If you have been reading my columns for a while, you know by now that besides supporting our local farmers and farmers markets, I also enjoy growing a few things in our little garden.Through the years I have shared bits about our edible garden, but straying from my usual cooking and recipe articles, this time I want to share some of our tried and true gardening tips.Sounds funny doesnt it? What does it mean? When I first heard the term lasagna gardening I had no idea that we were already doing it and didnt know what to call it.It simply means starting an organic garden without digging or tilling the land underneath. The layering of a barrier between the grass and weeds underneath and the planting medium; be it layers of cardboard, newspapers or any other decomposable material keeps the weeds or grass from coming through. By wetting the layers thoroughly you start the decomposing process while at the same time breaking down the grass and weeds underneath, which in turn will start attracting worms to the new moist bed.Some of the things that can be used for lasagna gardening is layers of anything that will break down into organic matter: shredded paper (it's slow to break down so make it a thin layer) from computers and even newspapers (avoid the glossy or colored pages); fruit drop from under the trees; pruning of young branches and leaves), grass clippings; coffee grounds, egg shells, used tea bags, poop from stables or wherever you can get it and finally, the wonderful compost-making stuff from your kitchen waste; peelings, parings, cut-off ends, etc . anything you would normally put in a home composting bin can be added to the top of your lasagna bed. Just continue adding and wetting it down to help the process along.If you know someone who raises rabbits, goats or chickens, ask if you can collect the manure. If they dont use it, they just might give to you for free if you collect it yourself.Pigeon pea branches are great. Although we do eat the peas, we plant pigeon peas mainly because they are a wonderful source of nitrogen and when the plants get too large, just clip branches to add to the lasagna beds.Every once in a while, cover the layers of all your organic matter with a layer of cardboard, wet it thoroughly and then start over again. Cardboard also helps in keeping the weeds down. You can simply poke holes in the cardboard and plant something that will last a long time. Eventually, that cardboard will also breakdown and underneath you will find lots and lots of nice healthy worms.Many stores have to pay to get rid of their cardboard boxes....so they will be happy to give it to you. Try to stay away from claycoating...the shinny glossy finish on some cardboard boxes.Why spend money at a nursery or garden supply store on bags of mulch when its so easy to make your own!Most of us have trees in our yards that shed leaves year round. All these leaves are normally raked or blown with a leaf blower and disposed off. Overgrown bushes and tree limbs are clipped and disposed off by carting them to the landfills.These are precious resources which are usually wasted by being either ignored or blown away with a leaf blower.Here is a much better idea! Regardless of how many or how little an amount of leaves and clippings your yard yields, you can rake them all to a corner of the back yard, cover them with tarp, leaving a bit of breathing space here and there, and let them cook under there for a few months. The result will be rich, leafy mulch that is decomposed and ready to spread around your plants or worked into the soil in a new garden bed or added to your lasagna bed layers.Or you can use large black plastic bags which are usually used to fill with leaves to be discarded, but instead of discarding, put them to work for you. Tie up the top, poke a few holes on the sides and let them sit several months in a back corner behind your garage, shed or carport or anywhere they arent visible from the street or house I dont buy these plastic bags any longer, but from time to time have received one or two when I was given items I received through our local Freecycle. I put them to good use instead of just disposing of them. Other large bags such as 25 or 50 pound dog feed bags can also be put to use to store and cook your mulch.There are compost bins available for purchase in many garden and plant shops but in keeping with recycling and reusing, you can also make your own by using wooden pallets that you can get from free. Many businesses will give them away to save having to pay a county disposal fee.For those of you who are handy or have a handy person in your household, here is a simple idea for making a compost bin from wooden pallets.My son came up with a system that continuously feeds our tomato plants. By sinking an aluminum can (which he has previously punched with holes on the sides) or sinking a small 4 empty plastic potting pot next to the tomato plants, he then fills the cans or plastic pots with manure mixed with other bits of compost. Our normal rainfall then makes the contents of the cans leach out through the holes and feed directly into the roots of the tomato plants. When we have a few days with no rain, then we make sure we pour some water into the cans at least once every couple of days, so that the plants can continue feeding.If you plant tomatoes around a wire tomato cage, set it upside down and sink the can into the ground in the middle of the circle formed by the widest end of the cage; then plant 3 tomato plants around the outside. The plants reward us with lovely clusters of tomatoes for weeks at a time.Since our weather is conducive to year-round planting and harvesting, we take cuttings from our established tomato plants. We then plant them in other garden beds to ensure a continuous supply.One easy way to grow from cuttings is to take some of the longer bottom branches of the tomato plants and bend them down towards the ground. Dig a little trench and place the middle section of the branch in it and cover with dirt. You can place a small rock to hold it in place until it roots. After it roots, cut the branch from the mother plant and dig up your new rooted section, dirt and all and transplant wherever you want.This is an idea we tried when we first planted our recycled garden. This method works best for taller crops, such as corn or okra in your 4 x 4 square garden beds.Plant seeds in bottomless paper cups. The unwaxed paper cups being used to sprout the seedlings in the beds are some we couldn't use due to their being too small for the cup dispenser we already had....so they have been put to seed-sprouting use by cutting out the bottom.We also planted some Rubeckia daisy seeds in the corners for color and to sort of act as a buffer at each corner of the beds.The bottomless little paper cups are placed in pockets in the mulch to which some of the planting soil mixture has been added. Fill the cup 3/4 with soil, add the seeds and cover with 1/4 inch of soil.The purpose for using the paper cups (not waxed so they will eventually decompose into the soil) is to discourage birds from digging into the ground for seeds and also slugs and cut worms from getting to the seedlings when they start sprouting.Empty toilet tissue cardboard rolls can be used for the same purpose. In areas where cold weather lingers into the late spring months, you can set the bottomless paper cups or the tissue rolls inside empty ice cream cartons fill partially with growing media and plant individual seeds in each. By the time the weather warms up enough to plant outside, you can dig holes small enough and plant the cups or paper roll cores with your sprouted seedlings into your growing bed.When not putting them into our compost bin, we like to save all the raw vegetable peelings and bit pieces not used in cooking in a plastic bucket. At the end of the day we put them in a blender with plenty of water and process until smooth. You might have to do it in batches.Use this raw liquid veggie mixture to water your herbs or vegetable garden by pouring it right around the stem of each plant. If you don't have enough to water all your plants at one time, water them in sections each day. Obviously, this is not practical for very large gardens, but it works great in ours and also if you plant your herbs and tomatoes in pots around your lanai.4 cups water12 to 15 small Hawaiian red chile peppersUsing a blender, pour in one cup of water and the red chile peppers.Process until all blended and chopped. Add the other three cups of water to this mix and blend again. Pour into a glass jar, cover and let it sit in the sun for a couple of days, as if making sun tea.Pour into a spray bottle, first passing it through a sieve or fine mesh colander; add the liquid detergent at this point. Spray on your affected plants.The detergent will help the spray adhere to the plants. Don't spray food that you will eat within a couple of days, as the capsaicin in the peppers will still be too strong and can cause finger and mouth burns. Be sure to rinse the vegetables in lots of fresh water before consuming.I welcome your comments and suggestions. You can reach me by e-mailing me a cubanwahine@hawaii.rr.com . You can also get additional gardening tips and recipes in my blog at www.soniatasteshawaii.com A hui hou!Sonia