Back To Eden Gardening: The What, Why & How

Hi friends!

I want to share with you all a method of gardening that completely changed my life. Not even exaggerating. I have never had as much success gardening as I have since starting the Back to Eden method. And the best part? It just keeps getting better and easier year after year!

Let’s get started!

Disclaimer: This blog post may contain affiliate links meaning that should you choose to purchase something using one of these links, I could earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

The What:

If you haven’t already, I highly suggest you bookmark this article, open Youtube in a separate tab, and watch the documentary Back To Eden Film.

Go ahead, I’ll wait.

…….

Are you back? Good!

Back to Eden gardening is a great way to produce a food forest imitating the ways of nature. A big part of this includes covering the soil and not tilling the ground. This method provides success in the forms of low maintenance gardens, minimal to no weeds, and minimal watering, all while producing the best crops of your life.

It’s basically magic.

Back to Eden Gardening (BTE) is all about recreating nature, and the conditions in which a lot of plants naturally thrive. Take for example, a dense forest floor. There you will find an abundance of plants, all surviving without the intervention of people. Nobody is out there watering every day, plucking weeds, or tilling nice tidy rows. Yet, it is absolutely thriving. 

The Why:

I mean, the real question is…why not?! Low maintenance, few weeds encroaching in your garden space, minimal water usage. Not to mention that all of these practices, especially no tilling, improves your soil health over time, which in turn improves your crop health. It all sounds like a pretty sweet deal! Almost too good to be true, right? Let’s go straight on to the paragraph below so you can get started on your own Back To Eden garden.

The How:

The first steps into creating any new garden space is to plan accordingly. While longtime BTE gardeners like Paul have defied many limitations as far as spacing and light requirements go, keep in mind your own BTE garden will not happen overnight. When I got started, I tracked the sun throughout each season of the year. Our primary garden is in our backyard, which is north of our two story house. The house throws a lot of shade in the winter. We also have 3 large trees on our property, one in the back, two in the front, that we have to take into consideration as far as shade. In the summer, the garden area gets full sun with a little afternoon shade in the hottest part of the day. PERFECT. The front yard, where we are turning it into a pollinator paradise, is tricky. Even though it is south facing, it gets more shade than the back because of the two large trees. So track that sunshine and plan(t) accordingly.

Next step is to suffocate any weeds and grasses that are in your plot. The most difficult part of this step is just locating enough material to get the job done. I’m using the term ‘difficult’ loosely! Search the freebie section of your local Facebook marketplace and Craiglist – there always seem to be people getting rid of cardboard boxes. Talk to your local supermarket produce clerk – they may have bundles of cardboard boxes from a recent shipment that you can take. Or better yet, search for newspaper. I found most of my newspaper from a local lady who couponed a lot and had bags and bags of newspaper for me each month.

Cardboard and newspaper are two of my favorite options to use simply because once they break down, they are feeding the soil. You could lay a sheet of black or clear plastic over your area to kill any grass and weeds prior to planting, but by doing so, you are not giving anything back to the soil.

If you use newspaper, my number 1 tip is to lay it quite a few layers thick (at the very very least 3 sheets thick) and spray it down with a hose as you go. This will not only help prevent you from running around trying to keep your paper from blowing away, but it will help the paper mold to the shape of the ground. The issue I’ve found when I do not wet it down is it sometimes creates little pockets for especially resilient plants like bindweed to grow up and through. The flexibility is the main reason I prefer to use newspaper over cardboard, but use what you have!

After laying down all of your weed suppressing materials, it is time to add your layers. The next layer should be something in the compost/manure family. It does not need to be already composted manure. Some people warn against using fresh stuff in your garden. But this material will be sitting for a few months before you begin planting, so go ahead, use it straight from the horse’s…

Anyway! Don’t be stingy on this layer. This will be a good 40% of the bulk of your setup. Need help sourcing enough material? Visit my previous article about how to garden on the cheap for help with that.

So this layer was 40%, let’s say the initial layer is 15%. The next layer will be your mulch, and will be another 40% of your total mass. Stay with me here.

Arguably the most important layer is the mulch you put on top. Whether it be in the form of shredded leaves, straw, pine needles, or what I like to use, shredded woodchips and tree branches, it is what pulls most of the weight of this method. Mulching your garden not only protects your plant’s roots from extreme weather changes (hello snow in May), but it reduces the need to water by holding in moisture, prevents disease that is typically caused by soil backsplash during rainstorms, and provides a nice roof over the heads of the microorganisms that call your new soil home…

In a new BTE garden, aim for at least 6 inches of mulch material on top. It might seem like an awful lot, but trust me – when you let it sit over winter, it’ll condense down to a mere few inches after composting on site!

“But Becca” you say “you said the manure layer is 40%, the mulch is 40% and the initial barrier layer is 15%. Are you crazy or am I only counting 95% of this project complete?”

Those are the ‘typical’ 3 layers that are mentioned when you do a quick google search on how to start a Back to Eden garden. But the remaining 5% that I utilize in my gardens have been the life changing part you guys. Wanna know my secret to BTE success?

After finishing with the mulch, sprinkle a light dusting of compost on top.

Really? That’s it?

Really.

It may seem dumb, but hear me out. That light layer of compost I spread on top of my mulch does one big thing.

As it rains/snows/whatevers throughout the winter, the very thin sprinkling of compost will drizzle down through the mulch. Have you ever made and used compost tea in your garden before? This is a lot like that – providing a very nutrient dense solution on top, allowing it to soak down through the other layers and speed up the decomposition process.

You want to make sure it is not a layer that you are applying. You want to barely be able to see the compost on top of your mulch, or else you will just create a situation where the woodchips tie up the nitrogen right under the first layer of compost.

As your compost makes its way through your system throughout the winter, keep applying more. You’ll have a workable, plantable system by spring.

How long do I have to wait until I can plant in my new BTE garden?

If you follow along this method, you’ll want to preferably start your garden in fall, let it sit over winter, then you’ll be able to plant in the spring.

But if you are eager to get going or you discovered this method a bit too late? No worries! You will just need to adjust a few things.

One, remember when I said you could put hot, fresh manure in the second layer? Not the case if you are planting straight away. You will fry your precious seedling’s roots. Use some nice aged compost. Dig a little hole or trench where you are planting seeds or seedlings. You might want to cut a little hole through the cardboard and newspaper to allow for root growth. Keep in mind you may have to battle a few more weeds than if you allowed the system to sit over winter. Once the plant grows up enough, simply push the mulch around the base and voila!

Have you ever grown in a Back To Eden garden? Have you had success? I’d love to hear your stories! I’ve been growing in this style for 3 years now and am not looking back.

Stay tuned for a follow-up post that includes some tips and tricks to keep your Back to Eden garden thriving. Thanks for tuning in!