hugelkultur thingy...

[snohare]

This means moving the greenhouse too unfortunately....

Sounds paneful...

Very interesting idea, I'll bet the carrots are straight out of That's Life !

This idea reminds me of an article I read on mounded remains of prehistoric growing areas found in the Congo. ( Think it was there, don't quote me on it.) The theory had been that the jungle was "virgin" - in practice, someone was walking along and realised that all these mounds were regular in size and distribution, extended over a huge area...turns out there had been entire cities supplied by what sounds remarkably like Hugelkultur. The nation which did this was entirely unknown to historians, and remains still very mysterious.
Shades of permaculture too, specific trees are associated with these areas, all of which are usable in some way. But the prehistoric beds were enormous by comparison with the modern ones, acres in extent.

I'll be interested to see how you get on, I can see this being very popular with people like me who can't afford lots of "proper" infill for raised beds.

[veggiechicken]

One of the attractions for me is the disposal of all the woody prunings without having to burn them. I have far too many to put in the green waste bin. I usually just pile up the twigs and leave them - calling it a home for wildlife. However, a covering of soft stuff like semirotted compost and grass cuttings may be a visual improvement!! Also, these mounds create additional growing space on the slopes. The higher the mound, the greater the growing area and less bending! I think I'll start one tomorrow!

[taff]

I think I know the one you mean snohare
Lost Tribes Used Clever Tricks to Turn Amazon Wasteland to Farms | Wired Science | Wired.com
VC - yeah, that was my plan too, not so much the woody prunings, but the fact there's more growing space. i was reading about the herb spiral idea, of mounding and coiling to increase 3d rather than 2d, and i wondered why he didn't recommend putting wood at the bottom in the middle instead of stones...
I think i read on your link about the optimum height being 5ft....I'm gonna need a bigger twig....or two

[zazen999]

One of the attractions for me is the disposal of all the woody prunings without having to burn them. I have far too many to put in the green waste bin. I usually just pile up the twigs and leave them - calling it a home for wildlife. However, a covering of soft stuff like semirotted compost and grass cuttings may be a visual improvement!! Also, these mounds create additional growing space on the slopes. The higher the mound, the greater the growing area and less bending! I think I'll start one tomorrow!

There's always Biochar.....


http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organ...Your-Soil.aspx

[Florence Fennel]

This is very interesting. The pumpkins I planted through cardboard on my reclaimed lawn did nothing, the ground must have been too compacted. I have made a start on improving the patch by piling all the spent tomato plants on the card, so I'll carry on now, thanks Taff!

[taff]

Maybe a combination of techniques would work...One of the beds in the garden was the site of two large bonfires before i made it, I didn't notice a marked increase of fertility in that bed, but i did notice that for two years running, tomatoes don't like it very much in there, which is surprising. They're ok while they're growing, but come ripening time, they don't want to play, they go blotchy []not blight], or they split around the neck, or fall off before they're ripe.
I read about the black earth thing too...seems like there used to be a lot of techniques that we're 'discovering' again....

[taff]

If anyone does want to try this, I have some words of warning.
The last layer I put on the bed was the spent compost from last years tomatoes. This dried out completely, so I covered it in grass clippings, then it rained and wet it thoroughly again. I planted a thyme plant I bought last month [you can never have enough ]. That plant was almost completely eaten by slugs, who munched on the middle bits and left the tougher outer stalks. I've moved it now somewhere drier.
I pulled up some limanthes from the corners a couple of days ago, to find something hopping away, which then disappeared into a hole in the side, so it appears there's a frog living in the bed.
I would caution anyone making one of these that they really do hold onto moisture, that anything not composted will sprout again. I'm doing battle with the raspberry prunings and potato peelings at the moment.
And whatever you use as a mulch should be dry or at least a bit sharp, like straw or dried grass clippings to prevent slugs from enjoying slithering all over it.