After every harvest, Madhavi Guttikonda’s terrace garden is left with dried vines, old stems, weeds, and pruned branches. Most of us clear them away without a second thought. But Madhavi Guttikonda, the Andhra Pradesh-based home gardener behind the Instagram page @madgardener_madhavi, believes they are too valuable to throw away. 

For the past six to seven years, she has been using what she calls the ‘sandwich method’ to recycle garden waste into fertile soil for her terrace garden. It is a slow process, taking around two to three months, but it saves money, cuts down on waste, and leaves her with healthy soil for the next planting season.

In one of her recent Instagram reels, she shows how the method works and explains why she prefers making her own potting mix instead of buying fresh soil every season.

“If we put in the effort once, we can forget about it for the next few months,” she says, referring to the composting process that happens inside the container.

Begin after the winter harvest

Madhavi begins preparing her containers once the winter crops have been harvested. After collecting seeds from healthy plants for the next season, she gathers everything else that would usually be discarded, including old vegetable vines, dried plants, weeds, stems, and pruned branches.

For the past six to seven years, she has been using what she calls the ‘sandwich method’ to recycle garden waste. Photograph: (Image enhanced by AI)

Instead of treating them as waste, she returns them to the soil.

June, she says, is an ideal time to prepare the soil, as it is also the season when many fruits are harvested, and gardens generate plenty of organic material that can be recycled.

How to prepare the soil using the sandwich method

Step 1: Collect garden waste

After harvesting your winter crops, gather all the leftover organic material from the garden. This can include dried vines, old stems, weeds, pruned branches, and other plant matter. Seeds collected from healthy plants can also be saved for the next season. 

Step 2: Add the first layer of soil

Start by placing a layer of soil at the bottom of your container or grow bag.

Step 3: Create the ‘sandwich’

Spread a layer of the collected garden waste over the soil. If you are saving seeds, you can scatter them between the layers if you wish. Continue alternating between soil and organic waste to create two or three layers, filling around half the container.

Step 4: Water well

Once the layers are in place, water the container thoroughly so the decomposition process can begin.

Step 5: Let nature take over

Now comes the easiest part, which is waiting. Leave the container undisturbed for two to three months. During this time, the organic matter slowly breaks down, enriching the soil naturally.

As decomposition takes place, the material settles, so it’s worth checking the container occasionally. The waste gradually turns into dark, crumbly soil that is light, airy, and packed with nutrients.

After harvesting your winter crops, gather all the leftover organic material from the garden. Photograph: (Image enhanced by AI)

A habit that saves money and reduces waste

The process may appear slow, but it only requires effort once every season. Rather than paying for fresh potting soil, transporting heavy bags from nurseries, or throwing away valuable organic matter, gardeners can create their own fertile growing medium at home.

For terrace gardeners and anyone growing plants in containers, it is a practical way to recycle garden waste while improving soil health naturally.

Sometimes, the best fertiliser isn’t something you buy; it is what your garden has been giving you all along.