When you let nature do the work, you’ll end up with a healthier garden.
In January 2021, I moved to a new home with my family.
Fortunately, the house itself was move-in ready.
Credit: Courtesy of West Cliff Creative
Unfortunately, however, the yard had years of deferred maintenance.
As a result, weeds and an abandoned lawn grew in soil that could be best compared to concrete.
Here’s how it works and why you should try it in your yard.
Credit: Courtesy of Emily Murphy
What Is No-Dig Gardening?
It’s organic matter that feeds the topsoil and the ecosystem living in the soil.
Simply put, they need each other.
People are part of this matrix too.
As humans, we’re only ashealthy as the environment in which we live.
Soil is life, and it takes life to grow life.
No-dig gardening asks you to reframe the conversation around growing.
How can you think like an ecosystem and work with it rather than disrupting it by disturbing thetopsoilor soil?
Basically, in a nutshell, soil is life, and it takes life to grow life.
The more biodiverse and abundant these microbes, the better.
you’re free to evenuse it to transform lawnsand areas with hard-to-work, seemingly impossible soil.
Nearly a year later, I have light, crumbly soil filled with life and ready to plant.
It’s truly quite remarkable.
I like to use a layer of 1 to 2 inches of compost in spring and fall.
Remember, don’t till in the compost.
Just let nature do its thing.
Create a planting hole just big enough for the plant at hand.
Keep off your planting beds as much as possible as you work in them.
How Soon Can I Plant Flowers and Veggies?
When it comes to a no-dig garden method, patience is key.
If you opt for newspaper instead, use several layers to get the same benefits of cardboard.
In most cases, the cardboard layer will break down within 2 to 3 months.
Though not a natural product, black plastic works well, too.
One cubic yard of compost should cover around 325 cubic feet of topsoil.
However, the depth of the compost will depend on what you’re growing.
Holka, Magorzata, et al.
“Reducing Carbon Footprint of AgricultureCan Organic Farming Help to Mitigate Climate Change?“Agriculture,vol.
9, 2022, 1383, MDPI.
doi:10.3390/agriculture12091383
University of Minnesota Extension.How to Correct Problems because of Using too Much Compost and Manure.
