Best place to get topsoil?

[BrideXIII]

see now thats better ..... much more like the bride we know and love ..... watch em all be boys now lol

well if they are boys, I can still have em, and that way when the housing complains i can have them for dinner

[lynda66]

ok you're on lol ..... would you rather i just sent it oven ready??

[BrideXIII]

well i have just rang them again about it, and they are still giving me the ' well it depends' line.

I have to speak to my nieghbours first ( which i already know will be ok) then contact them again (again) and they will decide based on the neighbours and how many pets I already have, I do see their point, and then again, I don't.
I have never had a compliant against me in the 12 years I have been here, so what IS their problem, apart from the fact if they give me permission, they are opening up a can of worms from others.

[lynda66]

it's the red tape ...... they need it wrapping round their danglies

[BrideXIII]

what bugs me most is the amount of people here that have pets, without going the legit route and applying for permission, no one cares, but when you do it the right way, thay make it so hard, its just a couple of chickens, for gods sake, not a flamin rhino in the back garden

[lynda66]

that's the exact reason i haven't asked ..... but i'm ok if there is a problem, cos my neighbour owns his house, and is happy for me to put them in his garden, he'll just tell them where to go ...... they can't exactly evict him can they lol

maybe you should phone them back and say oh by the way as you won't let me have chickens i've ordered a pair of rhinos.

[BrideXIII]

sadly they can evict me, although it would never come to that, it just bugs me the difference between council and housing assc, when you apply to the council list, they don't tell you, you get the house, and you are grateful, and believe me i am, but the added restrictions suck big time.

[lynda66]

i had a complaint about my dog, someone moved into the house next door but one, and had an un-neutered bitch, he kept jumping over the fence to get at her when she came in season, so the next door neighbour complained, the council were brill about it, even though i hadn't asked for permission to keep him ...... and said they wouldn't make me get rid of him if i could sort the problem ..... so i put poison down for the other dog ..... not really lol, my friends were looking for a dog and they loved billy, so i let him go to live with them, he was getting so fed up of not being able to get at her ...... never mentioned the cats to the council though lol.

[bobleponge]

Bride, if I was in your situation (and regarding clay I most certainly am) I would try and fill the raised beds as high as poss. You can dig as many leaves as you want into what soil you have and they will break down. Rabbit poo as well should be ok. I dug loads of leaves into mine 2 winters ago and when I had a peek in the spring, nothing left.
I dont know about the UK, so cant help re finding topsoil, but I did used to walk my dog and carry a bucket at the same time and collect all the mole hill soil around my area. Sad lengths a gardener will go to, to fill his raised beds.

[BrideXIII]

well i did solve the problem somewhat, by digging up the rest of the lawn and stealing all the topsoil from there, the level of the rest has dropped but 8 inches, but i got enough to fill all the beds, was hard work but worth it, and there is enough left on the bare patches to support grass, it doesn't need a lot

that and a coop full of chicken poo from my mum that has two composters on the go now, so we are all set, looks as ugly as hell at the moment, but it's fit for growing in .