After I line my garden w/NEWSPAPER to prevent weeds WHAT/How do I LAYER soil & mulch exactly?

Do I cover w/plenty of bark mulch, then top it off w/black top soil? Then go for planting my bulbs?


Never blocked weeds b4 now :o)


And I have so many to plant too; dahlia's, common day lilies, giant zinnia's, more bulbs, ect of various types

After I line my garden w/NEWSPAPER to prevent weeds WHAT/How do I LAYER soil %26amp; mulch exactly?
Before planting anything, prepare your garden bed and if that includes adding compost to improve the soil quality and/or topsoil, do it now. A raised bed is better for the plants as it provides better drainage and soil warms faster. Next plant your bulbs, tubers, corms, whatever, first, and mark them with a small stick, chopstick, plant marker - so you know where they are. Then put in the various plants. Now comes the layer of newspaper for the weed barrier. Lay your 8-10 layers, making sure you arrange around the plants and leave openings for your bulbs and such to come through (remove the sticks once you are done). Water and lastly cover with your mulch of choice. The mulch holds the papers in place, keeps the moisture in and decreases evaporation which both help reduce watering needs. Plus, it looks nice! If you use bark mulch, spread it 2-4 inches deep. Now step back and admire your work and look forward to a beautiful garden with much less work needed to keep it up. A little side hint - if you are planting any bulbs, tubers, etc. that you know will require staking at some time, put the stake in with the planting.This way you can place it with your plant material in sight and erase the possibility of damaging it later with a blind stab of the stake.
Reply:Mulch on top.. then newspaper, then soil below the paper. Plant in the soil, through the paper and into the soil.
Reply:You should go to www.1800TOPSOIL.com and click on "calculator" to figure that out. But if you really want your flowers to thrive, get some good quality potting soil. It's loaded with nutrients and actually time-releases water and nutrients to your plants/flowers to make sure they get what they need when they need it. Good luck!

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