How Much Topsoil Do I Need? Here’s a Guide
How much topsoil do you need to cover your yard? That’s an interesting question, and thankfully it’s one that can be easily solved. In order to know how much topsoil you need to buy for your yard, you need to figure out a few things. The first thing we’ll try to find are the measurements for your yard.
1. Finding Your Area and Thickness
In order to find the area of your yard, you’ll need to find the length and width of each side. Then, you’ll need to multiply your length and width together to get the number of square feet your yard occupies. However, you’re not done yet – topsoil is measured in cubic yards. Therefore, we’re dealing with a three-dimensional measurement here. Next, we’ll need to find the thickness of the area you’re trying to apply topsoil to. Knowing this measurement will help you find the last thing you need to discover the amount of topsoil you’ll need to purchase.
Simply multiply your area in square feet (found by multiplying your length and width) by the thickness of your yard layer in order to find out how much topsoil you’ll need.
2. Considering Purchasing Sizes
How will you be able to figure out the amount of topsoil you need to purchase from the above measurement? First, let’s look into the methods used to bag topsoil and how much a typical cubic yard of topsoil will cover. One cubic yard of topsoil is equivalent to 27 cubic feet. Note that the thickness of your area to cover will determine heavily how much topsoil you need – for example, you can cover twice as much land if you use topsoil to cover to a depth of 6 inches instead of 12 inches.
More thoroughly, if you’re only looking to cover the depth of a lawn, you need to spread topsoil 6 inches deep, which will be a factor in your purchase. If you’re looking to renovate a vegetable garden or raised bed, you’ll need to spread topsoil 12-18 inches deep. As you can see, the thickness of the area you’re trying to cover will influence the amount of topsoil you purchase in a particularly impactful way.
One cubic yard of topsoil will cover approximately 27 cubic feet of space in your yard. If you have a vegetable garden that measures 9 feet in length by 30 feet in width, you’d need 270 square feet of space to cover with topsoil. Multiply square footage by the depth of your topsoil in order to figure out how many cubic feet of yard you need to cover.
3. Buying Topsoil
Topsoil can be purchased in a variety of locations, and it’s always necessary and even essential for proper plant growth. Because topsoil is often removed from yards during construction, it is essential that topsoil In yards be replaced every so often in order to ensure a good crop. Even in areas where topsoil can be found, there may not be enough of it to guarantee a proper plant growth phase.
A balance of organic and inorganic matter works best when purchasing topsoil. The more organic material that is present in the topsoil, the better the nutrients provided for your plants will be. However, on the other side of the same coin organic matter greatly weakens the soil structure and allows it to settle/condense when it shouldn’t.
If you don’t need a lot of topsoil, you may not need to buy a truckload of it in order to see the yard you’ve been longing to create. Oftentimes, it is sold in small bags at any given store – however, this soil may not be true topsoil, and may contain other non-soil matter like shredded wood, moss, or peat. Blended topsoil is also popular in stores – blended topsoil is soil excavated from a construction site blended with organic compost.
Once you’ve found your blended topsoil mix, look at the label associated with it to find out what amendments are contained within the topsoil. Amendments are additions made to the soil for further growth potential, including organic compost and other organic matter. A typical 40-pound bag of topsoil more often than not contains just under a cubic foot of topsoil.
The best quality topsoil is loamy, foamy, and crumbly – it should dissolve in your hand.
If you’re looking to buy the best topsoil around, check out our compost mixes and blended mixtures. We have the best topsoil around! Don’t hesitate to reach out.