Some of the ingredients

Without lots of volunteers, what would we have done?????

We started off by laying 3 or 4 sheets of non-glossy newspapers on the beds we were going to start.  Then a layer of compost, some straw, a bit of organic fertilizer and lime.  Topsoil if we had it, then more compost on top.  Mulch after the plants are in.  Then compost and mulch layers every year thereafter.

Below we are adding mulch in summer.

Layers

We found that the grass in the paths really liked it next to the beds, and would be half-way into them when we would come back in the spring.  In 2012 we put in 2x8" edgers to keep the lasagna in the bed and the grass out (represented by the vertical brown line).  It should help the weed problem also.  Since it is the organic activity in the soil which really feeds and takes care of the plants, we do not dig in the beds, step on them, or otherwise disturb them.  A trowel straight down and pulled sideways to give room for transplanted roots, then that soil is gently placed back where it was.  We'll try for a video of this process.  See "planting".

Here we are adding compost in the spring of 2014
in beds that are being raised by an additional 2 by 6. 
The compost in this case is from our own passive compost pile,
which we have been adding to since the beginning of the Farm.