Lasagna Gardening
Article 1
but will enable you to accomplish more, in less time, with less work..."
- Patricia Lanza
Lasagna Gardens are the Latest
Craze in Organic Gardening
Are you looking for a new way to garden? Perhaps you are growing weary of
digging and tilling the earth in your garden plots. Lasagna gardening is quickly
becoming a popular form of gardening and it may just be what you need to revive
your own fruit,
vegetable or flower garden!
If you are like me, the first time you heard the phrase lasagna gardening you
probably thought of a garden filled with oregano, basil and other herbs that add
to the flavor of excellent lasagna. But that is definitely not what lasagna
gardening is all about.
The main idea behind Lasagna Gardening is ......layering....layering....
The idea behind lasagna gardening is just like an actual lasagna; layers. The
key ingredient to a lasagna garden is the creation The main idea behind Lasagna
Gardening of layers. This type of gardening is typically all organic, with no
protein added in any form. With this type of garden, there will be a very
limited number of weeds, because there is no soil used.
Prepare soil for a Lasagna Garden?
To prepare a successful lasagna garden you will need to follow a few simple
gardening tips. The fist thing that you will need to do is select a location.
The sunniest location in your yard will be the most appropriate place for
lasagna gardening.
To prepare the soil, you do not need to do any preparation to your soil at all,
do not remove the turf, rocks or dig up the earth in any way. The first thing to
do to start lasagna gardening is to add a layer of very wet newspaper. Layer the
newspaper with peat moss, and then a thick layer of organic material on top of
the peat moss.
Just keep on layering your Lasagna Garden.
Continue layering with alternate layers of peat moss and organic material until
your lasagna garden is thick enough. Water the garden until it has the
consistency of a wet sponge. After that, all you need to do is plant your garden
and mulch. It is very simple to maintain lasagna gardening; you simply keep
mulching your garden.
And then….. mulch.
The type of mulch, or organic material that you use in lasagna gardening will
depend on the area that you live and what you have readily available to you. But
some common types are: grass clippings, leaves, manure, chopped up corn cobs,
sawdust, wood ash, seaweed or kelp.
Almost everything grows well in a lasagna garden; however asparagus, tomatoes,
beans, cucumbers, garlic, lettuce and potatoes do particularly well. With a
little imagination, you can try anything while lasagna gardening, even those
herbs that taste good in traditional lasagna!
The above shows a sample recipe for a finished lasagna bed, with alternating layers of peat moss and organic materials
For a more extensive article by Patricia Lanza, author of "Lasagna Gardening, A New Layering System for Bountiful Gardens: No Digging, No Tilling, No Kidding!" (Rodale Press, 1998, $15.95) go to http://www.motherearthnews.com.
