Our vegetable garden has been more of a miss than a hit the last few years, but I’m trying to get back in the game this year.
My first step has been prep. Years of neglect mean weeds are well-established throughout the garden. I’m not prepared to tackle the whole garden, but I’m going to try to reclaim a few areas. Rather than dig up all the weeds or till them under, I’m trying to suffocate them with mulch.
I first wrote about deep mulch gardening back in 2016. So this has been on my mind for a while.
I picked one quadrant (the others will not be planted and will be mowed or tarped), and laid down a whole bunch of cardboard.
We’ve had two bales of hay sitting beside the garden for a couple of years. I had intended to use them for mulch, but then gardening didn’t happen for a while. When the excavator was here a few weeks ago for the garage, I had him throw the bales over the fence (they had gotten too squishy for me to pick up with our tractor).
Ellie and I broke up the bales and spread the hay in a deep layer over all of the cardboard.
Between the raspberry rows, I laid more cardboard and then layers of bark that Matt’s Dad picked up when he was cleaning up some dead trees in the fenceline between the fields. They’re like really big woodchips.
It’s going to take a lot of work to get the garden back. If I’m going to have any success, I have to figure out a way to manage at least some of the weeds, and mulch is this year’s experiment. I feel like I’m already behind for this year, but I’m trying to remind myself that gardening is a multi-year undertaking.
The asparagus and rhubarb are up, though fluctuating temperatures seem to have slowed them down over the last couple of weeks (and weeds may be choking them). The grapes are alive, and I really need to figure out how I’m supposed to prune them. The raspberries look happy, including some new canes I took from Matt’s Dad last fall.
I have to dig out the weeds around the raspberries, asparagus, grapes and rhubarb. Then I’m going to try to put down more cardboard and more mulch wherever I can.
In the mulched quadrant, I’m going to plant annuals. What ones, I’m not exactly sure yet. I’m also not sure how I’m going to plant in the mulch. I may try to add soil and/or compost on top of the hay to make a raised row garden, or I may just scrape the hay back, punch through the cardboard and plant in the soil underneath.
There’s still lots to figure out, and we’re a looong way from having a thriving vegetable garden (unless you’re a weed… or a bee wearing pollen pants).
But it does feel good to be back in the dirt. And I’m glad to be trying out some of the techniques I’ve read about and thought about for a long time.
Home on 129 Acres 
Your asparagus looks wonderful! I harvested my first crop ever last week – just a few spears but it was so delicious. Good luck with the weeds – dandelions and grass are the biggest interlopers in my garden. From what I’ve read sheet mulch (like the cardboard) does help smother weeds but it isn’t that great for soil because it prevents oxygen exchange (which roots and good microorganisms need) and when it’s dry also prevents rain from reaching the soil. The thick layer of mulch – 12″ of straw is better and makes planting easier too.
Congratulations on your first harvest! I had hoped for our first crop this year, but I’m fearing our spears will be too small. Thanks for the tip on the cardboard. Maybe doubling up is not a good idea. I’ll share what happens.
Those are huge woodchips! I hope your mulching experiment works out. I think weeds that make it through all that should qualify for superhero status!
I don’t think I can really call them chips. More like slabs. Fingers are crossed that we see some improvement this year. I don’t need any superhero weeds!