Never Till Again! How To Transform Land Into GARDEN [Fast!] 

I'd also suggest wetting the ground well if it's dry, before covering the soil. The cardboard tends to act as a water barrier at first and this will help get things moving. It's especially helpful here in Seattle, where the ground can be very dry for several months in the summer. If it's a lawn (especially if it's an old badly maintained lawn with compacted soil) that you're starting with, it's also helpful (though not completely necessary by any means) to rent a hydraulic tiller and do a single till to break up that turf. I spread a light application of chicken manure on top of that, and then start with the cardboard. That extra hit of N will make the grass and weeds try and grow, and exhaust itself in the absence of light. Once again it's a bit different here in the Pacific Northwest, where all the weeds and grass really start growing in autumn as the rains start. And continue. And continue. :-) So we can take advantage of their (doomed) efforts. The works and bugs will work overtime on that decaying plant matter and move it down. And one mistake I made the first time I did this was failing to get rid of all the tape on the cardboard boxes. That became pretty annoying later when I'd dig and hit a long strip of cellophane. 😅

Love this!

This is super helpful, thank you! I'm going to start this project to transform my yard soon! I'll be using newspaper instead of cardboard and have flowers and shrubs coming in about two months. Do you think the soil will be ready for planting deeper roots by then? I would really appreciate the help!