Need heavy "brown" ideas for lasagna bed

Do you think the horse manure would cause too many weeds and grass?? If not, I can get plenty of it and between that and straw I would be good to go.....???

Genna

I use horse manure, and have never had any excesive problems with weeds, no more than usual! The last load of manure I got was from a stable, it was mixed with sawdust from the boxes (organic untreated timber they assured me) it has done wonders for improving the texture of my previously clay soil. No weeds at all from that lot. The farmer was kind enough to load up my trailer with his digger, from the older side of the pile.
You could always try it, and if you do get a vigorous surge of weeds after applying the manure, you could just suffocate them out with a big sheet of plastic. Before planting of course.

Lena

I also use horse manure and sawdust from my stalls, and my neighbors can't believe that I have worms in Florida. I just mulch heavily with it, and it helps the soil here tremendously. Or if I need to re-claim part of the yard for a flower bed, I just dump a big load on it and let it sit until the grass underneath dies, then I spread it and plant in it.

Thanks for the info. That should help for sure!

Genna

Ok - I have a problem. As I mentioned before, I added 2 bales of wheat straw I purchased from a local feed store about a week & a half ago. But now I have a ton of new grass growing in my bed. It looks like wheat grass....I guess from seed that was in the straw?? I wasn't expecting this. Has anyone had this problem before? What is the recommended way to get rid of this grass & keep more from growing? It pulls up fairly easily, but that would be time consuming & I feel like more would just grow. I thought of adding a weed & grass killer product to the bed since I won't be planting anything in the bed until spring (and no edibles are planned for this bed), but I wasn't sure if that's the best idea.

Please...any suggestions you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

Is it possible to turn the grass, and straw, without bothering the news papers?The turned under grass would give you a real nitrogen source, and help break down the bed, and would be ready in spring.Once the earth worms start to work on the paper, it won't be long before you can turn it all. Mike

Cover it with cardboard, wet it, and cover with something other than the weedy straw to weigh it down. Are your leaves falling yet, or is it still too early? Another option is to add more thick layers to smother the grass.

You don't want anything too heavy on top (like heavy bricks) as it would cause the bottom to go anerobic. Just enough weight to keep it there. Maybe empty milk jugs or 2 liter bottles partially filled with water. You could remove the top layer of cardboard later if desired.

Karen

Mike: I think turning over that straw again, exposing new straw to surface light, would result in new "grass" seed growth from the straw. But then, just my opinion.

I'm a no-till gardener. Once, and only once, I turned over the soil in my tomato beds, thinking it would loosen the clay soil and improve growing conditions. WRONG! It just brought old buried weed seeds to the surface where they thrived for 2 years despite my constant attention. Ever since then, I do strictly no till, mulch with compost and organic materials, and only dig if I have to. I don't get many weeds, either.

Karen

Thanks for the ideas. I'll plan to do the wet cardboard layer and then top it with manure (need to add a nitrogen source anyways). Hopefully that will keep the grass from growing further and the manure will help weigh down the cardboard. Think this will work?

Jennifer

Karen, I am not set on one idea, and what works for you is fine.I would leave the lasagna bed as is until just before planting time, and till the whole thing up in early Feb., and again when it is planting time.I would use the new wheat for green manure, and hopefully all the seeds had sprouted.
My first lasagna bed was on the hardest packed ground you could imagine, and when the worms had eaten the 6-9 inch thick newspaper layer, under the 6" layer of mulch, it was like tilling loose sand, and now it is a no till bed.Mike

Wow, 6 to 9 inch paper, I've never tried it nearly that thick. But cardboard has become my preference after several beds. We all do what works for us. But I agree, lasagna beds are fantastic.

We have floated several ideas for you jenepat. Or, maybe you'll come up with a better one. Let us know how things work out for you. Good luck.

Karen

Jenepat, from my experience the wheat straw just gives one initial flush of grass after spreading it. Its easy enough to pull out, and if you get the roots it doesnt come back. I just lay it on top where it wilts and turns to straw. The cardbord idea would work too of course. Sounds like you will have a wonderful lasagna by spring.

Lena

Thanks Lena. Glad to know if I get lazy & don't do the cardboard that it could still be OK. Thanks for the suggestion!

Should be plenty of leaves at neighborhood curbs now. If you still need some, you could talk to a neighborhood lawn maintenance person about dumping some at your house. Take care, Mike

The city folks can use shredded paper from offices as a carbon source for composting. Once it has been wet down, it mats together and stays in place very well. The worms love it too!