While most people understand a lot about weeding and even more about tilling, not too many people think about the prospect of never weeding, or simply avoiding tilling all together.

Sheet mulching however, can both make life easier and replenish soil without ever using chemical fertilizers, weed kill or tilling.

There really isnt much to sheet mulching, just think like a really big cold pile that is going to compost itself overtime, turning all the weeds, seed and other organic matter under it, into a nutrient rich soil base, that built itself onsite, usually over winter.

First of all, mow down, roll over, stamp down, cut with a scythe or machete, and pile on all the kitchen scraps, doggy/kitty wastes or yard debris you can, mixing all those nitrogens and carbons as they come, mother nature knows how to tend it on her own with microorganisms and worms.

Then, over that, layer it with something that takes a long time to decompose and compost, like thick corrugated cardboard, newspaper (about ten sheets thick or so) or any recycled paper mattingmade specifically for sheet mulching, making sure to overlap about six inches between sheets, to be absolutely certain that none of those unwanted weeds/seeds and whatnot ever comeback in your grow bed.

Thirdly, backfill on top of your sheet with whatever organic mulch you wish, straw animal bedding with fewer or no seeds is great because it readily allows moisture and oxygen to accumulate, while sawdust or woodchips can also be wonderful, as long as this layer keeps out any unwanted weeds/seeds from seeping through, because if a single spot is missed, they will come back in force.

Lastly, simply place the plants in this mulch with enough soil to keep them healthy until everything breaks down (usually about six months or so is plenty of time), unless of course instead of mulch, worm castings or potting soils have been used in its place, in which case no extra soil is necessary, and there is also the risk of other kinds of seeds existing in this soil; so make sure it is seedless.

What is left within the year after sheet mulching? A raw boost of organic power that will supply your plants with enough food to last them years, and if they are the kinds of plants that search deep for more nutrients, they actually start to mend devastated soils.

Sheet Mulching video using a recycled paper product called ecocover in New Zealand as a barrier to cover the hard layer:

Bottle Biology was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation administered by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a companion book can be found here.

By using recycled, transparent (clear), two-liter soda bottles, cutting them up, organizing them in a column like fashion and then filling them with composting materials, it is possible to observe the different stages of breakdown more readily.

BottleBiology.Org proposes something incredibly helpful with this device as a parent and child activity, especially for those who enjoy biology, gardening, nature or just composting and want to enlighten themselves and others into this remarkable field of sustainability.

The possibilities with this tool are virtually as limited as the kinds of things that people throw away or compost and the different techniques used in composting itself.

Decomposition columns are even used for investigating such things as acid rain by using vinegar as a simulation tool instead of water.

Investigating first-hand with children what is really going on down their in our soil, either from landfills, leaf compost, kitchen refuse with worms or whatever the imagination might think up to investigate is a great way to see up and close how moisture (adding water) and oxygen (adding holes in the bottles) effects the conditions of a compost pile underground.

So if you find yourself looking for an interesting tool for exposing the conditions we find below the ground, no matter if they be aerobic or anaerobic, making a decomposition column is easy, fun and most of all, educational for everyone, opening a plethora of possibilities to even the most experienced composter.