i just planted a red emporer next to my 5 year old house here in dallas. as i started digging i was expecting the typical akaline, caliche, rock hard soil. but apparently the builder used a sandy soil, orange-red, as fill around this part of the house. took me 30 seconds to dig the hole, i could have dug it without a shovel after breaking through the grass. this orange-red-sandy soil extends down about 18 inches, where the typical akaline/caliche soil starts.

i see many japanese maples here, but i dont know how they will do in sand. any ideas?

thanks,