Garden Q&A: Remove sod to create garden space

Q uestion: How do we get rid of a large area of lawn and convert it to a natural woodsy planting area with a few perennial plants and shrubs?

Answer: Beginning a garden from scratch can be quite a challenge, especially when the site is covered with turf. But, there are a handful of techniques to help with this process all of which I have performed myself at one time or another.

For sites like yours that are covered in turf, the sod needs to be killed or stripped and a few inches of organic matter rototilled into the site before planting. Getting rid of the grass is the hardest part of making a new planting bed, especially if you want to avoid using chemical herbicides.

The easiest way to remove sod is to rent a gas-powered sod-cutter. The first time my husband and I used a sod-cutter to start a new planting bed, I thought we might end the project with a divorce, or at the very least, with a matching pair of broken backs. It's hard work, but it is certainly easier than digging up the sod by hand. If you have any reservations about your physical ability to use such a machine and then haul away large strips of sod, you may want to consider hiring someone to do this part for you.

If this is a task you prefer to do by hand, rather than with a machine, use a short, flat-bladed shovel with a D-handle to cut the sod into strips. Then use the shovel to slice underneath each sod strip, lifting and rolling it up in a thin sheet. To ensure you remove enough of the grass roots to prevent it from re-growing, be sure each sheet of sod is about 2 inches thick. Toss the sod rolls into the compost pile.

Once the sod is completely removed, till the area or turn it over with a shovel. Then add 3 to 4 inches of compost or leaf mould and till the area again. Now it is ready for planting.

With a little patience, a new bed can be created via the pile-it-on-and-wait method. The it that gets piled on is organic matter and lots of it. Various types of organic materials are placed in layers over the area to essentially smother the turf and, over time, amend the soil. One to 2 feet (yes, feet!) of well-aged animal manure, shredded leaves, grass clippings, compost and even newspaper and unwaxed corrugated cardboard should cover the planting area.

The big downside to this method is the amount of time it takes for the organic matter to break down and make the area plantable. Though some of the sites I have prepared this way were ready for planting in as little as six months, others have taken a full year. Patient gardeners love this technique.

If this bed is underneath large, established trees, be extremely careful not to till into the tree's roots or smother them with excessive amounts of organic matter and mulch. If this is the case, carefully remove the sod by hand before planting, and then cover the area with no more than 2 inches of mulch.

Horticulturist Jessica Walliser co-hosts The Organic Gardeners at 7 a.m. Sundays on KDKA Radio. She is the author of several gardening books, including Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden: A Natural Approach to Pest Control. Her website is http://www.jessicawalliser.com.

Read the original:
Garden Q&A: Remove sod to create garden space