curious old fart
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The Art and Science of Making a Hugelkultur Bed Transforming Woody Debris into a Garden Resource
Compost, Fungi, Soil Biology, Soil Composition, Soil Conservation, Soil Rehabilitation, Structure, Water Conservation, Water Harvesting by Melissa Miles August 3, 2010
Used for centuries in Eastern Europe and Germany, hugelkultur (in German hugelkultur translates roughly as mound culture) is a gardening and farming technique whereby woody debris (fallen branches and/or logs) are used as a resource.
Often employed in permaculture systems, hugelkultur allows gardeners and farmers to mimic the nutrient cycling found in a natural woodland to realize several benefits. Woody debris (and other detritus) that falls to the forest floor can readily become sponge like, soaking up rainfall and releasing it slowly into the surrounding soil, thus making this moisture available to nearby plants.
Hugelkultur garden beds (and hugelkultur ditches and swales) using the same principle to:
Creating a hugelkultur garden bed is a relatively simple process:
1. Select an area with approximately these dimensions: 6 feet by 3 feet
2. Gather materials for the project:
4. Water these layers well
5. Begin filling in spaces between the logs, twigs and branches with leaf litter and manure of kitchen scraps.
6. Finally, top off the bed with 1 2 of top soil and a layer of mulch.
The hugelkulter bed will benefit from curing a bit, so it is best to prepare the bed several months prior to planting time (prepare the bed in the fall for a spring planting, for example, in temperate northern climates), but hugelkultur beds can be planted immediately. Plant seeds or transplants into the hugelkulter bed as you would any other garden bed. Happy hugelkulturing!
Compost, Fungi, Soil Biology, Soil Composition, Soil Conservation, Soil Rehabilitation, Structure, Water Conservation, Water Harvesting by Melissa Miles August 3, 2010
Wooden debris will decompose faster, (and be transformed into a resource) when hugelkultur techniques are employed. |
Often employed in permaculture systems, hugelkultur allows gardeners and farmers to mimic the nutrient cycling found in a natural woodland to realize several benefits. Woody debris (and other detritus) that falls to the forest floor can readily become sponge like, soaking up rainfall and releasing it slowly into the surrounding soil, thus making this moisture available to nearby plants.
Hugelkultur garden beds (and hugelkultur ditches and swales) using the same principle to:
- Help retain moisture on site
- Build soil fertility
- Improve drainage
- Use woody debris that is unsuitable for other use
Creating a hugelkultur garden bed is a relatively simple process:
1. Select an area with approximately these dimensions: 6 feet by 3 feet
2. Gather materials for the project:
- Fallen logs, branches, twigs, fallen leaves (the under utilized biomass from the site). Avoid using cedar, walnut or other tree species deemed allelopathic.
- Nitrogen rich material (manure or kitchen waste work well and will help to maintain a proper carbon to nitrogen ratio in the decomposing mass within the hugelkulter bed).
- Top soil (enough to cover the other layers of the bed with a depth of 1 2) and some mulching material (straw works well).
4. Water these layers well
5. Begin filling in spaces between the logs, twigs and branches with leaf litter and manure of kitchen scraps.
6. Finally, top off the bed with 1 2 of top soil and a layer of mulch.
The hugelkulter bed will benefit from curing a bit, so it is best to prepare the bed several months prior to planting time (prepare the bed in the fall for a spring planting, for example, in temperate northern climates), but hugelkultur beds can be planted immediately. Plant seeds or transplants into the hugelkulter bed as you would any other garden bed. Happy hugelkulturing!
cof
. The lot of it,,, beautiful. Like classical music.
