It is important to know how to level a plot in the country in order to create your own piece of paradise
Before starting construction or after buying a land plot with pits and hills, it becomes necessary to level it. There are several ways how to level a plot in the country - manually or using special equipment. Each of these methods has its own characteristics and nuances.
What is the alignment of the site for?
Do-it-yourself leveling of the suburban area is a necessary part of the improvement of the territory.
It is carried out in the following cases:
- Building - Building a foundation requires a perfectly flat surface. If the summer cottage is located on a slope, a layer of additional soil is used to level it.
- Path construction - tile alleys or make asphalt paths much easier on a flat area.
- Arrangement of the lawn - lawn mixtures take root faster and better on flat surfaces. This ensures an attractive appearance of the grass and facilitates plant maintenance.
Pre-leveling the site is necessary before setting up a garden or vegetable garden, as well as decorating a summer cottage. This not only contributes to an even distribution of moisture in the soil, but also helps to bring creative landscape solutions to life.
Preparing the territory for leveling
Before leveling the plot in the country, it must be properly prepared. This will simplify and speed up the work.
Main preparatory activities:
- Determination of the boundaries of the area that requires alignment - for this, drive in the stakes in the corners of the territory, and pull the string between them. If the work will be carried out manually, it is better to divide the site into several small sectors.
- Cleaning - before leveling the area in the country, clear it of stones, branches, large roots, weeds.
- Pre-remove interfering decorative elements, shrubs, trees from the site.
With poor permeability of the soil, drainage pipes are required on the site. A diagram of their location is done before leveling the territory.
It is not at all necessary to level the entire area. Some mounds, pits and other flaws can be used as interesting elements of the decorative design of a summer cottage - for arranging original flower beds, alpine slides or bodies of water.
How to level a plot in the country - effective ways
There are several ways how to level an uneven area in the country. The main methods include:
- manually;
- walk-behind tractor;
- tractor;
- additional primer.
The choice of the best way to level the plot in the country depends on its features. For large-scale territories, the area of which is more than 6-7 acres, the most effective leveling will be with a tractor, which carries out longitudinal and transverse soil rolling.
If it is necessary to remove the upper part of the soil bed, a motor grader or a bulldozer is used. In small summer cottages, you can do it on your own, without resorting to the help of special equipment.
Aligning an area manually
Manual alignment is suitable for small areas. It will require significant physical and time costs, but will help save on equipment.The optimal time for it is the end of March or the beginning of April, when a stable warm air temperature will be established.
Required inventory:
- shovel and bayonet shovel;
- fan rake;
- wooden boards;
- wheelbarrow;
- hoe;
- building level;
- stakes.
First of all, mark the territory. Remove 15-20 cm of turf, pour it into bags and transfer or take out with a wheelbarrow to the border of the site so that it does not interfere with the work.
Hammer in pegs all over the area, tighten the ropes and level the ground, controlling the levelness with a building level. Use the removed soil for digging holes. Excess soil must be removed from the territory.
At the final stage, tamp the ground. For this purpose, you can use a small hand roller or wooden planks attached to the sole of your boots. Water the area liberally with a hose and let it sit for 3 weeks. This time is necessary for the soil to settle. After that, plow the land with a cultivator and level with a rake.
How to level a plot in the country with a walk-behind tractor
A walk-behind tractor is a small and compact hand-held tractor that greatly speeds up and simplifies landscaping work. Before you level the site with a walk-behind tractor, you need to take into account all the pros and cons of this method.
The main advantage of using this small-sized agricultural machinery is that there is no need to remove the top layer of soil. The disadvantage is that the remaining large holes and bumps will have to be filled manually.
Leveling the site with a walk-behind tractor consists of several stages - a special board is attached to the universal holder of the equipment. The soil is leveled in sectors - the walk-behind tractor loosens the soil, and the attached board evens out its surface.
Tractor
You cannot do without the help of a tractor when leveling areas of more than 6-7 acres. This method is fast and efficient. The only negative is the cost of renting special equipment.
The work is carried out in several stages. The tractor levels the uneven area far and wide. Such tractors are equipped with special teeth that effectively loosen the soil, while simultaneously shifting its layers.
How to level a plot in a country house with a slope
Leveling a site with a slope at a high angle is a rather complicated and time-consuming process that needs to be approached creatively using original and aesthetically pleasing methods. One of the most popular is the arrangement of terraces. Their configuration and number depend on the characteristics, shape and size of the site.
This design looks fresh and interesting. Vertical walls of steps can be additionally revetted with decorative stones or planted next to climbing plants... Small cascading waterfalls can become a beautiful accent. When designing such steps, one must not forget about the support for the soil on each tier - this will prevent it from slipping.
Leveling with additional soil
Leveling with additional soil is carried out in areas with significant slopes or a large number of holes. How to fill up the plot for leveling, each owner of the suburban area decides on his own. Most often, leafy land or peat-peat soil is used for this purpose.
Additional soil can be bought or dug up on your own. After that, it should be evenly distributed in such a way that a smooth and even surface is obtained. In the event that at the dacha clay soil, the imported soil must be mixed with sand.
Under construction
The method of leveling the site directly depends on the type of foundation. Monolithic foundations are erected in areas with any type of surface. Belt and pile - only on perfectly flat ones.In order for the soil not to exert an additional load on the base, blind areas are made, and flat areas are better suited for these purposes.
Under the lawn
For arranging a lawn, the site is best leveled using a walk-behind tractor. Treat the area three times, then gently level with a rake. In order for green crops to take over better, the upper layer should consist of sand, poured in an even layer.
For a garden or vegetable garden
Equalization of the territory of the personal plot for a garden or vegetable garden will require much more effort and time, because it is very important to maintain high soil fertility
The work is carried out in several stages:
- remove the top layer of soil;
- transfer or transport the removed soil with a wheelbarrow to the fence, to the border of the site;
- remove all the hills with a shovel, fill the holes with the removed soil;
- transport the removed soil back and spread it in an even layer, level it well.
Leave the area to settle for 2 weeks, then loosen thoroughly with a rake. Re-loosening is carried out before planting horticultural or horticultural crops.
In large areas, alignment is carried out in a different way. Plow the soil longitudinally and transversely, with the help of a cultivator, all weeds are removed, preferably twice. After that, the land must be processed with a walk-behind tractor and loosened well.
How to restore soil fertility
In most cases, during the leveling of the suburban area, the upper fertile soil layer is removed. If the residual layer of fertile land is less than 15-25 cm, the missing amount must be replenished with peat-peat soil. To do this, it must be poured over the soil and evenly distributed.
To restore soil fertility, the structure of the land must be taken into account. If the soil is loamy, clayey or heavy, it must be diluted with fertile soil mixed with sand.
If the soil is acidic, it can be made neutral by mixing with lime or ash.
Leveling a plot in the country is a difficult and time-consuming job that requires a significant investment of time and effort. It is carried out in several ways - manually, using a walk-behind tractor or a tractor. Choosing the most optimal way, you can get a perfectly flat area for building a house, a fruitful garden or vegetable garden.