Remove the sod, it is easier if it is alive, so skip the Round Up. Thanks, that's the best laugh it reminded mo of the time I saw the boy put the lawn mower away and grab the weed wacker to cut the grass out back.

Hi I did the same thing years ago only never used the roundup my soil at that time was hard marine blue clay I tried digging by hand after trying to dig up the area all afternoon my wife orded a MANTIS which I received about 2 days later, within 1 hour it was done then I added top soil and compost and alfalpha pellets and 10-10-10 and tilled that in, let it set for a few more days and tilled it one more time , havent had to much problems with weeds but to keep those under control I use hoho or an electric weeder in my area I dont use to much mulch.I dont use round up to often except if I see some bamboo growing near the brook.Go to http://www.hillgardens.com and you will come across an article called keys to the garden gate by FRED DAVIS its well worth reading and will have everything you want to know believe me its well worth it. DICK

Don't use Roundup to kill the sod. Go Green .
Use a shovel.

Below is a link to a method that does work very well. You can plant in it right away too as long as the organic matter you are using is already well broken down and not creating heat.

Linda

Here is a link that might be useful: An Introduction to Lasagna Gardening

Hi South Dakota, I am the laziest gardener I know. This is the easiest way to start a new bed in a lawn (very little of which is left in my yard). I scalp the lawn first, weed wack or set the mower to the lowest setting. Then I get newspaper and put a thickness of 5 sheets down and cover the whole area, overlapping generously and then dump a few inches of compost if I have it, topped with a few inches of wood chips (holds newspaper down and keeps weeds down). The lawn dies, newspaper decomposes and the earthworms love it...this I usually do in the fall giving winter time to break everything down and kill the grass... I have done it in the spring but there is no time to kill the grass, so what I do then is dig out a generous circle of lawn where I want to put in a plant and then I bring the newspaper around the plant out to grass and put wood chips down...I have had great success with minimal back breaking work, no chemicals, worm poop is an added bonus and the earthworms aerate the soil. I also mulch with newspaper and wood chips in existing flower beds. My friend used shredded paper and chips in her existing beds this past year with excellent results. She did this as her plants were very close together and it was easier to put handfuls of shredded paper down rather than folding newspaper to fit around plants. Also it is good to moistened the newspaper or shredded paper first, helps keep it in place on a windy day. I just keep a bucket of water with me as I go. Jean in NJ

Hi George,

(Glad you shared your first name in the "First names, please" thread)

Quite an addiction we have, huh, when we buy more DLs than we have room for (or what we mapped out for during the winter months!)

I have planted all the various ways described above, except for Lasagna gardening, and Jean's way in the Spring. (Now Jean, you just gave me another excuse to order more DLs!)

I have found that tilling w/o removing the sod, will eventually result in many tufts of grass coming back, and it's a real pain to get rid of after your DLs come up. My father (who plowed under my first garden about 9 years ago) told me the sod must be overturned to a depth of 12-14" to guarantee that it won't come back. But back then he was talking about a very fertile area that used to be a cow pasture - the grass grew three times as fast as in other areas.

A neighbor tilled a new garden area for me last fall, when he saw me removing sod. He told me, "That's too much work for you. Let me till it for you. Don't worry, the grass won't re-grow." Well, guess what - the grass came back, because he didn't till deep enough. I should have refused his offer and continued to remove sod in the first place!

I don't like to use Round-up unless absolutely necessary. The digging is good exercise, anyway! Maybe this fall, plan ahead, and start a new garden area with newspapers & mulch, or plan for a Lasagna garden.

I'm sure your newly arriving DLs will survive, no matter what you do. We sometimes take better care of our plants than we do ourselves! Just don't break your back!

Hope you have a wonderful gardening year!

Julie