Decades in the Making… and I Need More Dirt!

This past spring, I finally had my deep garden beds built. I've been planning this garden for decades, and apparently, I don't do anything halfway.

Anyway, it's a lot of deep beds.

We started with cardboard and ½-inch welded wire to keep the moles, ground squirrels, and gophers out. Then came branches, wood chips, and finally, soil.

I got excited and had the guys fill them up. They didn't quite fill them to the top, and after the first growing season, everything settled another two or three inches.

I should've known this would happen.

Now I need more dirt.

The problem is, I have perennial flowers and herbs growing in almost every bed. These aren't empty boxes waiting for me to fix my mistake. They're occupied.

And I can't exactly dump several inches of soil on top of everything and hope for the best.

So here's what's happening in the garden this week: after decades of planning, I'm trying to figure out how to add more dirt without burying what I've already planted.

Now I'd love to hear from you.

Have you dealt with this? How do you add soil to an occupied garden bed? What worked, what didn't, and what do you wish somebody had warned you about?

Because apparently, after decades of planning, I still need more dirt.