Lasagna Gardening Method: How to Create a Lasagna Garden

Lasagna gardening—sometimes called no-dig or no-till gardening—is a process in which you create an environment for your garden to do most of the work of decomposition and replenishment itself. By alternating different layers of organic material, you can have a new bed of flowers, plants, and the like that will nourish themselves throughout the year with little need for upkeep. To take advantage of this process, you need kitchen scraps and wood and paper shreds for this DIY project.

A lasagna garden can be an attractive option to those desiring a low-maintenance garden. Here are three pros to this type of garden:

1. 1. Healthy soil: The constant interplay between the green and brown materials in your lasagna garden keeps it balanced and nourished. If you add earthworms into the mix, they’ll introduce microorganisms that will keep the soil even healthier.
2. 2. Mitigated weed problems: You may never have a completely weed-free garden, but the bottom and top layers of a lasagna garden do a lot to prevent weed growth.
3. 3. Reduced workload: The main reason for lasagna gardening’s popularity is the fact that it requires you to do little work to maintain it. This gardening method helps you build a well-kept sanctuary for your plants with rich soil and no digging or tilling. Its self-replenishing nature makes each new growing season simple.

While a lasagna garden requires few check-ins, there is still room for complications. Check out these three cons:

1. 1. Complications growing from seed: Since the top layer of a lasagna garden is a smothering layer of mulch for weeds and whatnot, you can’t lay it until your initial seeds are growing. Otherwise, you’ll prevent them from getting all the light, water, and breathing room they’d need to thrive.
2. 2. Slow growth: This more natural gardening method can slow growth rates, which can be frustrating for those who like to see results fast. Rather than accelerate growth using fertilizer or any other means, you are dependent upon the rate at which the lasagna garden nourishes the plants.
3. 3. Space limitations: While you can technically lay out a lasagna garden on its own, it makes more sense to create a raised and confined area for it given how many layers are in one. This can become a clunky accoutrement to your overall landscaping unless planned correctly.

The lasagna gardening method isn’t difficult but requires careful layering. Here are seven steps to get you started with this DIY gardening project.

1. 1. Lay the foundation. The first layer of your lasagna garden should be a layer of cardboard or something else that can smother any weeds from taking over your soon-to-be organic garden. You won’t be able to eliminate the need for weeding entirely, but starting your layering this way will mean fewer weeds in your future than you would be dealing with otherwise.
2. 2. Add in a brown layer. Add in a thick layer of brown materials to give your garden soil a carbon-rich environment to thrive in. Peat moss, sawdust, and woodchips fit the bill for this section of your new garden. You can also add in shredded newspaper, dried leaves, and other yard waste if you want to skip a trip to the home and garden store. All these elements will help facilitate the decomposition process for your lasagna bed.
3. 3. Put down a green layer. Your green materials should effectively perform as a giant compost pile. Grab some kitchen waste, pine needles, coffee grounds, grass clippings, vegetable scraps, and so on to do some makeshift sheet composting. You can also use a more official composting source, like manure. All these trimmings will give your vegetable garden plenty of nutrients to feast on, rendering it a nitrogen-dense and growth-conducive environment.
4. 4. Consider alternating layers. While you can make do with just one layer each of brown and green elements, multiple layers of organic material can up the ante for your garden bed. Throw in additional woody materials, add another layer of food scraps and veggie matter, then repeat the process. You don’t want the raised bed getting too tall, but a few additional layers of organic matter will help your garden keep growing for a long time.
5. 5. Plant seeds. After you’ve laid the top layer of soil, plant your seeds and let them begin growing. You don’t have to plant any seeds before laying the final layer of mulch, but letting some germinate and begin blooming will make letting your garden grow overall a lot easier. Alternatively, if you don’t want to plant any seeds from scratch, you can add some additional transplants into the soil after putting in the mulch layer if you’d like.
6. 6. Put down a top layer. After you’ve laid down the topsoil and your initial plants begin to bloom, it’s time to start mulching. This mulch will combat weeds, conserve water, and create an even more hospitable environment for growth. Don’t plant new seeds during the early days after mulching—it will likely stifle their growth.
7. 7. Repeat annually. One of the nicest things about lasagna gardens is that they can exist in perpetuity. In exchange for putting down additional layers each fall, you’ll grant yourself another low-stress, more hands-off approach to gardening for another year.

Grow your own garden with Ron Finley, the self-described "Gangster Gardener." Get the MasterClass Annual Membership and learn how to cultivate fresh herbs and vegetables, keep your house plants alive, and use compost to make your community—and the world—a better place.