Covering up Grass to make border

Ixlandia

Hi all, I want to make a new border next year, it is currently a simple grass lawn area. I need to eliminate the grass without herbicides.

what I have is large sheets of cardboard and blockout rolls to cover the grass and block the light, does anyone know roughly how long I need to keep this area covered over? I don’t mind even covering until next May if needed, I want to ensure the grass doesn’t come back, how long would this take?

Thanks

Ix

cobham

Just turn over the sods and pile up in a corner somewhere... they will compost down in no time. Wait until spring ? otherwise unless you can plant out things now ( bit late?) weeds will settle in over the winter.

Discodog

Even if you kill it you still have to dig it up. So it's easiest to lift the grass in the first place, dig the soil & have it ready for the spring.

Ixlandia

Thanks guys

macraignil

I don't know what black out rolls are but cardboard covered with compost will decompose at the same time as killing off the grass if you make sure not to leave gaps in between the sheets of cardboard and you can plant into the compost on top of the cardboard and not do any digging. It works as well with a thick enough layer of organic material as I demonstrated in this series of videos where I started a new vegetable patch with a layer of manure and horse bedding about 30cm thick. It's usually labelled no dig cultivation and I have found it gets better results than gardening with a more digging based approach. Charles Dowding is a well known advocate for the approach.

Happy gardening!