Lasagna Gardening: It’s Not Just for Dinner Anymore
By Vanessa Richins
One gardening method that works very well for urban gardens is lasagna gardening.
I’m not talking about growing tomatoes, oregano and basil together (as heavenly as that sounds right now).
Lasagna gardening, rather, is a bed preparation technique that requires no tilling or digging. You won’t need a separate compost bin, either. It can also be used for containers.
The name lasagna gardening refers to the layering technique used to build up the bed. First, you select the area where you want to construct the bed. If there’s sod or weeds, they don’t need to be removed.
Next, you spread a thick material like layers of newspaper or flat cardboard over the plot. This will kill any grass or weeds underneath.
Follow this with a layer of peat moss or coir(coconut fibers), about 2-3″ thick. After this comes a layer of organic material 4-6″ thick. You want to have a mixture of carbon-rich matter and nitrogen-rich matter, at about a 25:1 ratio. Common carbon-rich materials include leaves, newspaper, cardboard pieces, and dryer lint. For nitrogen, use grass clippings, algae, non-invasive weeds, and manure.
Continue layering between peat/coir and organic materials until the entire plot is 18-24″ high. Once this is finished, you can leave it to start decomposing if you like, but you are able to plant immediately also. All you have to do is push the layers aside to plant, then cover when finished. As the plants grow, the materials will decompose, producing nutrient-rich compost for your plants.
If you want to make it decompose even faster, add in some earthworms. You can also buy special composting worms from garden supply stores and websites.
Lasagna gardening is a great way for those with limited space to create rich soil.
Has anyone ever tried it in their own garden?
Let me know.
April 28th, 2008 at 7:48 am
I need to give this technique a try. Been reading about it quite a bit lately.
April 28th, 2008 at 11:03 am
When I moved into my house last year there were long beds of ivy that I wanted for planting cutting flowers. I used the lasagna method starting with cardboard boxes that came from furniture shipments to smother the ivy. A year later I have a robust garden bed growing there!
April 28th, 2008 at 12:54 pm
It absolutely works, and it is a great alternative to people who just can’t seem to fathom waiting weeks and months for traditional composting methods to work their magic.
Don’t forget to toss in your coffee grounds!
April 30th, 2008 at 11:02 am
He Reggie and all you good writers, I am glad to see this. It will be so useful to a lot of readers, and if it is permissible for me to do so it will be lots of help to this old man when he writes his journal, DAD
April 30th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
DAD,
Of course, Feel free to share with your readers. We like to share with abandon here!
So glad you found this info to be helpful.
Best,
-reg
May 1st, 2008 at 5:17 am
Glad to see some of you have tried this too. We are thinking of using this at our new house when planting some cold-hardy bamboo…that can spread like nothing else.
Happy lasagna gardening to all!
May 1st, 2008 at 9:42 pm
I layered my small bed in March. I was going to leave it to do its thing until fall, but I think I may go ahead and transplant my cucumbers there.
July 20th, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Can this method be used for like small container gardens as well as big ones?
August 26th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
I have done my whole yard with lasagne gardening. I have heloped 6 neighbors also do lasagne gardening. I love it and swear by it.
My house is on the corner and I put put 3 foot wide raised flower beds beside my sidewalk (150 feet). The only weed that has grown through it is the wild morning glory/bindweed. I spray it with “Speed Zone” and it gets rid of the bindweed.
I have come to a few realizations about using Lasagne Gardening that i can share with you. The key is putting plenty of newspaper/cardboard down for the first layer. I ahve never put lime or any other chemical underneath the paper and my garden has done fine. When adding layers, I put shallow layers of anything organic I cna get my hands on including topsoil, chopped leaves, sewer mulch, peat moss, fine mulch, oyster shells (adds calcium) etc. I did NOT like straw because it brought a lot of seeds into my beds. I did not like cow compst because it turned my garden into a lawn. I am careful what I bring in to make sure I am not bringing in weeds.
My vegetable garden is 32×30. My home had been a rental for 12 years. The garden had all sorts of grass in it. I tried the first year to keep it weeded but it was a losing battle. i am a single mom and do not have the hour per day it needed to keep the grass out.
The second year, I layed a truck load of cardboard down in the garden. I bought two dump trucks of sandy loamy topsoil and that was dumped on the cardboard. I then layered leaves, compost and peat moss. It is beautiful and most importantly, no weeds. I have fat earthworms. I love my garden.
I would never do any other type of gardening again. I do have a small area where I plant tender row crops of items like lettuse, radishes and green ions (it is my salad garden). My neighbor spent a lot of money to do square foot gardening. I get twice the produce that she does for half the cost. I need more than 16 green bean plants, I planted 60 feet of green bean plants this year.
Lasagne Gardening is a great gardening method. Youa re welcome to email me with questions: kathyc22@yahoo.com
Good Luck!
September 9th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Wow Kathy! Many thanks for great lasagna gardening instruction.
December 30th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
Good Morning i read your site often and thought i would say all the best for the New Year!
March 13th, 2010 at 7:43 am
I’m a fan of Lasagna gardening as well. I just have one little snippet to add. I purchased a few old “blenders” from my local thrift store and I keep my “peelings, egg shells, ends of veggies, etc.” and run them through my “garden blender” with water that I run from tap and let sit to dechlorinate…it can be poured right on top of the garden…the worms think they were invited to a smorgasboard for dinner… there is no other way to garden for me…almost work free…making the lasagna is not work it’s fun!
March 20th, 2010 at 12:30 pm
Even for a noobie on the subject this is as clear as it can get. THX xoxoxo
May 24th, 2010 at 3:25 am
I just had someone email me and ask if I still do Lasagna Gardening.
YES! I still love it. I have helped many in my neighborhood do it too!
Every year, after I plant my garden, I add another layer to the lasaga bed. I lay newspaper and fine wood chips, grass clipping or whatever other organics I can get cheaply, arounf my plants (or after the seeds are up about 2″) and there is little weeding to do all year.
I love this method especially for weed control.
I prefer cardboard for getting the garden going and newspaper for annual weed control. Cardboard takes two years to fully break down while newspaper is pretty well gone by the end of the season. The newspaper must be fully covered in order for it to fully decomposed by the end of the normal growing season.
Again, I LOVE this method! I do cheat and till in the spring but seriously, it is such beautiful dirt, I would probably just spade it with my shovel and get amazing results.
Kathy
July 20th, 2010 at 11:38 am
I used MAGAZINES to create a flower bed as I had magazines on hand and not cardboard. Worked like a charm. The bed is still weedfree YEARS later!
August 24th, 2010 at 11:37 pm
Hey can I copy and paste this article on my web site? What references must I give? You need to give this info for other people too.