Information on Garden materials, Soil, Compost and Mulch
Your Questions Answered

Straw bale gardening - how long to soak straw  I'm just starting with a straw bale garden. Do I soak the straw for five days, or one day, then let it sit for 5 days?
How do i know if it's ready? It'...

Guinea Pig Aspen Bedding as Mulch?  Our family has a couple of Guinea Pigs. We clean their cage out aleast twice a week, dumping the used Aspen bedding and replacing it with clean bedding....

how long to keep chicken manure before using on garden?  I have four chickens and want to use the chicken poop+ straw for my vegetable garden. I understand you can't put manure straight onto the garden as it ...

Substitute for newspaper layer on no dig garden  What can I substitute for the layer of newspaper? I don't subscribe to any newspapers, and have a large area. Will be costly to buy enough newspapers....

Leaves for composting  I would like to use leaves as compost in my no-dig garden. The nearest trees to my garden plot are oak, pine and hickory. Is there anything about ...

Coffee Grounds for garden  Are coffee grounds good for anything, if so what for? Are there any nutritional values for soil or other things.
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Megan ...

Does a heavy clay soil need tilling before planting a no dig garden?  I am getting ready to start a 50' x 70' no till vegie garden on new ground. I keep reading that you really don't need to till or even plow the new ground ...

Dog manure in the garden - Is dog manure safe around lemon tree in backyard?  I've got a lemon tree and it's been producing for the past 4 years. My concerns are that my dog, a german shepherd, shares the yard and close to it; 6-...

Building a No dig garden - Lucerne hay  I am keen to start a no dig garden and could you please tell me why lucerne hay is used at the bottom. My husband wonders why when it probably has been ...

Plastic garden covering - Covering the garden with plastic?  I've heard that covering the garden with plastic is a good way to keep moisture in (important in AZ) and helps to prep the soil for when I plant in October....

Soil - heavy soil that goes hard  my soil is very hard, i dig it and a couple of weeks it is hard again. what can i use? regards col

Lucerne or hay sprouting. Unwanted? Beneficial?  I have green 'grass' - which I think must be either the lucerne or the hay sprouting - coming up everywhere! When I pull a piece out, there is a seed ...

Using Weeds for Compost and Mulch  Hello! I live in Malaysia. First and foremost, thank you very much for this wonderful informative site. I have never grown anything even tho I have a ...

Brand new Green Thumb in Calgary Canada  Hello Fellow Gardeners!
I am very very green to gardening and this Spring will be my first attempt at building a no dig veggie garden. I live in a condo ...

What's the best manure to use on garden?  What is the best manure to use, or does it really matter? I have access to cow, horse and goat manure. Also I am able to get "used" straw.

Keep adding layers to no dig gardens or start again?  We live near Port Macquarie and have successfully grown tomatoes, lettuce, beans etc in our new no-dig garden. All crops are finished and we want to replant ...

Lucerne Hay. Can I use something else instead of Lucerne hay for mulch?  What is Lucerne hay? Where can I get it and can I use a substitute when I build my no-dig garden?
Megan replies... Suppliers to horse stables, or ...

Bitter tasting greens  Our garden soil is inherently decomposed granite. I have amended it over the years with mulch of organic compost, peat, potting soil and just about anything ...

Mixing ash and ambers in a garden  Burned alot of brush and branches which left ash and ambers about 4 years ago. My son thought he would be helpful and mixed it all in part of our garden ...

Do you still use Newspaper in a no dig container garden?  Will newspaper hinder the drainage of a No Dig Container garden? Or do I layer it like your diagram on the site?

building up a flower bed over bulbs and perennials  I have an established flower bed where crocuses, balloon flower, daffodils and tulips grow back every year. The bed is in need of building up and typically ...

Using heavy black truck tarps to stop weeds  We have heavy black truck tarps that we want to put in our garden to help with weed control. Is this type of tarp ok to use and what is the procedure for ...

Using inorganic straw on no dig farm  I have a small organic farm that I would like to put into no-dig/till, but have not been able to find any naturally grown straw...I have heard stories ...

Where do I find compost if I have none for new garden.  I am looking at raised bed gardening but am wondering where I get compost to use at the start....I am moving to new location and no compost pile is available....

How to calculate how much hay is needed for garden mulch?  Is there a formula for calculating how much hay is needed to mulch a garden, ala' Ruth Stout method? i.e. X number of bales of hay to mulch 100 sq. ft....

Animal manures in the garden
Steer Manure  Regarding all the different animal manures in a garden, I'd like more information. Can steer manure be used in a no dig garden for the fertilizer?
I'm ...