The Answer Is.....Hugelkultur

Category: Starting and Maintaining the Garden | Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2014 3:58 pm

Ever since we took out the filberts last summer I have struggled with moving plants I wanted to save and how best to transition this 15' x 20' section of yard. A rich man would have had the stumps ground down and all the wood hauled off or neatly put into proper lengths for the wood stove and stacked. Well that is not going to happen.

Filbert remnants ( photo / image / picture from Jewell's Garden )

Stumps covered ( photo / image / picture from Jewell's Garden )

Right now we are living with the ugly. I am pawning off fern leaf bleeding hearts by the box load and watching out for filbert sprouts from the stumps. Luckily one of the stumps was dead from the filbert blight. Unfortunately the other two are languishing under covers of cardboard, dirt and logs too long to go in the wood stove.

Having a little vacation from work has provided me with opportunities to actually read some of the blogs I subscribe to and there was my answer (big, huge smile from ear to ear). A blog by Erica entitled "Half-Ass Hugelkultur".
http://www.nwedible.com/2012/03/half-ass-hugelkultur.html

Hers was the spark that lead to checking out this idea. Wonder of wonders I already have the base started. I now have a vision for the area...well still half baked, but the idea is developing. I'll continue to mull over the logistics, but everything I have read makes perfect sense. Now like Erica I will have to find a way to pretty it up after the foundation is laid. Maybe bricks to outline the base and definitely mulch to cover the top surface. Humm...what are your gardening plans for this summer?

Last edited: Sat May 17, 2014 3:31 pm

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eileen wrote on Wed Apr 09, 2014 4:08 pm:

Nothing as huge as yours but I intend, with a little help, to eradicate once and for all the unwanted plants in the garden. I have a whole greenhouse of now stuff I want to get in. They are far more bee and butterfly friendly that some of the ones I have now.
I like your idea of using the logs as a base and hope you'll show us progress report photographs.

Sjoerd wrote on Wed Apr 09, 2014 10:25 pm:

I know about this concept and there are variations in technique and purpose.

I am really interested to know how your attempt will do, and how you decide to do it.

I have never heard of folks beginning this operation at this time of the year. Over here it is usual to begin this in, say september...so that all the components under ground will have all winter to decompose further before using the plots.

Really interested in seeing how how this project works out. I am with Eileen--please show development foto's along the way.

Good luck, miss!

Kay wrote on Thu Apr 10, 2014 12:07 am:

Very interesting Jewell. I've never heard of this. It looks like a lot of work, but it may be fun for you to give it a try.
Seems like there are a lot of different ways to do it too.

As for me, I have a re-hab to do in my front where the big tree was taken out. (See my March blog :)
The plants got sort of smashed and I'm afraid I need to redesign the area.

Jewell wrote on Sat Apr 12, 2014 5:04 am:

Eileen I will keep you posted. I have some concerns because of city wildlife but will closely monitor the pile.

Sjoerd, I will be working on the pile all summer. The big stuff is layed but we will be doing some heavy summer pruning on the fruit trees. I plan on using those trimming and the bamboo also needs a heavy cutting. With all the ivy hedging the pile is already growing. Feels like a quickly growing compost pile.

Kay, good luck with your rehab.

This little section of our yard is the last part that gets sun throughout the day so having a fertile bed with additional vertical area is definitely enticing.

toni wrote on Tue May 27, 2014 3:02 pm:

I used something like this to build the shade bed on the north side of the house. Took two years for the sticks and assorted clippings to decompose enough to plant in it so things were in pots for that time. But now there is a good 5 inches of plantable soil there.

Never knew that method had a name of any kind.

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