No Till Garden

This fall I managed to put in a no till garden bed (sometimes called "lasagna" or "layered" gardening).  The idea is to mimic the forest floor by stacking layers of carbon and nitrogen on top of one another up to two feet high.  The result is fertile soil for garden plants, and an environment that is naturally resistant to weed starts.  The garden will also hold a lot of water, which keeps watering at a minimum (an attractive feature in Georgia). 

The first step is to cover the garden area with cardboard or thick layers of newspaper.  I used a combination of both.  This base layer will keep any existing weeds from sprouting up in the springtime.  

From there, I added a layer of compost from my compost pit about two inches thick.  This was followed by a layer of wood chips that I had delivered for free off craig's list.  On top of that layer, I added some blood and bone meal, followed by grass clippings from my lawn.  I then added more wood chips, some composted cow manure, and another layer of wood chips.  The finished product was probably 11 inches high when completed.  Two months later, the garden has decreased in height by about 40%.  

I've read that using wood chips in a no till garden is less than ideal because it takes longer to break down, but like all my permaculture projects, this was done on a budget.  The only materials I paid for were the blood and bone meal, which I bought at the hardware store for around $20 total.  

I'll post pictures in the spring and provide an update on how things do here.  

   

A cross section of my lasagna bed after a couple months.  Looks pretty dark!  Much more attractive than the red Georgia clay that was there. 

A photo of the garden.  I used an inverted keyhole structure, which will allow me to plant the inside and outside loop of the path.  

Growing Garlic

Garlic is supposed to be one of the easiest plants to grow.  You just put the cloves in the ground and wait.  I've read plenty of articles about growing garlic at home, so I thought I'd give it a try.

Digging in the Dirt

Happy Thanksgiving.  I loved this video as a kid.  I love the song as an adult.

Back yard friends.

I found this guy while moving some firewood in my back yard.  Once I had him under glass, I showed him to my three girls.  I loved snakes as a kid, and I'd like my kids to have an appreciation, and respect, for them as well.  After my kids had taken a long look and asked all their questions, we released this little guy back into the wood pile.  I hope he continues to manage the population of bugs and other critters living in our back yard.

My First HugelKultur

When we bought our house, the back yard was thick with sweet gum trees.  I knew I wanted to bring more light into our South facing back yard, but what to do with the wood?  After doing some research, I decided on a hugelkultur.