Joe, i use several layers of news paper.. watering it down with a bit
of soap in the sprayer gizmo as a surfactant and leaving it soak for a
while, then add some more and wet it down till have 7 or 8 layers then
put the peet moss and composted cotton hulls (pm 60% to ch 40%) on
top of that and let it set till spring, keeping it moist. by then the
paper will probably have decayed and then holes can be dug to plant
the plants or seeds. that's how i did my north garden in a new
environment last fall and it is doing quite well. i keep ammending it,
however, and mulch it well. i use shredded leaves to mulch with as
well as shredded spruce. i am physically unable to dig a lot so this
works for me and the garden. the paper seems to do even better than
the plastic for me as it adds organic to the soil.
lee h


"Joe98" wrote in message ...
Thanks David. I'll have to think on that. The way things are going, I
might not have an opportunity to do much digging before the ground get's
hard and miserable to work. Whether I till or not, I'll be sure to have
black plastic on all winter.

"David J Bockman" wrote in message
...
Hi Joe,

There is a school of thought (and a very viable one) that suggests doing
away with double digging *or* tilling and simply amending, amending,
amending. The 'don't till' school says that tilling destroys or seriously
harms existing beneficial bacteria and in general, the tilth and aeration
of
the soil. Also, tilling will disturb the tens of thousands of weed seeds
laying dormant and waiting to be brought closer to the surface to
germinate.

I have to admit, I was skeptical, but after laying down an enormous amout
of
organic material along two sides of my property (approximately 80 cubic
yards), I'm a firm believer. About a year later the organic material had
filtered down at least 10 inches, with abundant earthworms moving between
the organic and hardpan clay layers as well. I used a combination of wood
chips, shredded leaves, bark, whatever it was that the city in which I
live
dumped in my driveway.

If the project were mine, I'd lay down clear or black plastic sheeting for
a
few weeks/months, which would cook not only any existing weeds but also
their seeds... then amend the heck out of it and perhaps lay downa green
cover such as winter rye, mustard, clover, etc. In the spring you can turn
under all that great green plant material and plant in your garden,
amending
regularly with good stuff such as pine needles, manure, inert straw, grass
clippings, shredded leaves, etc.

Just my $0.02,

Dave