Lasagna garden prep step one and two

1) Take newspaper you've shoved in a recycle bin. I get quite a few of those penny shoppers and use them because the unfolded size is just the right area for me to manage at one time. I lay down a double thickness of newspaper and immediately add (2) my second layer which is a small bit of sand or decayed leaves. Why? The paper will catch on even the slightest breeze and you'll be retrieving an ingredient instead of creating layers. Easy so far, right? No shovels, turning soil, or heavy lifting. You cover the surface whether grass, weeds, or exposed clay soil-no prep. You can work a really small space the size of a shrub or tree area, or a 20x20 space, depending on how ambitious you are and how willing your helpers. Those of you familiar with a chicken tractor method of creating a garden plot will catch on to this technique fast, but sadly, you don't get any eggs as you build the lasagna plot.



Step three and four tomorrow. In case you are just dying to know, there is a really good book about chicken tractoring--which by the way doesn't have a thing to do with tractors. Check out Andy Lee and Pat Foreman's work, Chicken Tractor: The Permaculture Guide to Happy Hens and Healthy Soil.