Learn How to Build Healthier Soil with Sheet Mulching

You may have heard of a technique in gardening called "sheet mulching" or "lasagna gardening." This technique has been touted as a great way to wipe out weeds and build rich, organic soil. There are a few methods you can use when sheet mulching, depending mostly on whether you want to do shallow sheet mulching or deep sheet mulching. Shallow sheet mulching consists of a single layer of cardboard, or a few sheets of newspaper, and one layer of mulch. Deep sheet mulching consists of multiple layers of paper, brown mulch, and green mulch. Learn more about sheet mulching and how it works here.
Learn more here: www.finegardening.com/article...
Materials:
Hose
Supply of untreated cardboard or several stacks of newspapers. (If you use newspapers, make sure they are paper only-no plastic content.)
You will also need a bunch of mulch to lay over the entire area at least 2 to 4 inches thick. Amounts will depend on the size of the area you want to cover.
To calculate the amount of mulch you need, use this formula:
Square footage × desired depth ÷ 324 = cubic yards needed

[@JLee-pc2vc]

Is this the same thing as "no dig" or is there a difference?

[@FinegardeningMag]

No - good question! Not exactly. You use this to build the soil (deep sheet mulching) or to suppress weeds around plants (shallow sheet mulching). The layers break down over time and make for a rich and healthy area that you would later plant.
With a no dig garden, the layers are a bit different, and you would dig into the layers to create plant pockets and fill those with soil/compost (so not exactly no dig - you just create layers rather than use the soil as is, if that makes sense).
You could potentially dig into your deep sheet mulched layers, but you'd typically add in a few layers of straw and manure/compost as well, and you'd need to make sure to fill the holes where you are placing plants with some soil and compost so that they would have nutrition in the short term while the rest breaks down.
I hope that helps!
- Christine, FG digital editor

[@davidsonneidert5523]

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