Rapids Cemetery

Stop 9 – Meditation Garden

Meditation Garden

The meditation garden was first planted in 2016. The following springtime revealed that the weeds had returned because their roots were still alive. Volunteers used a multi-stage process to kill the unwanted vine and vegetation roots while preserving moisture for the garden plants. Cardboard box panels were reused as material to block sunlight from reaching the roots of the dark soil and light-colored wood chips were added to the top of the cardboard to aid water retention. The technique blocks photosynthesis of the unwanted wild roots while conserving water. Wind-borne new invasive weeds can be pulled easily.

The project was completed during summer 2017. The technique succeeded with weeds controlled in 2018.