topher wrote in
:

Hi,

I have a fairly small (abt 15' x 12') fenced-in area in my back yard
which I would like to use as a garden. It was presumably a vegetable
garden earlier, fenced in because of a high deer population. But now
it's covered with grass and weeds. I'd like to use it for a vegetable
garden now, but I'm not sure of the best way to convert it. I'm sure
that renting a roto-tiller and tilling it is part of the solution, but
I'm not sure if that will kill all the grass and weeds. The roots tend
to go down 6"-1' -- maybe I have Zoysia . The soil is also fairly
rocky, but I doubt there's anything I can do about that except to avoid
planting carrots and other tubers.

Also, can anyone recommend a good and cheap landscaping barrier to put
around the garden and keep the lawn out?

Thanks,
Topher



You have a couple of options. #1 you could use a product to kill
everything (like Round Up) wait a couple of weeks and then plant. #2 You
can cover the entire area with several layers of newspaper and wait. This
will kill everything but you won't be able to plant until next year. #3
You could pull, cut all the weeds, turn the soil and mulch well after
planting to retard weed growth. This requires some weeding but it will
minimize the work.


Chris