What is this material you plan to use as mulch? You should mulch only if you wish to 1. help keep "weeds" from growing, 2. want to help conserve soil moisture, 3. want to help keep the soil cooler, and 4. wish to add somwe organic matter to the soil. Mulch can be a wide range of material, although I realize that many people think it is only the stuff they buy from a store labeld mulch.

Hi Again! I wouldn't do "peat". It's good for retaining water but doesn't add a whole lot in terms of nutrients. Topsoil is "so-so". Would it be any better than what you already have? The only time I use topsoil is when I'm also removing the dirt from the bed (usually down to about 18" or 2 feet below the surface) and then creating a new bed using fresh topsoil. Most people -- I think -- would tell you to use compost. What you may want to do first is run a sample of your soil over to the County Extension Agent for a soil analysis and ask for a recommendation of what your soil needs. You may be surprised. But if you're going to amend a vacant bed, now is the time to do it right! As far as putting the wood chips back, as long as they are in decent shape, and you like the way they look, there is no reason not to re-use them. MacThayer

I probably wouldn't recommend the extra layers of newspaper between the other layers in your mix unless you are talking about shredded paper to act as a "mulch" material. I would recommend the bottom layers of newspaper/cardboard. (Then if you really want to perhaps some of your clay/granite but you really may not want/need that in truth) Then whatever mulch material, something with nitrogen (alfalfa pellets are good and you don't need huge amounts of them) Some of the composted manure, more mulch etc. I know many people say wood mulch or wood chips arn't so good but if you have them mixed with strong enough greens and some compost and are kept moist, they break down too. Are you planning to grow food in these beds? When are you going to plant in them? There are compelling reasons not to use fresh manure on food beds but these are mostly time related. If you put down fresh manure in the mix, you should not plant food cops in there for quite some time. The amount of time depends on the type of food crop and how long till harvest. I'm guilty of putting grass clippings into my compost and around my garden. Sure, some neighbors probably do weed and feed their lawns but I suspect that they don't do it right before mowing and most of the possible residues are going to be taken care of in the composting process. That is just me and other people will have their own comfort zones. If you need another source of nitrogen, I know one that is free (actually better than free since it might save you money on the water bill) I know some people will think eww yuck, but urine is a great source of nitrogen (and other nutrients) for the garden, compost, and lasagna bed. If you are worried about pathogens, just bottle it for a few weeks which will kill off any that a healthy person is likely to be carrying. Granted, perhaps this doesn't count as certified organic practice but it works very well. Urine is a strong enough green to do a good job on materiasl like wood chips, sawdust, leaves, paper, cardboard etc. Here is a link that might be useful: TCLynx

Roxanne, I didn't know what 'engineered wood mulch" meant so I Googled it came up with this: "The technique for stabilizing wood chips, called engineered wood fiber, with a polyurethane or latex binder was developed by FPL researchers to provide an affordable method for making recreational and playground facilities accessible to people using wheelchairs or other mobility aids." Is this the "engineered wood mulch" you are considering? I'm sorry I can't answer your question. Hopefully someone on this forum knows more about it. More here: Here is a link that might be useful: engineered wood fiber