How to Build Your Own Lasagna Garden

Alright, before I get too far ahead of myself, let me just make it clear: you cannot grow lasagna in your garden. That’s not to say you can’t grow the fixings to make a lasagna, but I’ll save that for another day.

Lasagna gardens are for those who want to grow their own food, but don’t have the luxury of excess time to till, weed and water for hours on end. It refers to a method, not a product of gardening.

Essentially, this is a way to garden that lets you accomplish more with much less work. Need I say more?

The term was coined by Patricia Lanza in her 1998 publication “Lasagna Gardening: A New System of of Layering for Bountiful Gardens”. A mother of 7 and the owner of an inn, Particia simply couldn’t do it all and more often than not would let her garden fall by the wayside.

As it turns out, it was not the end of her harvest. She discovered in fact that leaving the garden to its own devices after planting could produce some of the most vibrant veggies and fruits.

Also known as mulching or sheet gardening, this laid back approach is not completely hands off, but can reduce the amount of work of a traditional garden by up to 60%.

So how can you get your own lasagna garden going?

Here are some of the steps you’ll need to take to reap the benefits of a bountiful harvest without all the work:

In the fall, after you’ve decided the plot of land you’d like to use for your garden, you will want to cover the area with cardboard and soak it thoroughly. The object of doing this is to smother the existing growth and prevent any further weeds from taking root.

Next you will need to gather your organic materials for your layers. The more variety the better. Peat moss, straw, wood chips, dry leaves, sawdust and or newspapers will all work as your layer of brown organics.

They work well because they decompose quickly and encourage rapid oxygen rich soil.

For your green organic layer, feel free to use any combination of compost from vegetarian food scraps, manure, untreated grass clippings, seaweed, coffee grounds and or blood meal.

Now that you have your materials you can get started building your garden. Start with a 5 inch thick layer of brown compost with 3 inches of green on top. Repeat 3 times and top it off with a 3 inch layer of topsoil.

The best is yet to come. Time to sit back and wait.

With the arrival of spring, your garden will be ready for planting. The benefit of a lasagna garden is that it requires no weeding or tilling. Simply plant your seeds, sit back, and enjoy.

Once your seedlings start to sprout, spread a thin layer of weed free straw over the garden surface. This will help conserve water, keep weed growth down and keep the garden fortified with nutrients over time.

As the years go by, your garden will become richer with minerals and the soil truly healthy – pesticide and spray free.

The above steps are simply a guideline and depending on your climate, variables can be tweaked and fine tuned to truly optimize the growth of your produce.