Congratulations on joining our Pollinator Pathway plan! We are so grateful you’ve committed to planting native pollinator plants and to keeping your lawn pesticide-free. We put together a few steps to help you get started with your new garden This looks like a lot of steps, but each one is quick and easy.

  • Select the area. What is the sun exposure: full sun, part sun, or shade?
  • Lay out the shape. Round? Oval? Rectangle? Freeform?
  • Size. About 15 square feet. 4+ foot diameter circle. 3’ X 5’ rectangle. Or any shape with a circumference of about 16 feet.
  • Cut vegetation. Mow or weed-whip as close to the ground as possible.
  • Edge the garden. Add edging of your choice (see some style options after this list), or simply dig a 3” deep trench around the garden, throwing the dirt inside.
  • Loosen the soil. Your soil is likely to be highly compacted, so you need to break it up to allow new roots to grow. You don’t need to dig it up – just use a garden fork to break it up. This should only take about 15 minutes.
  • Add compost. Spread 1 bag of quality compost, such as Cowsmo Compost (see a full list of compost options at the end of this page)
  • Water well.
  • Cover the area. Use several layers of newspaper, or brown paper bags. This will prevent the existing vegetation from growing up through your garden.
  • Water again. Just to keep the papers from blowing away.
  • Add more compost. You’ll need about 4 bags of compost to cover the entire garden about 2” deep. You don’t need quality compost for this step.
  • Plant. You don’t need to plant right away. When you’re ready to plant: clear about a 4” space in the top compost; stab a trowel through the papers, wiggle back and forth and drop in the plant. Firm the soil around the plant.
  • Water.
  • Maintenance. Little maintenance is needed. Water as needed until plants are established. The compost helps keep the soil moist and prevents drying through evaporation or sun exposure. The paper barrier and compost helps keep weeds from growing in your garden.

Types of edging

  • Lay on top of the ground:
    • bricks, concrete edging, flat stones, rocks, wood
    • easiest to install
    • LEAST effective in preventing grass intrusion into flower beds
  • Pound into the ground:
    • flat plastic or steel
    • flexible to form curves
    • medium difficulty in installation
  • Dig into the ground:
    • plastic
    • 3” – 6” depth
    • usually use stakes to hold in place
    • MOST effective in preventing grass intrusion into flower beds

Sources for Bagged Compost

Quality compost:

Cowsmo organic, available at:
Klier’s Nursery, 5901 Nicollet Ave S. $7.99 for 20#
Otten Brothers, 2350 Wazyata Blvd. $24.99 for 35#

Purple Cow organic, available at:
Bachman’s $22.99 for 1 cu. ft.

Espoma Land & Sea organic, available at:
Bachman’s $12.99 for 1 cu. ft.

Standard compost:

Timberline Cow Manure & Compost
at Home Depot $2.67 for 40#

Sylva Compost plus Manure, available at:
Menards $2.48 for .75 co. ft.