If you’re ready to start a new garden but dreading the back-breaking work of sod removal and tilling, let me show you how to sheet mulch!
When I first discovered this approach, I couldn’t believe how simple and effective it was. Rather than spending hours laboriously digging and removing sod, you can create a new garden space using the sheet mulching method in just a matter of hours (as long as the new garden isn’t crazy huge of course!).
Sheet mulching is a gardening method where you create new garden beds by layering materials such as cardboard, compost, and mulch directly on top of existing grass or weeds.
The cardboard acts as a barrier to suppress weeds and grass, while the layers of compost and mulch help build up the soil and provide nutrients. Both the cardboard and dead grass decompose and over time, add more nutrients and organic matter to the existing soil.
No digging and free soil enrichment? What gardener could refuse that?!
This post will cover everything: the benefits of sheet mulching, materials needed, where to find materials, when to sheet mulch, and how to sheet mulch.
Benefits of Sheet Mulch
Sheet mulching has completely changed the way I build out brand-new gardens. We have a fairly large property for the average suburban home, but it was all grass with just a few trees dotted here and there.
When I discovered sheet mulching to build new gardens, I couldn’t believe how easy it was to create new beds. We were used to the traditional way of making gardens: removing sod, tilling the soil, adding organic matter, then planting.
Sheet mulching is so much less work!
But that’s not the only thing sheet mulch does to benefit gardens. Here are some other benefits to sheet mulching:
- Soil Preservation: It disturbs the soil minimally, which helps maintain the natural structure and health of the soil, preserving beneficial microbes and soil life.
- Easy Weed Suppression: The cardboard layer blocks sunlight from reaching existing weeds and grass, preventing them from growing and making it easier to establish a new garden.
- Improved Soil Health: As the cardboard and mulch break down over time, they enrich the soil with organic matter, improving its fertility and structure.
- Instant Planting: You can plant directly into the sheet-mulched bed right away, saving you time waiting for soil preparation.
- Environmentally Friendly: By using natural, recycled materials like cardboard, it reduces waste.
If you’ve never tried sheet mulching, I can’t wait to introduce you to this method!
Materials Needed to Sheet Mulch
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. This means that if you buy through my links, I could earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. I only discuss products that I love and think you’ll love, too. I’m glad you’re here and thanks for reading!
Before starting the sheet mulching process, you’ll need to these things ready to go.
- cardboard (brown only; uncoated and uncolored; labels, tape, and staples removed)
- compost or rich soil
- wood chip mulch, or other natural mulch
- box cutter
- bow rake
- hose or buckets of water to dampen cardboard
- Gorilla Cart (optional)
- weed puller (optional)
- edging and half-moon edger (optional)
Make sure to get enough material to completely cover your garden area. Also, having the listed tools labeled (optional) will make the process go a lot smoother, but you can probably get by without if you don’t want to buy or borrow them.
What Kind of Cardboard to Use as Sheet Mulch
- Only use brown cardboard that is uncoated and unprinted.
- Remove all labels, tape, and staples.
Where to Find Mulch and Cardboard
Wood mulch is easily found at most nurseries and home improvement stores, but if you don’t mind a rougher mulch and have a large area to cover, check out ChipDrop for free wood mulch. That’s what we’ve used for the last few years.
Cardboard may be the most difficult to source enough of. I break down my boxes and save them throughout the year, so if you’re planning to sheet mulch ahead of time, you can begin collecting cardboard yourself. You can also check with appliance stores and ask them for boxes.
If your area has a local Buy Nothing group, you can ask there for cardboard donations, or simply put out a request to friends and family asking them to save their cardboard.
I wouldn’t recommend using newspaper unless you can source a lot of it. I don’t think it is thick enough to suppress weeds and grass, but if you have a very small space and are able to triple or quadruple your layers of newspaper, give it a try and let me know if it works out!
When to Sheet Mulch
It really doesn’t matter when to sheet mulch. You can sheet mulch an area at any time of year! Fall is ideal because the grass and weeds are going dormant, and winter will help kill off the lawn and break down the layers.
I find myself sheet mulching in the spring most often, and that works out really well for me, too.
How to Create a New Garden with Sheet Mulching
By following these steps, you can create a new garden bed with sheet mulching:
- Remove perennial weeds.
- Mow the grass short.
- Cover area with cardboard.
- Layer 2 inches of compost or rich soil on top of the cardboard.
- Plant and mulch.
Let me show you how I sheet mulched a space next to my raised beds to create a cut-flower garden.
Step 1: Remove Perennial Weeds
If you don’t have many weeds in the area you want to sheet mulch, skip ahead to the next step you lucky dog!
Sheet mulching naturally suppresses and kills a lot of weeds, but some, like thistles, are persistent and can survive long enough to push through the layers and reach the sunlight. (Although dandelions can have a deep taproot, in my experience they typically don’t survive after sheet mulching so I leave them alone.)
Remove as many invasive weeds and weeds that spread by rhizome as you can.
One way to do this is to pull up every weed by hand. Yes, it is time-consuming, but it’s also completely organic and very effective!
Using a weed puller like this one will help you get through this task easily (and standing up!).
Another way to get rid of weeds is to target each one with an herbicide. Choose one that you are comfortable using, but keep in mind that herbicides and pesticides remain in the soil for years. I wouldn’t recommend using herbicides in food gardens.
Lastly, if your new garden space is really, really full of noxious weeds, you can tarp the area to solarize and kill the weeds and grass beneath. To do this, spread a tarp over the garden bed. Weigh it down so it can’t blow away and leave the tarp on for a month. Once everything is dead, remove the tarp and continue onto Step 3.
The downside of solarizing is that beneficial soil life can be killed along with the grass. But, for me, the benefits of organically killing noxious weeds without having to pull them all up individually is worth it. You can always add back beneficial bacteria and microbes with homemade compost or a mycorrhizae powder.
Step 2: Mow the Grass Short
Once the worst weeds are gone, mow the remaining lawn as short as you can. Leave the lawn clippings in place.
Mowing also makes it easier to see the outline of your garden so you can make any changes you wish.
However, if you are sheet mulching while the grass is dormant like I am in the cut-flower garden photos, you may not need to mow your grass at all!
I also prefer to edge the garden bed at this point by cutting out the sod around the perimeter. I think it gives the whole bed a cleaner look.
Here’s a photo of what this step looks like when it’s done. This is part of our fruit orchard.
We like having a natural edge, but you could install metal, stone, or some other kind of edging at this point if you prefer. This part is optional and just depends on what you like to see!
Step 3: Cover Area with Cardboard
After scalping the lawn, cover the entire garden bed with cardboard. Make sure to patch any gaps with cardboard to completely exclude light from getting to the grass below.
Use a box cutter to cut off excess cardboard.
I only use one layer of cardboard, but if you live in a wet climate, you can use multiple layers of cardboard. Cardboard will break down quickly when damp, but we don’t get that much rainfall where I live in the Midwest.
Weigh the cardboard down to keep it from blowing away while you are covering the garden area. I use whatever I have around me to weigh it down!
Step 4: Layer with Compost or Soil
Once you have the cardboard in place, spread 2 inches of compost or rich soil on top of the cardboard.
Use good quality compost or soil for this step.
TIP: Use the tined side of a bow rake to move soil in place and the flat side to spread the soil around.
I highly recommend using a bow rake like this one to spread soil, compost, mulch, gravel, or whatever you need to spread in a garden! It’s one of my most used garden tools.
And, fun fact, I was today years old when I learned that this particular tool is called a “bow rake.” 😛
If you live in a dry climate, thoroughly wet the cardboard down before spreading the compost on top. This will help it stay moist enough to break down more easily.
Step 5: Plant and Mulch
Once all the layers are in place, you can actually begin planting in your new bed right away. Small plants or seeds can be planted into the top soil layer, but larger plants will need to be planted through the cardboard into the native soil.
If you’re not ready to plant, just cover the whole bed with mulch to keep the topsoil moist and in place.
Meanwhile make a plan! I wrote this post on garden planning if you’re curious about my process.
Also, there’s this post on how to start a cut-flower garden!
How to Plant in a Newly Sheet-Mulched Bed
Place your plants in the layout that you want. Make sure you like where plants are placed.
Push soil aside to expose the cardboard layer. Carefully cut an X in the cardboard and peel it back just enough to dig a hole to plant your plant in.
Dig into the native soil below to the depth you need for your plant. It should stick up a little bit because, remember, you have a layer of soil and cardboard to cover it with still.
Place the plant in the hole and close up the cardboard flaps to cover up the native soil. Cover the cardboard back up with the soil.
Repeat with remaining plants.
Finally, mulch the garden area with a natural mulch like wood chips or pine straw.
Keep the garden well-watered until plants are established.
It won’t take long before plants grow and thrive!
Sheet Mulching Will Change The Way You Garden
I love using the sheet mulching method to create new garden beds. Not only is it less laborious than what I used to do, it also helps build up the soil as the cardboard and lawn decompose in place.
Sheet mulching also disturbs the soil less which preserves beneficial microbes and other soil life as well as maintaining the natural structure of the soil. As far as knowing when to sheet mulch—you can do it any time of year.
I really like being able to plant in the sheet-mulched bed right away. I’ve planted seeds, seedlings, perennials, and trees, and all have successfully grown in their first season in a sheet-mulched garden.
Additionally I’ve found cardboard to be really useful in the garden for covering perennial weeds in an existing garden that needs to be renovated.
I’m glad to be able to use up our collected cardboard in the garden this way.
What do you think about sheet mulching? Will you try this method in your garden?
I hope this post gave you all the info you need to try sheet mulching for yourself. Let me know in the comments section below if you have any additional tips to share or questions about sheet mulching.