HS Mom in NC Posted March 12, 2019 Share Posted March 12, 2019 Please tell me about your layers. I know there are different layering techniques. I want to put a cover crop (clover) on the top, but I'm wondering if woodchips just under the clover will make it impossible for the seeds to take root. Any other related thoughts? I'm a newbie to permaculture. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Innisfree Posted March 13, 2019 Share Posted March 13, 2019 Disclaimer: I've only done this once, and it was some years ago. But since no one else has answered, I'll bite. I read about hugelkulture, and since our yard was poorly drained and I wanted to both create raised beds and increase organic matter, and since we had old logs sitting around rotting, I gave it a try. All I really did was to work up the soil like I normally would, then place logs sort of half-buried in the beds, then cover with soil. The soil was topsoil I had delivered, though, since what we had was largely mucky clay. Then I used organic matter on top: mostly I used rotting leaves, which I had in abundance, but once I used straw instead. This was just a mulch layer, but it was good and thick. For planting, though, I planted under the mulch, directly in the soil. Results were pretty good. We did get several years of good harvests, mostly because of the topsoil I had brought in, I think. The logs decayed very slowly. Some bits may still be there, I haven't worked those beds up yet this year. Organic matter must have increased significantly. I know for years I had the most fantastic earthworm and general bug population. I think that was more due to the leaves on top than to the logs underneath, but probably with time as the logs rotted they helped too. The most visible result was that our drainage problem in that part of the yard vanished. I think the soil was able to hold a lot more water. Productivity declined after a few years, and I haven't had enough time or energy to look after the garden well in recent years, so I haven't added more organic matter or fertilizer lately. I never used a cover crop. Never used wood chips, either. I think I'd want to plant in soil, not chips, and I'd want to make sure enough moisture and nutrients were available. But experimentation would be fun. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS Mom in NC Posted March 13, 2019 Author Share Posted March 13, 2019 Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted March 13, 2019 Share Posted March 13, 2019 If you try it please report how it goes. Our family has had a lot of downed trees and branches from storms and are wondering about this approach. I’ve been involved with permaculture a long time, but not ever tried it and don’t know anyone who has. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted March 13, 2019 Share Posted March 13, 2019 I'm just really disappointed this isn't some german pastry involving layers of flakey goodness. 3 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katy Posted March 13, 2019 Share Posted March 13, 2019 I'm curious too. The truth is I had trouble remembering to water our peppers and tomatoes last summer, but my fantasy self buys a hobby farm in the next 10 years and produces 80% of our own food. Probably a terrible economic decision but it really appeals to us nonetheless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistyMountain Posted March 13, 2019 Share Posted March 13, 2019 I tried it on two garden beds. We had a lot of wood anyway and I covered them with topsoil. It was successful the first year but my sheet mulching style beds were more successful in subsequent years. It did not use woodchips or a cover like clover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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