under the screen, so your sifted compost will be loaded and ready to go....

Thanks Tony and Bill. I remember learning once about the rocks working their way up through the soil, so that didn't really surprise me. What surprised me was the sheer number of rocks that were there and how large they were. The previous owners used the bed for potatoes, so I assumed that the rocks would have been "weeded" out. WRONG JENN!!! Hopefully the weather will behave and I will get time to work on the rocks on Saturday. I like the idea of the frame, but I may have to wait until next year to do that. Poor Stephen has just about had enough of me spending "his hard earned money" on my new hobby. He will just have to get over it. Well, thanks again, and I'm open to any more ideas anyone else has! <img border="0" alt="[clappy]" title="" src="graemlins/clappy.gif" />

Give Stephen a lil cuddle and a kiss,
then show him the pix of the frame.
Ask him if HE could build something like that for you.
(---> Batt eyelashes here, timidly <---)
Then tell him that it wouldn't HAVE to be that big.....
Just a lil one would be such a big help for you....

then...

WOW ....what a great set up.....angled and the best part....the height allows those rocks to just roll right into a wheel barrel! ....and welded to boot!!! You did some thinking on that one!!!

Now if you put rollers with brakes on the back side and a couple of short handles you could just wheel it where you wanted!!!

Besides a jack hammer ....you have any ideas for pure granite!!! That's one heck of a rock!!! :rolleyes: Going up is muuuuuuuuuch easier.

Good Luck Jennifer....all the work will pay off!!!

That's a great sifter idea! I'm in the process of digging up a lawn area that used to be a gravel driveway. I've been using one of those plastic carrier trays that the nurseries give you to carrry out small potted plants...I just put a few shovelfulls in, pick up the tray and shake it a bit. All the soil falls out. I then dump the rocks in a larger bucket to transfer to another area. I just do a bit at a time, but it's doing the trick. Inexpensive and provides another use for something most people just throw away!

Pretty neat idea for sifting the rocks. Unfortunately, don't think that would work so well for me. My ground is mostly clay, and sticks together. Then the rocks are so packed in, the only way to get them is to get down in there and pick them up. I've had itty bitty, to some that were probably 6-8" long. I used them to border some of my trees. Each hole I dug, had enough rocks to border a tree..lol.

Meg

Sbjanby - - welcome!!!

I used to sift the rocks the same way - and if you're only working a small amount at a time - I fully agree with you.

On the other hand - - I have a modification of the screen frame (mainly because if I simply sifted dirt through such - wellllll - I've got much to rocky an area - and I work a little in each of several sections and yards at a time. What I do is -

use a small piece of screening - about 1/4 - 1/2 inch squares - and place it over the bucket that I'm going to put the dirt in. Then I simply shovel the dirt through the screen and into the wheelbarrow - then back into the ground.

The piece of screening can be had at most feed stores for less than a buck and works great.

Jon

I too, have a rock problem. The lot we moved our house onto last summer used to be where a bunch of old cabins were built and the bums used to live there. Besides rocks were are finding old broken dishes, pieces of metal, tools, etc. We even found an old rusted antique hand sye (is that how you spell it?) Any way we are using all the rock we pick out to form a rock garden aroung the gas and electric meters. It not only hides the eyesore, but we don't have to mow around them. It also work great as punishment for my nine year old son to have to go pick rocks.

Bill- Your device is almost exactly like one my late hubby made for me. Instead of wire mesh, though, he used perforated metal. It works good on saving precious soil from those clumps of weeds, too. You just have to wait before using it too soon.

Your question brought up fond memories for me. In 1970-71, we were building our house, and I was pregnant at the time. One of our neighbors' favorite stories involves watching me out there, picking rocks, day after day. Eventually, I was very pregnant, and it must have amused them to see this big-bellied woman bending down to harvest rocks. So, you see, even a nuisance time- consuming chore like this can become a part of your own history with your home and garden. Besides, it's good exercise! Eventually, you will have a yard fairly clear of the worst rocks.