Fall is a great time of year to think ahead to a new plot, and sheet mulching can get you started on that vision. Though it can be done at any time of the year, autumn is ideal because the area will have a chance to break down over the winter. I’ve used this technique to create a garden in my backyard after digging up invasive plants, to establish pathways between raised beds, and to keep weeds out of a new area on my front lawn for galvanized raise beds. The process of sheet mulching enables you to put yard waste, like lawn clippings, fallen leaves, and wood chips, to good use. And by spring, you should have a diggable area, ready for plants.
Let’s say you have several square feet of lawn that you want to turn into a new garden bed. In lieu of removing the sod yourself, or hiring landscapers to do it, sheet mulching will save you time and/or money.
You can think of sheet mulching as a type of composting. But, unlike with a traditional compost pile, once you’ve established your sheet mulch layers, there’s no need to turn anything with a pitchfork. You just let nature do its thing. Over time, the natural decomposition process takes place. What you’re left with is a new garden bed that’s free of weeds and full of beneficial bacteria, fungi, and nutrients.
What is sheet mulching?Sheet mulching requires very little digging or weeding. Instead, it’s all about systematically layering natural materials, such as fresh grass clippings, pine needles, and fallen leaves, over a base layer of newsprint sections or cardboard. These layers smother any vegetation growing beneath them while gradually decomposing. Although that whole process can take several months, in the end you’ll have a new, weed-free garden bed bursting with richer,
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