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  • From: paul wheaton <paul@richsoil.com>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] Biggest hugelkultur?
  • Date: Wed, 7 Sep 2011 16:50:02 -0600

The first year of hugelkultur is gonna suck. The second year is
so-so. The third year and beyond is dreamy.

On Wed, Sep 7, 2011 at 2:34 PM, Evan <kodama@riseup.net> wrote:
> I built a few hugel's this spring with a similar layer mix ... logs then
> straw with horse manure then soil. I had trouble with them drying out in
> July and August, which I hope to avoid in the future by doing what you
> propose, Paul, by mixing straw in with the logs to eliminate excess air
> space and keep everything closer for better moisture retention. I believe
> this should do the trick. I suspect my present hugels will not have this
> trouble after a couple of seasons of settling/mellowing.
>
> cheers,
> Evan
>
> On Sep 7, 2011, at 12:55 PM, paul wheaton wrote:
>
>> A coupla bits:
>>
>> 1)  I would very much like to see pics in about two years.  Especially
>> around mid august where the surrounding vegetation is brown and
>> dormant and the stuff on the hugelkultur is green and lush.  And if
>> the vegetation could be stuff that is easily recognizable as typical
>> garden plants (tomatoes, melons, etc.) that would be even better.
>>
>> 2)  I think I would have mixed the hay in a bit.  Mix it in with the
>> wood and mix it in with the soil.  To keep it from turning to
>> glie/gley and making a water/air barrier.
>>
>> On Wed, Sep 7, 2011 at 10:19 AM, Toby Hemenway <toby@patternliteracy.com>
>> wrote:
>>> We've been spending the summer at White Deer Ranch in Montana, north of
>>> Yellowstone while I've been writing. Yesterday the owners, Lee and
>>> Roxanne Dunn, asked me if I wanted to help them put in a hugelkultur
>>> project. Sure. I just didn't realize that Lee never does things on a
>>> small scale. He dug a trench 40 feet long with a backhoe, we dragged some
>>> huge logs and a mountain of brush from around the 450 acre ranch, added
>>> roughly 3500 pounds of old hay, watered it in with water from the ranch's
>>> 12-acre pond, and tomorrow we will cover it with soil. Definitely the
>>> biggest hugelkultur I've seen.
>>>
>>> Roxanne posted photos of the project on Facebook.
>>> http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.245701522132088.52346.100000767271564&type=1&cmntid=245736072128633
>>>
>>> If you're not a FB user, I'm planning on posting something on my website
>>> soon. And if you ever want an incredible vacation in Montana, in the
>>> shadow of the Beartooth Range and in gorgeous country, there are two
>>> rental houses on the ranch (organic hay and a few animals) that I highly
>>> recommend. It's an old homestead cottage and a new log home, and those
>>> oldtimers knew a lot about siting, water, and soil--a fantastic place.
>>> We've been in heaven all summer, hiking the Beartooths and swimming in
>>> the pond.
>>>
>>> http://whitedeerranch.com
>>>
>>> Toby
>>> http://patternliteracy.com
>>>
>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
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>>
>
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>
>



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