When you are contemplating grading and bringing in such a large quantity of soil to achieve a proper planting depth, you want a professional involved. This is an in-person, onsite process, not something that can be adequately addressed by an online forum.

Yeah I was just trying to get as much information as possible prior to getting professionals in. Attempting to find information online is near impossible as quite a bit of it conflicts. I am thinking either next spring or next fall for actually bringing in and grading everything, so I am still very early in the planning and budgeting stage. like I said in my post I am not planning on completing the whole project in one shot or even in a few but over the span of many years. We are planning on staying here till we both pass on so I don't have to have everything done asap. Also My kids are still in their young 20's and haven't started families yet so grandchildren in the yard isn't happening any time soon either. lol

Have you considered creating raised beds for your plantings? Changing the grade around established trees is a bad idea.

"Attempting to find information online is near impossible as quite a bit of it conflicts."

As it will be, as the situation cannot be properly addressed online. Without an in-place visual and physical evaluation, you are just guessing at what needs to be done. A qualified professional is the one to advise you, not random amateur gardeners without firsthand knowledge..

oof @gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9), thanks but like I said I am attempting to get general information PRIOR to bringing in professionals. I cannot judge the information they give me nor how knowledgeable they are or if I am being overcharged or if the soil is good quality etc without having some information beforehand. I really do not want to go in blind on a project of this size and cost.

@cecily 7A I have considered doing raised beds as well as hügelkultur but given the water problems that already exist and they fact that the yard has never been graded properly I think it might be better to have it graded. also some of the trees are not doing well and will need replaced during the project at some point. and most of the trees roots sit above the current grade at least in the back as the whole yard slopes toward the front yard. which is waterlogged and mossy under two large trees.

@Jessika Sadell, I am a landscape professional myself. In addition to operating a full service landscape design business for the past 25 years, I am also a certified horticultural consultant. Please believe me when I tell you you are not going to find the info you need online. Or from any book or written publication. It can only be provided by a hands-on approach.

And why would you not think that a local qualified drainage and soils engineer would not provide accurate information is a bit mysterious. That IS their business!! Professional qualifications are easy to confirm.

You came for advice and have been provided it. So why are you so reluctant to accept it?

Get a sense of what you want and get some estimates. Talk to the contractors. You should get a sense of what needs to be done and what it will cost. It really helps to start with someone very close, like working on a neighbor's project. They can eyeball and give you a very rough estimate.

@John D Zn6a PIT Pa the whole property slopes from the backyard to the front and the house itself is set above the current grade by at least 8 inches where the dirt is closest to the top of the foundation cement. most of it is much lower than that. out front is is about 5 ft below the top of the foundation. at the very front of the property is a small cliff face with a tumble of rocks that were pushed over the top when they blasted out where the driveway and house are. there are mixed soils of all grades, depends on the source and price. nothing grows in the construction back fill right around the house. the only other building is the shed and it is on a raised platform with 5 stairs to it because of the slope that is there. the ground is very uneven and some places dip down about 3 ft and some hump up about 2 ft. I want to get the grade to keep the overall gentle slope from back to front but even out everything and I think add more dirt for everything to grow in above the bedrock. Basically I kind of know what I want it to end up like but don't have any information on how to get it to there. I plan on putting partial organic compost into whatever "topsoil" I end up with as I am not willing to spend the additional money to have the top grade of dirt brought in. I am not panning on growing any actual "crops" I just want native plants with some areas of interest and paths between. we are fairly isolated and what neighbors we do have , have had their yards the way they want them for years. the space we are in was just native forest till this house was placed here. but no landscaping has ever been done.

Jessica - Going only from memory; which may be somewhat off. The price of dirt is about the same as the cost of compost. That's assuming you buy dirt and they call it topsoil; like they do here. You can get free fill dirt which is seldom "Clean fill Dirt" and it'll be full of rock and roots and construction debris etc.

If you're talking about putting a foot of topsoil your talking about many yards of topsoil. So what you would do is subtract; let's say 10% of the amount of dirt you would need and substitute compost so that the price winds up the same but you get a nice loamy topsoil when mix and then spread it.

How big an area are you wanting with a decent amount of topsoil depth. Seems to me you'd want some stone and hardware cloth at the bottom end of the fill dirt. Kind of like a "level spreader". The hardware cloth between the topsoil and the stone..

You said the lot has never had a finish grade since being built and your last description makes it sound so. Basically, you need to pay for the machine time needed to do the finish grade and clean up the lot. Once that is done you can assess any topsoil wanted or needed and the machine time and cost for that. if you are wanting a more native landscape in the forest of SW VA, you may not want much topsoil brought in. Plants will grow on rocks in a wet deciduous forest and they are fond of their native soil even when thin.

Only a site evaluation by a heavy equipment operator can assess the extent of your grading needs and how that will work with your garden plans. Online and without pictures it is all conjecture. Because you are on a rocky slope, one important thing you want to be discussing for the finish grading work you need is Drainage. Don't fret over the bedrock.

Your house foundation needs to be 8" above finished grade. You say you have that now, so you shouldn't be raising grade around the house perimeter. Also be aware with your description of deep "dips" and "humps" on bedrock, the water will be finding routes and fissures to drain, but how fast is unknown. If you fill these with topsoil, these areas may become 'bowls' detaining water, which may be detrimental to some of the plantings you envision.

thank you this is exactly the kind of information I was looking for. 8" wow, that is a lot if the dips drain now do you think adding soil will make it not drain? what if I were to make one of those water gardens there, with the plants that are good at soaking up excess water. I think I may have to do that anyway where all the water flows to before it goes over the mini cliff where all the moss is now.

It might be helpful to understand that rain gardens and their plantings are not intended to "soak up excess water". A rain garden is intended as a collection point for rain water run-off to be allowed to dissipate naturally into the surrounding ground. And the plantings are only those that can tolerate both dry periods and flood periods. Plants are not sponges - they cannot soak up any more water than they need to stay hydrated.

"before it goes over the mini cliff where all the moss is now."

Makes one wonder what kind of forested lot this is in the Appalachian Mountains of SW Virginia. Sometimes there isn't much finish grading you can do beyond getting the water away from the house.

Jessika SadellOriginal Author

yesterday

@John D Zn6a PIT Pa the whole property slopes from the backyard to the front and the house itself is set above the current grade by at least 8 inches where the dirt is closest to the top of the foundation cement. most of it is much lower than that. out front is is about 5 ft below the top of the foundation.

3onthetree

15 hours ago

Your house foundation needs to be 8" above finished grade. You say you have that now, so you shouldn't be raising grade around the house perimeter.

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