We recommend using paper in lieu of cardboard as it is less likely to contain harmful chemicals and adheres to the underlying vegetation better than does cardboard.

Fresh ramial woodchips sourced from chipdrop.org weigh down the paper, smothering the grass thus killing it. The roots decompose in place making soil looser and planting easier. It’s helpful to lay down woodchips 6 months before planting to thoroughly kill grass and begin woodchip breakdown. Never use woodchips from a supply yard as they are inferior to fresh woodchips and are often treated. As long as woodchips are not mixed into the soil, they will not rob nitrogen. On the contrary, as they break down, they will add fertility to the soil.

Take into consideration the needs of the site and community, available plants, climate, sunlight, prevailing wind, privacy needs, and other factors.

According to the design, measure distances between trees and shrubs to ensure proper spacing. The string makes visualizing the design, guilds, and paths much easier.

Using a hard rake to remove woodchips from the planting area is important to avoid mixing them into the soil or falling into the planting hole.

This avoids woodchips from getting mixed into the backfill.

Cover soil with woodchips leaving space around stem of the trees. We don’t use any amendments in the planting hole with the occasional exception of mycorrhizal inoculant which aids root development.

Winecap Stropharia mushrooms are an excellent choice for woodchips and produce abundant edible mushrooms in most types of woodchips.

Many large seeds can be sown directly against or under the soil and buried beneath the woodchips and they'll be able to erupt through the mulch. Beans and squash have a high success rate with this method. Establishing fava or other beans immediately in spring provides a yield in the first year and fixes nitrogen into the soil from the atmosphere.

Take a handful of seed and throw it! These two seeds when broadcast are able to root down into the soil through the woodchips. Daikon creates soil porosity and adds organic matter to the soil and buckwheat rapidly creates biomass (to be chopped and dropped) and nectar for pollinators

Some vegetables and herbs can be planted by direct seeding, but the seed must be large enough and the sprout vigorous enough to erupt through the woodchips. Otherwise, woodchips can be raked back and seeds planted in the soil and as they establish, the woodchip mulch can be pushed back around the seedlings. Never plant seeds into the woodchips as they'll be nitrogen deficient if they establish roots in the woodchips. Plant starts like tomatoes and brassicas should be planted into the soil and woodchips brought back near the stem as mulch.