hi everyone, hopefully there's someone still reading this... I just made my first lasagna bed last fall. What I found was that first, it was super easy, and second - it was SO EASY! And it looks like I just added a foot of growing medium where there was previously just grass! I really did not like the idea of pulling up sod, shaking out the dirt, and worring about microrganisims leaving before I planted. It's a lot of work, which, for food, work is just part of the process. But after I observed a garden at a Permaculture class that was growing melons and squash after being lawn just months before with no tilling or weeding, I knew I needed to try this. I still haven't seen my bed yet since I completed it last fall, as we still have feet of snow on the ground and it's mid-april now. But before the snow fell, my garden included a lot of great material, none of it cost me a penny and all came from my area. What helped me was looking in a composting book for lists of bulkly material that could be composted. There were a lot of good ideas. The layers were as such, from bottom to top: newspapers spent barley malt from a local brewery chunky mostly finished compost grass clippings rotted manure soil from a previously dug out pond autumn leaves Now that I've been reading more, I think that I would have put in some sand from our sand pit down the road to help with drainage. I strongly believe there is no "right" way to make this concept work. There are many paths leading from many places to accomplish your goal with what you have for initiative, brains, and mulch materials. I am so happy to be able to find this out right when I needed it most. What I didn't like was the idea of going to the store to buy 50 bales of peat moss!!! I already purchase one bale for starting seedlings. I like how people are using spoiled hay, which in many places, is very abundant. I don't believe that a good bed requires peat moss; nor do I think it's a bad thing to use it. I just don't like the idea of paying for it and depleating a very very slow-growing resource when there are many other materials to try out first. I look forward to getting a bunch of the spoiled hay this spring. That is if we ever see a day without snow here in Maine... My question is: has anyone used lasagna gardening for beds in a large greenhouse? Would love to hear about it!

Well, I guess I will add my two cents worth, though ha' penny's worth might be more accurate. I don't really like the terms that are used most often because of misconceptions people have. Many people think square foot gardening is little square plots with diverse things in it and the plots have to be arranged all in neat rows. It doesn't have to be that mundane. Several responses here have said that, and I have to add my "that's right!" to it. I prefer small space gardening as a term. I also like layer gardening rather than lasagna gardening because there is a misconception that lasagna gardening is a set method of preparation that requires a sort of recipe approach. That all being said, small space gardening is what it is. There are basic principles that make it work well. Combining it with layer gardening, however, is a little tricky. One of the problems you run into is your layers. Some of us who have started gardening from scratch have no green stuff to put into a garden layer. In a new house inside a new subdivision? Yeah, I am. No trees! Where am I going to get brown stuff to put into a garden layer? And, if you do find the ingredients, the layers are not bioavailable and do nothing but act as mulch for a year or two. The added difficulty is planting things in those layers, or through the layers to the untreated soil beneath (which is what you are really doing that first year). The truth is that this method takes way too much time anyway. If you want to start fast and then add greens and browns to keep going, here is a good way I have used again and again. And this method actually speeds things up and adds a wonderful treat to your garden. Step one: become a grass murderer! Sorry, but you have to. Kill the grass in the bed you want to make. Removal is best, but back breaking, and if you have that hated weed, Bermuda grass, you will just get invaded from anything you missed. For that reason, you want to put down something that will choke the grass out well enough not to leave any behind. I like using a combination of newspaper and cardboard in the winter. Next put up your bed walls to contain your bed, being sure that you have the walls a little smaller than your newspaper and cardboard prep. This is because one of the most annoying things is to build your bed walls first and have grass survive at the very inside edge of your bed, sending runners all through your bed in early spring. Next layer the bed. I use the following, but the trick is to come up with your own that works for you. You will notice that I use a little more wood much than you would expect, but wait for it! There is a good reason. Starting with the deepest layers: Composted humus and manure sand wood mulch composted humus and manure top soil wood mulch Now, this can be planted as soon as spring hits (or immediately if you are growing some cool season crops). Now you need to do something that will break down all that wood mulch (remember I used two layers). I like to use King Stropharia mushroom spawn and put it in the garden. Okay, I know that sounds crazy, but it will make sense in a minute. King Stropharia is an edible mushroom and decomposer that works wonders. As it breaks down the wood, it releases nutrients to the soil and attracts earthworms. It also preys on nematodes. After your first season of gardening, you can cut all the dead stuff and put it in the garden. Throw in some more wood chips or wood mulch (hardwood works best in my experience) and the mushrooms will keep digesting and composting the soil. You then plant again the next year, leaving the layer of debris and mulch from the previous year on top and harvesting your mushrooms. The result is that you now have an active, living compost pile right in your garden that you can layer things on to your heart is content. If where you live is warm enough to grow the mushroom, I definitely say you should try it. I have heard that phoenix oyster mushrooms work equally well for setting up a space saving garden with layering.

It depends on how thick your layers are and what ingredients you used to create them. Lasagna gardening is just sheet composting and this is a cold composting process that requires time to achieve. While I might suggest layering the bed with straw or a thick layer of leaves for winter (mostly for erosion control and weed suppression), I think you'll find that the nutrient value of that bed come next spring when you intend to plant will be just about perfect. btw, soil (not 'dirt') contains all the minerals plants typically need. Lasagna gardening is just a way of getting a lot of organic matter into any mineral based soil. And a more 'finished' compost of your layers of organic matter is far better for plant health and nutrient delivery than planting a lasagna bed immediately after creation.

<Can I put down layers of newspaper and cardboard, then set the pots on top of them? Will the watering help speed up the process? I live in an area with very little rain, and I will be watering the potted plants anyway.> Water serves many purposes in any garden. When building the bed water helps to hold the papers/cardboard in place esp on a windy day. When layering you may never get any moisture deep down esp. in areas with little rain so it is best to add water as you layer just as you would when building a compost pile. Also in composting (a lasagna bed is a form of composting) bacteria need moisture to begin their work in decomposition. Then of course after transplanting your plants will need the water to survive.