No need to cover lawn until you're ready to build soil, but you could add compostable material over the paper now. The paper may compost & allow the lawn to grow through it if you do it now though.

If you are growing only herbs, they will appreciate a spare soil that drains well. Consider adding a liberal amount of pea stone gravel and coarse sand along with some pine bark. Mix in your compost and shredded leaves & you'll have a great soil that improves with age. I have raised beds with a similar soil that are 5 years old & I've not had to add anything to compensate for shrinkage yet.
{{gwi:871}}
What it looks like.

The soil I suggested for you would not be as rich as this soil, but herbs will like it better. You can imagine what it would look like with some gravel mixed in.

Al

Al,

What should I do if I want to plant an herb garden without the raised bed? My backyard is 22 ft x 16 ft. with a 6-7 ft flower border at the back and on the right side. At the front is a small paved patio. The 22 x 16 is now lawn with a small stone fountain in the center. I want to have one of those herb gardens in 4 sections with a cross shaped path dividing it (from the fountain outward). If I get rid of the lawn how do I ammend the soil without having mounds of dirt with nothing to contain it? How do you form paths in the middle of all this new stuff I will be putting down?

Do I have to dig up the grass or can I just layer the new matter over the lawn and go from there? I just ordered the book Lasagna Gardening to help me understand the method.I don't think the raised beds will work since I want to have 4 sections - at least not with cinder blocks.

Another concern is whether the absence of a green area (lawn) will prove to be less pleasing in terms of color and design. I know I'm all over the place here - but any advice will be helpful.

I appreciate any input as I am a bit confused.
I'm a pretty new gardener and I've been toughing it out on my own for a while with both good results and some mistakes. In other areas of life mistakes don't seem to be so exhausting - LOL.

Thanks - Susan

You could make a cross out of pavers & use bricks to make a circular perimeter. Now, start substituting stuff for the things I suggested. E.g. You could use a gravel path to form an "X" and use cedar 4x6's to form a triangle. If the path was contained, you could still use the lasagna method & cover the turf with newspaper & cardboard.

I made raised beds & the soil I made to put in them was a combination of Pine bark, Peat, sand and stuff that looks like fine gravel. There was no mineral (native) soil in the beds & it's a fantastic and healthy soil today, 5 years later. It's the stuff you see above.

Can't help with aesthetics from here, sorry; but I'm always happy to help a pretty new gardener. ;o)

PS Go to Lowes, Home Depot, or the library & look at books - herb gardens or garden design/layout for inspiration.

Al

And consider large pots for some of the herbs. It's often easier to arrange for good drainage in a pot plus you can move them around to find the best site.

I'm not wild about cinder blocks either, so my raised beds either mounded (bad-bad for allowing grass to creep into), wood-edged (I'll be glad when those finally rot and I can replace them), or hypertufa - which is one way to hide the ciders. Neighbor uses large pavers (being a strong man, natch) on edge to make raised beds that aren't really permanent. link is to commercially available holders, but he made most of his.

Here is a link that might be useful: raised bed paver supports

Al - Thanks. It will be useful to think of a plan in terms of a formula as you suggest - I like the freedom of that and it has alreay presented quite a few new options.

Meldy - hadn't thought of containers - that will add an element of decoration also.

We've had some real windy weather here in the past few days - which frightened my neighbor into removing a lovely old shade tree that he thought was a threat to his home. I'm really going to miss the tree, but on the other hand my herb garden will have lots more sun - which I know it will need. But still, boo-hoo! I have just learned that herbs are annuals - DUH - what things are really easy to start from seed? I have not had much luck in seed starting but am willing to try again. I'll probably purchase everything in pots the first year.

Again - Thanks
Susan

Isn't it great to have input from different folks? Here I am, a container gardening enthusiast who spends more time on the Container Gardening Forum than any other, and I didn't think to mention containers. Lucky you, that Meldy is paying attention. ;o)

Some herbs often grown from seed are coriander, cumin, dill and fennel, borage, anise, caraway, and chervil. Most listed will self-sow. Many herbs are perennials. Thyme, tarragon, chives, lavender, oregano, sage, chamomile, rosemary, savory, and many others fit the perennial category. A net search for herbs from seed or perennial herbs will likely yield lots of interesting results.

We/I wanna see pics when it's done!

Al

Basil (annual) and parsley (biennial) are also both very easy to start from seed. And there are lots of wonderful varieties of basil. Don't miss the red (foliage) variety.

Good luck,
Skybird

And keep in mind that many so-called annuals are actually tender perennials, so if you can provide a place for them to winter-over you can enjoy them again next season. Rosemary is one such for me, and I plead the fifth on how many years I've put out new plants, but it makes it through winter nicely if I just remember to get the pot inside. Thanks, Al; but that rosemary is *why* I do think of pots and herbs as belonging in the same sentence.

BTW, unless you are a compulsive user, nobody really needs more than one marjoram plant.. although it makes a nice edging and my tomato plants seem to like it when the morjoram is mixed into the row.

Meldy - I too, have a number of them (rosemary) in pots that are several years old and waiting for me to help them decide what they want to look like as bonsai. ... love the smell when I work on them.

Al

Can you tell me about invasive plants - such as mint. I've heard it should be confined to pots. Any other busy herbs I should know about?

Susan

A few that come to mind - perhaps others will add to the list: Tansy, catnip, comfrey, horseradish, lemon balm, hops, artemisia, all kinds of mint, and (I'm sure) others spread aggressively.

Al