On the Snohomish County side of Bothell the lots sit between newer housing and the Sammamish River trail. Roofs, drives, and the trail corridor move a lot of water. The soils are urban soils: graded, compacted, and quick to grow moss where the sun is weak. City beds are narrow, and a sloppy bark job ends up on the sidewalk. We edge, we fill, and we blow the walk before we leave.
Snohomish County · ZIP 98021
A clean edge on a small bed
The old layer in these beds is usually a crust of fines and maple seeds. We rake that out if it is weedy, then refill. Fabric underneath, if someone installed it years ago and the weeds are growing on top of it, comes out. We do not add a new layer of fabric.
Depth is three inches, not a skin. On a small bed that is a smaller load than people fear, and it is the difference between a finished bed and a tinted one.
The ground in Bothell
We work the north side of the city, not a pretend second office. Yards are a mix of older ramblers and newer houses with small planting strips and a patio poured on tight fill. Runoff is the theme. A permeable patio or a short drain does more for the foundation than a wider concrete pad.
People here ask for plantings that feed birds and do not need a sprinkler all summer. That fits. Native beds along a back fence, a bark layer that is actually thick enough to suppress weeds, and a lawn that is aerated instead of constantly reseeded. Pressure washing keeps the walks and the siding from going black under the trees. The trail is a nice neighbor and a weed source. Edges need a clean line or the brush moves in.
How we do the work
Bark is a blanket, not a cleanup. We pull the weeds and the old matted layer that has turned into soil, edge the bed so the bark has a place to stop, and put down enough depth to block light. A sprinkle that still shows dirt is not a bark job. It is a way to pay for the same weeds in June.
We keep bark off the crowns of shrubs and off the trunks of trees. A volcano of mulch against the bark of a tree is how the trunk rots. Two to three inches across the soil, pulled back at the stems.
What we look at first
- Whether the old bark has composted into a weed bed
- The edge against the lawn
- Plants that are buried already
- How far the truck can get the load
Color
Natural bark fades to gray. That is normal. Dyed product holds a color and also stains concrete when it is fresh. We tell you which load you are getting. We do not promise the color in the photo will survive a winter.
How often
Top up every year or two, an inch or so, once the first depth is right. Starting over every spring means the first job was thin or the bed was never weeded. We would rather be on a light top-up.
Depth
About three inches after it settles, less against the stems, none against the trunk. One inch looks like a lot in the wheelbarrow and does nothing by July. We would rather do a smaller bed correctly.
More from this crew
- Beauty bark across Snohomish County
- Lawn weed control in Bothell
- Yard cleanup in Bothell
- Landscape design in Bothell
- Tree and shrub pruning in Bothell
- Beauty bark in Mill Creek
- Beauty bark in Lynnwood
- Beauty bark in Brier
Sources for the climate and the water
- USDA plant hardiness map for choosing plants that can take a Snohomish County winter.
- EPA WaterSense on watering less once a lawn or a new planting is established.
- EPA Soak Up the Rain on keeping roof and yard water from becoming someone else’s problem.
