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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] Wood does belong in the soil?

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Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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  • From: Harvey Ussery <harvey@themodernhomestead.us>
  • To: Healthy soil and sustainable growing <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Wood does belong in the soil?
  • Date: Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:45:43 -0500


I also hugelkultur in the compost bins. I layer the bottom of the bins (I have 9 right now) with cardboard and newspaper.... LOTS to try to prevent an invasion of tree roots. Then I toss in rotted wood for the next layer. Leaves and kitchen scraps are layered back and forth and the top layer is soil. I grow potatoes and pumpkins in that soil and allow the compost under the soil to work very slowly in the meantime. I don't get a terrific crop of potatoes (pumpkins I do sometimes) but at least I get something from each bin in addition to the compost. I dug up several potatoes today for tomorrow's soup.
Laura

An interesting idea, Laura, and one I've experimented with in a parallel way. The most biologically active part of the soil profile is the rhizosphere, the zone immediately around roots. So I figured that, with slow-to-decompose stuff, getting more growing roots into the mix would increase decomposition rate. I put a flock of chickens on what amounted to a giant compost heap, over the whole run--much of it oak leaves and sawdust from "stable sweepings." When I moved the chooks to pasture, I planted the run with a cover crop (cowpeas and volunteer oats and wheat). After the whole summer, I put the chickens back on the plot to eat/till in the cover. Then I "harvested" the compost--countless wheelbarrow loads--for the garden.

~Harvey

--
Harvey in northern Virginia
www.themodernhomestead.us





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