Depends on how thick you are laying the newspaper, and what type of grass you are covering. If he's worried, use cardboard.

Do a search for lasagne gardening or creating new beds, there's a ton of info on GW.

Hi Kate,

You are definitely not confused and your plan is an excellent one. I've been using this method for years with great results.

However! I must warn you that there are certain grasses that are not easily controlled with this method. Bermuda grass will fight you ever step of the way. Also if you have any of the lawn onions or garlic, they too, will pop up later.

I'm thinking timing and one or two more applications of layers of paper and mulch are some times necessary when dealing with certain weeds.

It has been my experience that I have better control of bermuda grass with the first layering if I do it while the grass is actively growing. I have better first time control of the onions and garlic stuff if I start the bed when they are growing. Unfortunately these two pains don't grow at the same time!

An example: I started a new bed this past December while the onions were growing. I will probably have very few come up again this fall. But the bermuda grass in that area came up through the layers of mulch and cardboard this past spring. Just a few weeks ago my youngest son and I put down another layer of cardboard and mulch on top of the actively growing bermuda.

I will probably have another round or two of battle with the bermuda but the struggle should get less and less as long as I can keep any more bermuda from creeping into the bed from the lawn.

Hopefully you don't have bermuda or onions to deal with. So far those are the only two weeds that have not responded immediately to my cover/smother method. Any weeds I end up having later tend to be ones from seed that floated in.

Oh and yes, you should notice the soil in that area has improved when it comes time for planting in spring. It always amazes me that first time I stick my shovel into an area where I've started a bed several months before. I have concrete hard, gray clay soil normally. I'm not claiming to have dream soil afterwards but certainly I have soil that no longer repulses the efforts of the shovel:)

Good luck and tell your husband to sit back and watch. It's gonna work!

Michelle

Also, how many inches of soil are you putting over the grass? Most grasses should die because you are blocking the light they need. I don't know if it is a good idea to turn it come spring. You might bring grass seeds and roots to the surface. Add organic matter as mulch on top after you plant the perennials to supress weeds and feed the soil.

Hey folks. Thanks for your thoughts about my project.

Javamilk: The grass is fescue and I have about three or four layers of newspaper. I actually considered this morning maybe turning the grass (digging it out and just flopping it over in place). That way I would not have to take the grass to the dump or lose all that wonderful dirt but it would help kill the grass roots. I hope.

Michelle:

Thanks. Wow! No our grass is almmost all fescue. So I should not have the battles you have been through. What do you think of my idea of turning the grass first, then covering with newspaper and dirt?

Kimpa:

Good question. I should have shared that. About four inches of dirt. I should clarify that any planting would happen after I had added newspaper, mulch and allowed the grass to be smothered. Then any/all disturbance would only be when planting (actually transplanting) whatever we choose to put in that bed. Hope that makes sense.

I have kudzu growing in an area that I wanted to put a raised bed planter....I have had it professionally excavated 2 times now...with a big cat tractor which dug up and removed the plants and roots etc....It is still there to be sure, but I'm thinking I could use some landscaping pavers (they are about 2feet x 2 feet and about 2 inches thick) and then building the planter on top of that...so that the bottom of the planter will be concrete...then adding in my garden soil/etc. I realize that I'll have to have use more garden soil (probably 5 or 6 inches) Does anyone have experience with kudzu? Do you think that this method will work?

What i've always done is called Solarization but I only recently learned the term.

Get a clear shower-curtain or a piece of clear tarp and then soak the ground where you want to kill the grass and lay the plastic on top of the soil with a couple stones to pin it down good.

About a week or two later no only is all the grass dead but you've also heated the ground sufficiently to kill any seeds and or pests that might have been in the soil as well.

<shrug>

As always, YMMV...

g'day kate,

have a look at our pic's on how we do our raised beds, newspaper is the absolute best for the job.

len

Here is a link that might be useful: len's garden page

Okay folks, some great advice here to be sure. So after reading your posts and looking at pictures I went out and set the rest of the landscape stones, put down a layer of newspaper on the grass and added all the dirt I had. Turns out I am about half a yard shy on dirt so I won't be able to finish my bed until next weekend but I'm well on my way now.

Thank you for settling the question as to whether newspaper will achieve the intended result or not. I knew I could count on the folks at GW for direction. Can't wait to get in there and finish my planting!

Kate

Hi Kate,

I misread your post the first time around and didn't realize it was an honest to goodness raised bed. I do a version of lasagna gardening that results in naturally raised beds and that was what I was describing to you.

But I did have hubby build me 6 boxes for my veggie area when we first moved into our house. I didn't turn over any of the grass/weeds where the boxes were placed. I just put down a layer of cardboard then filled the box with soil. I haven't had anything come up through the 6 inches of soil in the 4 growing seasons I've had them. Not even the onions or bermuda grass. I get some nutsedge pop up ever now and then but they are easily removed.

The ONLY time I dig up my weeds/grass is when I am creating a new bed. But even then I only dig out a trench around the entire shape of the bed. That stuff I do flip over and place inside the bed then I add any organic material I have on hand, then cardboard or other paper product then the mulch.

Anyway, despite my misunderstanding your original question, I'm still betting your husband is soon to be in awe of your wisdom;)

Michelle

No problem Michelle. I agree with you that soon I will be vindicated! Really the great part will be next spring when we dig down into the ground and find soft earth rather than a network of grass roots. Or so I'm hoping.

Kate

Whether your method of building this raised bed will kill the grass that was growing there depends on which grass it was. All of the current top growth will die, because without access to sunlight (which you have denied those plants with the newspaper) plants cannot grow. However, some species of grass (and this is why they are invasive) have root systems that store large quantities of nutrients that will allow them to grow even in very adverse conditions. Grass species such as Quack Grass are well known for being very invasive while many of the grasses we wish would grow are really very wimpy.
So, will your raised bed kill the grass that was growing there before? Yes, but if there are invasive species of grass they could well grow through the raised bed, eventually.

have read all your posts. i built my boxes and sprayed grass killer, waited three weeks, then layed down landscape fabric, then my mixed compost, soil, peatmoss, etc. I had the best garden I've ever had. Hope I dont see any grass growing through next year......

Under a raised bed you are likely to get away with it but the safest bet is to strip the sod, put it back upside down and then cover with the newspaper (or remove it altogether). I suspect you will only want to go through all of this trouble if it's a small area though. As Kimmsr pointed out, some grasses just don't quit and it is possible that you will see some poking out of the spaces between the boards or stones that make the sides of your bed or from the exposed sides of the bed if the sides are just mounded soil.

Wanted to update this thread. In the just over a months time since I finished the bed in question by simply covering the unturned grass with some compost followed by newspaper and dirt the grass has broken down beautifully. I know this because although the bed really won't be fully planted until next spring I did add a couple of daylilies last week. One was a large, fully grown plant already and I had to dig pretty deep to get the space ready for it. Once I got through the loose topsoil on top I cut easily through what was left of the sod underneath. I removed a small amount of this grass while planting the daylily and tossed it in the compost bin.

I have to say I was pretty pleased that worked out so well. Thanks again everyone.

Kate

Glad to hear it's working out so well for you Kate. Try not to be too smug when you remind hubby how right you were;-)

Thank you SHellva:

I'll try:) I cannot promise anything though. I'm teasing of course but I do want to share with him that it was effective if for no reason other than to prove what a time (and sore back) saver it was.

Kate

Hi Kate, Maybe you have already thought of this but now "things" will start to grow on top of the soil. I suggest a layer of newspaper over the bed with mulch on the very top. Have Fun!

I use cardboard right over the grass and then put my containers right over that. The other day I had to move several that had been there for some time and I was very surprized to find tons of earth worms and NO CARDBOARD were the cardboard had been. In addition the soil was very loose and absolutely no sign of grass.
1eyedJack and the Dawg.

PS I get my cardboard from an office supply place. They have the really big pieces used to hold chairs, etc.

In a raised bed, can the newspaper/mulch/soil method be followed immediately with seed or setting in starter plants? I'd like to put down wood forms for the raised bed, and be able to plant a garden right away. Must I wait until next year?