How to Landscape a Hollow Concrete Hexagon
This is a subject that preoccupies many people, but fortunately there is an easy answer to how you can landscape a hollow concrete hexagon. As long as the hexagon is at least a yard or more across, it can be converted into an herb spiral. This is an ascending spiral garden that creates multiple habitats with regard to drainage and light, and allows the close planting of culinary and medicinal herbs. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Used cardboard boxes
- Used cinder blocks
- Used pavers or bricks
- Straw
- Used newspaper
- Water hose and water source
- Organic compost
- Organic topsoil
- Triple-cut hardwood mulch
- Plants
Instructions
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1
Place two layers of cardboard on the ground inside the hexagon (or circle). Stomp the edges down along the edges to ensure they are tight and flat. Wet the cardboard thoroughly with the hose.
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2
Stack cinder blocks inside the concrete hexagon (or circle), on top of the cardboard base, beginning at the outside and spiraling in toward the center, like a conch shell. Cross-stack the blocks as much as possible for stability. Nor mortar is necessary. Stack the block spiral until it is the height of the concrete wall.
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3
Spread straw into all the spaces between the blocks. Stomp down or pack the straw to compact it as much as possible and keep adding straw until the entire hexagon is full. The packed straw will stabilize the cinder block stacks. Wet the straw thoroughly. Water begins a bacterial action that will enrich your finished product. Spread topsoil a few inches deep on top of the straw, leaving the top surface of the cinder block spiral exposed.
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Stack your pavers or bricks laterally, across the cinder blocks. Cross-stack to the extent possible for stability. Stack the pavers, beginning with one course, so the spiral now ascends from being even with the hexagon container to 3 feet above the concrete wall at the center of the spiral. The cone at the top of the spiral should be only a few inches across, enough for one plant.
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5
Spread topsoil throughout the spiral until it is approximately 3 inches from the edges of the paver spiral. Do not pack the topsoil. Soak the topsoil with water. Cover the topsoil with whole sections of newspaper, leaving spaces for the plants you will introduce. Soak the paper.
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Plant herbs that grow well in your region. Separate them by potential size, shade tolerance and drainage requirements. The higher the plant is on the spiral, the greater will be its drainage. Plants on the southern side of the spiral will get more sun, and those on the northern side will get less sun.
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Plant the herbs in the spaces you have left in the newspaper mulch. Ensure the roots are well into the soil and recover with topsoil. Spread organic compost at least 3 inches deep over the entire surface of the herb garden, pulling a little back around the stems of the plants. Soak the compost.
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Spread newspaper over the entire surface of the herb garden, covering the compost, with the plants emerging from the newspaper-covered surface. Cover the newspaper with 3 inches of the triple-cut hardwood mulch. Give the whole thing a last soaking.
Enjoy your herb spiral.
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