Sheet mulching is a gardening technique that suppresses weeds and builds fertile soil. Thick layers of organic matter are placed on the ground lasagna style. The layers are then left to decompose ultimately creating a rich planting medium that's terrific for vegetable gardens and landscape planting beds. This simple method saves time and energy (no tilling!), suppresses weeds, increases the soil's water-holding capacity, feeds the microbes in the soil, improves plant vigor and health.

1. BENEFITS
■ Works with nature and ecology to
enhance soil structure, fertility
and overall health
■ Protects soil against drying out
■ Reduces soil erosion from wind
and water runoff
■ Increases water infiltration
■ Conserves water: saving up to
73% of water lost through
evaporation
■ Improves nutrient and water
retention
■ Moderates soil temperatures:
cooler in summer and helps
protect soil from freezing
■ Turns the soil into a living biofilter
that removes pollutants from
water, protecting our waterways
■ Prevents soil compaction
■ No need to dig, till or plough
(worms do it for you)
■ Provides organic matter to feed
worms and soil microorganisms
■ Boosts soil biology for healthier,
more nutritious foods
■ Improves plant vigor and health,
which improves resistance to
pests and diseases
■ Greatly suppresses weeds
■ Suppresses pathogens & pests
■ Eliminates need for pesticides,
herbicides, and fertilizers
■ Reduces waste: Composting and
mulching green waste means
less is transported to the landfill,
reducing greenhouse gases and
air pollution.
■ Reduces labor and maintenance
costs: Weeds are composted in
place and the repeated use of
chemicals is not needed.
■ Saves time and energy because
digging, weeding and irrigation is
reduced or eliminated
■ Compost is made where it is
needed, no need to transport it
Cache Soil-to-Table
A not-for-profit community education project of Nutritional Solutions & Jeanne M. Wallace, PhD, CNC
www.facebook.com/CacheSoilToTable • www.MeetUp/Cache-Soil-to-Table
INGREDIENTS
■ Barrier: newspaper and/or cardboard (no color ink or plastic tape), old cotton/
wool fabric/rugs—edges overlapped
■ Browns (carbon): wood chips, dry leaves, twigs, chemical-free sawdust, straw,
spoiled hay, stable bedding, pine needles, coffee grounds, peat, coir, paper
■ Greens (nitrogen): manure (rabbit, goat, duck, chicken, etc.), lawn clippings,
kitchen scraps, chop & drop comfrey or N-fixers
■ Microbial inoculant (optional): worm castings, compost, compost tea, raw milk,
comfrey tea, diluted urine (10:1), fungal thread tea, spent mushroom spawn
2 cubic yards of materials (a pickup truck load)
will cover a 50 sq ft bed, 8-12” deep
PREPARING THE SITE:
Mow or scythe back lawn or weeds; loosen soil with broadfork (optional), moisten
all layers
WET EACH LAYER AS YOU GO!
Best time to sheet mulch: fall or
spring after it’s been raining
Planting into a mulched bed: Push
mulch aside, form a planting pocket,
poke hole in cardboard/newspaper
layer for roots, fill pocket with soil or
compost, plant seeds or seedlings.
Maintenance: water as needed, add
new biomass 1x/yr (fungal), 2x/yr
(balanced)
Where not to sheet mulch: near tree trunks or the crown of perennial plants,
above flowering bulbs in spring (fall can work), on a steep slope
Goodbye Lawn, Hello Garden: Sheet Mulching
METHOD 1
Slow / Fungal Dominant
Trees, Shrubs, Perennials
Inoculant: mushroom spawn, fungal tea
4-6” wood chips
6-12” brown layer (straw, leaves,
spoiled hay, compost)
cardboard (wet!) 4-6” overlap
thin layer manure, amendments
existing soil or lawn, watered
METHOD 2
Quick / Balanced B:F
Morag Gamble: bit.ly/2oQidC3
Garden Beds
≥ 3” mulch (seed-free straw,
leaves, pine needles)
newspaper (wet) 6-10 sheets
thick, 8” overlap
Inoculant (worm tea or compost tea)
2-3” compost or manure (fully or
partially decomposed)
greens, straw, leaves, clippings
garden, bare soil or weed patch
(aerate w/broadfork or pitch fork)