Four strategies turn lawn to garden (2024)

Mowing season is in full force, so it’s no wonder that some folks are looking at their rolling green lawns and thinking “How about more garden beds?”

There are many reasons to convert a portion of the lawn into a flower or vegetable garden: less fertilizer and water-thirsty lawn to care for and mow, a place for colorful blooms, or just a place to grow some tomatoes.

Whatever the reason, there’s one caveat: “Gardens can be more labor-intensive and higher-maintenance than lawn, but, if you plan well, most of the maintenance is in the first two to three years,” said Columbus garden consultant Debra Knapke, who blogs about gardening at www.heartland-gardening.com. “Labor-saving techniques, such as using mulch and compost, can lighten the maintenance load.”

There are essentially four ways to convert a lawn into a garden bed.

Herbicide

Those who are short on time and aren’t concerned with chemical residues can quickly kill off grass with herbicides. Spray the designated area with a glyphosate-based herbicide such as Roundup, according to the Colorado State University Extension. Don’t mulch over a growing lawn, as grass and weeds will likely just grow through the mulch. It will take up to one week for the lawn to die after the chemicals are applied. Once the lawn is dead, mow the grass to a half-inch long, then remove the grass to expose the soil. Add compost, topsoil or mulch to the newly cleared area.

Sod cutting and tilling

The old-fashioned way to convert lawn to garden is to cut and remove the sod either by hand using a sharp, square shovel or by using a sod cutter, which requires more muscle but is the fastest way to get the job done.

The University of California Extension recommends “cutting the sod into strips with a sod cutter, rolling the strips up and either taking them away or turning them over and letting them compost in place. The cut sod can be laid upside down in the middle of the area being removed” to fill any uneven spots.

Once the sod is removed, cover the exposed soil with a layer of newspapers at least six to 10 sheets thick, then cover it with 4 to 6 inches of compost, then 3 to 4 inches of mulch. This will enrich the soil and keep the grass from growing back.

The second option is to till the area once the sod is removed. The upside of tilling is that it loosens the soil and helps mix in organic materials. Frequent tilling, however, can lead to soil compaction and destroy the soil structure, according to the Oregon State University Extension. If you intend to till, “Plan ahead,” Knapke said. “Till in the fall and plant in the spring. This gives the soil a chance to stabilize and the organisms a chance to re-colonize the soil.”

Sheet mulching and

“lasagna gardening”

One of the easiest ways to convert lawn to garden is the sheet mulch technique. Cut the grass as short as possible, then cover it with a layer of cardboard or a thick layer of newspaper. Make sure the pieces overlap to keep sunlight from reaching the lawn. Cover with at least 4 inches of mulch or compost. Holes can be cut through the cardboard or newspaper to add plants, or you can wait a season to plant to allow the paper to decompose.

Another variation of this is lasagna gardening, so named because of the layers of material used to build the soil in the bed. The first two steps are the same. But instead of just mulch on top of the newspaper and cardboard, gardeners then build alternating layers of kitchen scraps and grass clippings, newspaper, yard waste, finished and unfinished compost. Eventually, the layers deteriorate and create a rich, well-drained medium for planting. Alternate the layers of green materials, such as grass clippings, with browns, such as cardboard, just as you would in a compost pile. It’s best to start in the fall, to give the bed time to properly decompose before planting, according to Patricia Lanza, author of Lasagna Gardening.

The primary advantage of lasagna gardening is the low cost of the materials, although it does take a bit more time to complete the bed than using other methods.

Solarization

Solarization — keeping light from reaching the lawn by covering it with a sheet of black plastic — works best during hot summer weather. The University of California Extension recommends cutting the grass as short as possible, then covering the area being converted to beds with black polyethylene plastic held in place by rocks or stakes. The plastic traps heat in the soil, heating the top 6?inches of the soil as high as 140?degrees. The high temperature kills grass, weeds, some plant diseases and soil pathogens. The only downsides: The plastic can be an eyesore and must be left in place for four to eight weeks to kill the lawn. The dead grass can be removed or left to compost.

No matter the method used to make the garden, when it’s time to plant, “Incorporate compost into the planting hole and then top-dress with compost, surrounding the plant with a ring of compost,” Knapke said. The ring should stay at least 3?inches from the base of perennials and 8 inches from the base of trees and shrubs.

And if mowing less is the primary motivator, skip the garden bed, Knapke said, and “Use ground covers where you don’t want lawn but don’t want to maintain a garden.” Denise Trowbridge is a Columbus freelance writer who covers garden topics.

cdecker@dispatch.com