If you’re digging, laying, levelling or planting, you’ll need to get your layers right, and that starts with the right landscaping aggregate. So, which should you be using, bedding sand or topsoil?
There’s a lot of conflicting advice online, and it can catch you out if you’re not careful. Because when you use the wrong material for the job, all that hard slog you’ve put in soon means nothing. Your pavers shift, the new lawn doesn’t take, or drainage becomes a nightmare.
At Rock & Rubble, we supply both bedding sand and screened topsoil for landscaping projects big and small. If you’re not sure which one to use (or when to use both), here’s what to know before the first bucket hits the ground.
What is Bedding Sand?
If you’re prepping a base, you need sand for blinding (also known as grit sand). It’s coarse, free-draining, and packs down to a firm surface.
Bedding sand can be used for blinding, giving you a base layer that holds true under pavers and patios. It can also be worked into heavy soil to help loosen it up, but it doesn’t hold moisture or nutrients, so it isn’t used on its own in growing areas.
What is Topsoil?
If you’re trying to grow things, topsoil is the layer you need. Topsoil is what you use for prepping a lawn, building up garden beds, or improving patchy or tired soil. It holds moisture, feeds plants, and helps roots take off.
At Rock & Rubble, we screen ours to make sure it’s clean and easy to work with. Rich, crumbly, and full of organic matter, it’s perfect for planting.
Bedding Sand vs Topsoil
They might both be commonplace in landscaping, but bedding sand and topsoil aren’t interchangeable. Bedding sand is for drainage and structure, topsoil is for nutrients and growth.
Trying to grow straight into bedding sand or pave over topsoil is a fast track to headaches later. Use the right stuff in the right place, and you won’t have to think about it again for years.
Landscaping in NZ Conditions
Of course, just because each product has its own place, doesn’t mean they can’t be used together.
Around Auckland and Tauranga, heavy clay garden soil is common, which means drainage is more of a problem than moisture retention. That’s where some landscapers find that mixing bedding sand into soil can help open it up, especially for lawns and garden beds.
And for laying new lawns, we recommend packing down bedding sand first, then following with a good layer of topsoil before laying your turf on top.
Why Get It From Rock & Rubble?
We supply landscaping materials Auckland-wide, as well as throughout the Bay of Plenty. With straightforward pricing, fast delivery, and a team that actually knows what this stuff is used for, we’ll make sure you get the right material for the job.
Get in touch for a quote or to arrange delivery.