Re: newspaper and - or straw

I use a lot of newspapers but I am fighting grass.  I usually put about 2-3
inches tall of wet newspapers with 3-4 inches of grass clippings on top.  I
just mow off the grass underneath so that it is as short as I can get it.  I
think it all breaks down into great compost.  I have been told the
newspapers break down into carbon and the worms are drawn to that.  They do
all the work for us!
Yeah!  I love it when someone else does the dirty work!
Tricia
zone 6b
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jesse Bell" <silverhawk@flash.net>
To: <gardenchat@hort.net>
Sent: Monday, April 12, 2004 1:48 PM
Subject: Re: [CHAT] newspaper and - or straw


> How much newspaper did you use? Last fall I used "sections" of newspaper
> (you know, the sports section, the business section, etc) to make a new
> garden area. This was in August. Then I put some compost over that, then
> some topsoil and mulch. This spring (2 weeks ago) I dug some holes to
> transplant somethings and you could see the layers. The newspaper was
> gray and wet...looked like cardboard kind of....and the dead burmuda
> grass under that. I threw away the dead grass parts and put the rest of
> it back in there to finish. The worms love it. So that was just over the
> winter and you can tell that the newspaper is decomposing.
>
>
> Jesse R. Bell
>
>
>
> pdickson <pdickson@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> Kitty,
> For me I want the newspaper not to break down to fast so that it keeps
weed
> seed from growing. If you want anything to break down faster I think you
> need to add nitrogen and water. I have straw and newspapers on my
vegetable
> garden... it usually lasts at least one year sometimes longer if I don't
> fertilize or water alot.
> Tricia
> zone 6b
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Kitty"
> To:
> Sent: Monday, April 12, 2004 10:23 AM
> Subject: [CHAT] newspaper and - or straw
>
>
> > Melody,
> > Your new bed success brings to mind a qstn I have for lasagna gardening
> > devotees:
> >
> > Last year (early summer) I tried 2 ideas advocated on Chat. I tried the
> > newspaper under soil for a new bed. Well, after digging in there the
> other
> > day I found I could still read the newspaper - does this seem right?
> >
> > Also, Gene and others suggested shredding up my excess straw from
> > overwintering and lay that in an area for a new bed and cover with soil.
> It
> > is still straw under there. How long does it take to at least start
> > breaking down?
> >
> > Am I missing something or am I just impatient?
> >
> > Kitty
> >
> > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > From: "Melody"
> > To:
> > Sent: Monday, April 12, 2004 12:47 AM
> > Subject: [CHAT] Late Easter Greetings and catch-up
> >
> >
> > > Dear gardening friends: Hope you all had a wonderful Easter! We spent
at
> > > least a portion of Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at church
> > > celebrating this most Holy of seasons...I especially love our Easter
> > > Vigil service, done by candlelight...so beautiful. Easter day was
spent
> > > in the garden once we got home from Mass...the weather was absolutely
> > > perfect for working outside. The peppermint/spearmint dig up is about
> > > half done after two weekends of hard work. We have decided that the
only
> > > way to get rid of most of it is to completely spade up every square
inch
> > > of soil in the garden down to a depth of at least 8-10 inches and then
> > > with a hand rake sort it all out for roots/pieces. Arduous and time
> > > consuming but it seems the only real way to get the stuff out. I do
have
> > > a happy observation to report for the group though...this particular
> > > garden bed is the former site of a large (90') pine that several years
> > > ago was ripped out of the ground by its roots during a severe wind
> > > storm. The lost tree left a staggeringly massive hole in the ground
and
> > > we had it filled in with a large dumptruck-full of "fill dirt" which
> > > turned out to be this horrible clay stuff. At the time we originally
did
> > > this bed,about six years ago, we amended the clay as much as we could
> > > with vermiculite and compost burr (lots and lots of each) and at the
> > > time it did not seem to help. We then covered it over with landscaping
> > > cloth, planted it, and mulched. To my utter amazement, this entire bed
> > > is now filled with a beautiful, rich black soil, ripe with the hugest
> > > nightcrawlers you'd ever want to see. I guess I had assumed that this
> > > bed would always be full of clay, so how come it's not? I mean, I know
> > > the earthworms are hard workers, but doesn't that seem like an awful
lot
> > > of work for only six years? Nature never ceases to amaze me. One of
the
> > > benefits of hand digging out all this mint is that I have been able to
> > > save all my gaura, purple coneflowers, and blue flax and replant it in
> > > the clean parts of the bed as we go, so it's sort
> > >
> > > of a revision project too. The blue flax started as three little
plants
> > > I received from the kids for mother's day about 5 years ago and now
are
> > > dozens of plants everywhere...yippee! This is one of my favorites.
> > >
> > >
> > > BTW, Moses the cat is still around...no luck yet finding a home for
him
> > > but he seems utterly content where he is...he has now moved his
sleeping
> > > quarters to my compost heap area and has found himself a shelter
behind
> > > a piece of scrap plywood that leans up against the garage. Today while
I
> > > was resting my back a little and enjoying laying in the grass flat on
my
> > > back with my feet propped up on a nearby rock, here he comes and plops
> > > down beside me, rolls over on his back and meows...he apparently likes
> > > to have his tummy rubbed. I noticed he has a little sore on one of his
> > > rear paws, so I figure tomorrow I'll probably load him up and take him
> > > to the vet as it looks red and very painful. I take it this is the
> > > beginning of the end, isn't it? Arrgh........I'm such a sucker! :-) We
> > > never stood a chance, did we? My husband doesn't mind him sticking
> > > around as long as he remains an outdoor only cat...and that is a huge
> > > commitment for a man who says he doesn't want any more animals at all.
> > > The sage continues...
> > >
> > >
> > > Also, I heard from Janice, Tony's wife, today...Easter greetings and
to
> > > let us know she continues to miss him but is doing okay. :-)
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Melody, IA (Z 5/4)
> > >
> > > "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious."
> > > --Albert Einstein
> > >
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