Yes, it will be a bit more time-consuming as you will probably want to lay
your paper down first, then go back and cut an 'X' for each perennial. Pull
the paper back, plant in, and then lay the paper back right up to the stems.
It seems like an inordinate amount of work, but your weeding and maintenance
will be *greatly* decreased if you take the time up front to do it right.

If you're planning an alpine style garden that will use gravel or stone
chips as mulch, I would recommend amending the soil really well first (but
not tilling-- my experience has been that tilling brings up hundreds or
thousands of dormant weed seeds which are activated by the change in
enviorment). Simply top dressing works quite well-- I used this method for
my front mulched bed (Roundup, top dressing, paper/cardboard, mulch) and in
2 years time I noted that the organic material had filtered down a good ten
inches into our Virginia hardpan, creating a rich organic humus. Pretty much
any organic material is good-- shredded leaves/needles, composted cow
manure, peat, grass clippings, shredded bark, straw, it's all good.

Dave

"dd" wrote in message
...
Dave, thanks for the advice!

I won't be planting any trees or shrubs, just a lot of small
plants--many of which will be rock-garden plants. Will this method
still work with them?




In article , David J Bockman
wrote:

DD,

There's no need to dig it out. Presuming that you're planting in mulched
beds, wait the proscribed amount of time as noted in the directions
(10-14
days as I recall) and then plant right in through the sod. Once you've
planted your larger trees/shrubs, cover everything in thick sheets of
newspaper or cardboard and mulch in... you'll be amazed at the fertility
of
your soil next season. All that sod will decompose and leach downwards,
while the newspaper provides a great biodegradable weed barrier.

Dave

"dd" wrote in message
...
This spring, we are taking the plunge and getting rid of our front
lawn, or what's left of it. It covers about 200 square feet. It will
be
a lot of work for me (older female) to dig out the sod. After I dig it
out, I will have to put it in the garbage. (We have a small urban lot
and there is absolutely no place to compost the sold or hide it.)

So, will using Round-up kill the grass in a satisfactory manner? Will
it leave soil in which I can plant new plants in a month or so after
the grass is dead? Will the Round-up hurt the dogwood tree that is
under the grass? Will it hurt the birds who visit my garden?

Normally, I am not a fan of Round-up, but it does seem like a good
alternative to digging out all that sod.

Thanks for any help.