How we Grow a Massive Garden and RARELY Have to Water!
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- Опубликовано: 30 окт 2024
- The garden is made up of around 3,000 square feet of growable space and
believe it or not we rarely water. Even when days get into the 90's the
beds stay damp and the rain and underground moisture is enough to
fulfil the water requirements of the entire garden. This is truly hands
free gardening at its finest. This method is ideal for those with
expensive water, a lack of water, or those wanting to just be more self
sufficient and ecological.
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To anyone that wants to save 10 minutes: He dug a trench and filled it with straw. The wet rotting straw wicks moisture back into the bed.
Thanks Magic Mike
Thank you!
Thanks 🙏
THANK YOU.
this was only one method discussed. And not the main one. Plus, why would someone not watch his whole video?
You mentioned this method in one of your previous videos about a year ago. I decided to try it in my onion bed and while everything was dying of thirst, the onions were super green and happy!! I couldn't believe it was working so well!! I could definitely see a big difference between the I beds that had no core. I will be expanding the core gardening method to more beds!! I've been watching your videos for years now, and I always learn something new. Thank you for sharing all your expertise with us!
Thank you! I am a city dweller - only an apartment with a few pots. To save on soil costs, I mixed torn cardboard scraps (tear by hand - gets the tensions out!) with fruit and veggie scraps, about one to one, then mixed enough soil in to hold it together. I put this directly into the pots, with a few inches of soil to cover the top. (Your run-off will be tea-coloured if you do it this way.) The best success was when I threw in a box of whole too-old tea bags... the pot with those in it holds water the best.
I just wanted to take minute to tell you that I really appreciate all the information you share with everyone. Knowledge really is power. Watching your videos have helped me tremendously to be successful gardening which in turn strenghtens my love for gardening. You have inspired me more than a few times to jump out of my comfort zone and try new things that work. Gardening has become more than just a food source for me. It is a hobby that has helped me through so much in life. My garden brings me peace, joy, and a connection with nature. I love the payback you get from all the hardwork and dedication while gardening. Also, that with every growing season you are always learning something new and it's exciting. Anyway, I think it's awesome that you share so much with everyone. Teaching people to grow their own food is an honorable act! Makes me think of this Chinese proverb: Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. You are helping feed others for a lifetime! God Bless You!
I wanna second all of this!!! But one part is opposite for us.. gardening has become more than a hobby... Now we are excited for it to be a food source!
I doubt that will work out here in Phoenix Az but if you lived her which time of the year would you do it ? Spring?
I am so thankful I shared on how to grow massively without watering regularly. I live in Tanzania and we don't have water taps in our houses we fetch water by heads using brackets. Gardening has never been option especially when it is dry and 🔥. I am a full time teacher and travel4 hours to and from work.I leave the house at 5 in the morning and get back at 7 in the evening and thats when Iwater my garden. With your core gardening idea my life is saved.
Did you try this?
Oh so this is what it's called lol. I grew up in Virginia, clay and slate. I put about a foot of compost, then hay then top soil. You'd think that was a lot but it all settles down pretty quickly. In one of our worst droughts I was the only one with a lush garden. It really does work.
So helpful! Ty. Can you do this for all the produce/veggies youre growing? Or would it be detrimental for some crops?
@@ema8909 I grew all kinds of things in this. Roots, leafy greens, vines, flowers, fruit shrubs, etc. Never had a bad crop.
@@debiesubaugher awesome!!! Thanks for replying! Im learning as much as I can but have never grown anything before.
@@ema8909 never a problem
I know this is an older episode, but I'm fixing to go out this morning and start building a hugelkultur myself. I been looking at a lot of content and putting piles of small branches, bigger trunks in preparation. I'm new to planting edibles, but watching you and a couple of other channels I finally planted a few things this past Fall. So this year I'm watching movements of the sun, once I know I'm planting a permanent bed and then I'll plant it with a core. I saw the episode where you were adding the straw in the middle. Luke, I'm an older person, 56, and I've learned a lot from you young man. Thank you, I very much appreciate you and all you do! ;)
Oh wow! I used this method for my first garden. I'm 70. I didn't know it had a name. I had almost total clay but wanted to garden so I decided to do containers and a large, above ground potato row with a variation of Ruth stout.
I used several water wicking things in the containers... First cardboard, a few sticks, some regular leaves, mixed with shredded paper. This layering for about 2" at the bottom of a 14" deep container. Then 5-6 inches of leaf mulch from the local city recycling facility. Free. WATERED well.
Followed with about 1" of compost from the store. Next about 2-3 inches of miracle gro potting soil. Planted my little baby veggies and mulched. Heavily. Some I mulched with a combination of wood chips and shredded paper. Then I switched to straw. WaTERED well.
The results: plants are growing beautifully. Almost zero weeds. Limited watered. It's June 9. I started in early April. I have harvested Collards twice, cabbage once, Squash once.
I have about 25 containers, 20 different items, plus 2 grow bags which are 100 gal, 1 pea, 1 bean
Potato row w/ 30 sweet potato and about 40 white potato. Everybody looks hale, hearty and happy.
Thanks for sharing the details. Going to give it a go in some bigger pots I have to see where it gets me. I always spend too much $ on soil each year when I say it's not going to happen again. And it happens again. ☺️ Reminds me of the tote / chair gardening thing in terms of the layering.
Gardening style diversity is good for everyone. The more ways the merrier. I'm glad you touched on that there are multiple good ways to approach food growing. If one way doesn't work because of location and resources, then it is important to have so many styles. Thank you for spreading that. Just start, that is the important thing.
We have well water which is great but in Florida we were burning up our pump trying to keep everything healthy, especially in mid summer. We mulched everything, took a couple seasons to get the system in place as it should be but it definitely helped. We also catch rain water from the roof and use that when we need it
I have never heard that term or method but I intend to research more and do this!! Thanks for bringing this to light!! Isn't funny the more we try to push things in gardening the way WE want, God says," I've got this!" 🌻🌻🌻🌻
ikr
Garden looks amazing - your results speak for themselves! I add shredded leaves to my garden beds all the time - I"ll have to try putting some in the center!!! Thanks for sharing this method!
How do you shred the leaves?
+Vikas Gupta leaf blower
You don't need to shred the leaves and twigs. They break down in the soil. ;-)
@@jasminflower3814 But they break down a lot faster if you do. I use a WORX Trivac, which shredded leaves right out of the box. Now that I've put some hours on it, it makes pulverized leaves and leaf dust,
@@billcereske7211 Yes they do break down faster using a shredder. Happy gardening. ;-)
I used this method when I first installed my garden. I dug 1 ft trenches in between the rows and backfilled with logs and leaves. It is moist 365 days a year because of it.
Were your logs freshly cut or old ones? How round were they?
What kind of logs do you use? We have Pine and I'm afraid to use it.
I did try this method by accident and it worked very well!
Amazing! I took a Master Gardening course in Arkansas back in 2010 and we didn't even talk about this method. Thank you so much for bringing this method out of the shadows. I am so excited to try this!
I love to hear you oersonify the actions and systems that happen in the garden. over the past two seasons, I'd used a lot of straw in my gardens. This year, my husband was very ill and died of cancer on 06-13-2016. I didn't plant a garden. I've been really thinking about what to do in my garden during the next year. I thought about just catchong the garden before the weeds grow and adding some mulch or straw, adding some of my compost, some mushroom compost and then, placing coir blocks on top of the garden. I figured that any weeds would be smothered and I could plant in the coir once the rain and heat loosens it up. Thanks for making your videos.
flanmaryj I'm sorry for your loss. My hubby died 10 years ago, and it took me about 6 months to really get back to figuring out what I wanted to do. Allow yourself time to mourn and think. I do find spending time in the garden helps me heal and feel a part of the cycle of life. Hope you can enjoy your garden as well.
Flanmaryj, I'm sorry for your loss.
Luke idk if you’ll see this but this is what I’m doing this year. Because of my disability I can’t get out and carry watering cans (no outside hose hook up). I’m super excited to see how it goes for the season. Fingers crossed! Thank you sooooooooo much for all you do! God Bless. Hope the family is well. ~Lisa
I have a row of 16 bales per raised bed, then about 6 -8 inches of soil and mulch atop them. Last four years. holds the water into the area so very well. and the plants do wonderfully. I also have plants in the ground that I added layers of straw on when I first moved, and it helped so much.
I’ve never heard of this approach to gardening, but it might be just what I need to explore and try on my land.
This sounds like a fantastic idea and thank you for the suggestion. I live in the UK and where I am (Somerset) it can get pretty wet but it can also be very dry in the summer months. Water rates here are expensive so we try to conserve what water we have in water butts. Last year we had our garden re-landscaped and had raised beds put in and this year we are about to embark on planting them up. Very excited by this prospect and I love your ideas and suggestions so shall be tuning in often to get more ideas but already you have given me a lot to think about. I will let you know how it goes this year and look forward to seeing some more of your films full of advice. Thank you, Jackie
I didn't realize there was a name for this. I live near the beach and my soil is very sandy, I'm finding my soil has so much improved and I don't have to water as much either. I'm glad your promoting this and bringing to the forefront.
Saw this just now and combined together with the Back to Eden method this is perfect for my 3 new raised beds, thank you.
I did that and it works famously
I had some straw at the beginning of this season and threw it into 3 of our 4 new beds before putting in the soil. Had no idea it would affect the water retention, but the one that doesn't have the straw DEFINITELY dries out much fast than the other three.
I tried CORE gardening this year. Inspired by the MI team. We have had torrential down pours this year, thanks to Tropical Storm Cindy. So not the best year to test a new method. However, in the early season the beds did wonderfully. I Loved It! Every afternoon, I would go out, trim and stake tomatoes, check squash and enjoy. I didn't have to worry about constant watering or weeds!I have observed some things I can to make my particular spot better for next year. Great method will continue using and expand! :)
That’s what I’m doing with my garden this year! Didn’t even realize that it would be a positive boost for my yard lol. I have 2 x 10 foot beds in my city garden and lots of trees that needed trimming... so we took branches, leafs, and I square bail of hay and filled the beds 3/4q of the way up then added triple mix... thank you for the information and happy growing... just subscribed! Great channel 🤘🏻🌱
I love doing this way really sets weeds back both above the soil and in between my rows works awesome, makes it hard the underwater my plants 🪴
Can you post a tutorial on how to do this with pics of you doing it? I loved what you shared, but I'm more of a visual learner. That's why I love your channel.
There is one already!
@@thehuntfortruth where?
MissAllanPoe1989 search “migardener core”
I am totally doing this with our garden this year. Water where I live is crazy expensize. Now to watch your full episode on core gardening.
Very interesting! I actually stumbled onto this method myself, recently. I'm getting really into gardening this year, but because i only have a small yard, i've been going into container gardening. Using large plastic containers with a diameter of about 1m, ive added about 15m2 to my growing area by putting them in front of my house. What i noticed very quickly was that A: those pots needed a LOT of soil to fill up and B: they got heavy as sin (50 kilograms or more when wet).
To remedy this, I started adding organic matter to the bottom of the pots, filling them up about halfway. Straw, grass, leaves, weeds i pulled - really WHATEVER I could find, because i don't want to spend loads of money buying soil that sits inert anyway, and i like to move my pots around for optimal conditions and would like to do so without throwing out my back. Thus far I have nothing but good things to say about it. The organic matter slowly breaks down, adding nutrients to the soil. All the while it sits at the bottom like a huge sponge, wicking water into the roots. Please note i am very new at gardening and am unsure about this nitrogen-draining property that was mentioned, so it's entirely possible ill bump into trouble further down the line, but in the meantime, I'm very pleased with this method.
SmithMaximus After 3 years now, can you tell if it worked in the Long run?
Grass and leaves, in a mixture of living to dead, is pretty much all you need to make compost anyway so this is basically just compost after a few weeks. For added benefit throw some worm eggs in
Thank you so much for this episode. Never heard of this but am definitely trying this next year! Not only could this conserve water, but it will also decrease the amount of time spent watering. All about efficiency!
I was just thinking about my water bill as I have to do a good deal of watering here in Florida ( temperature today is 92 degrees and plant are stressed. So I was wondering what I could do to retain more water in my raised beds. Now I am thinking I will even dig into my existing beds and add straw. What a great idea. Thank you.
yes do this, be sure to mulch the top of pants pretty thick at least an inch, and you can plant some thungs close together or in layers. Keep in mind a little water more often works better than a bunch of water once in a while.
Another great video! Can't wait to get started. It's about 2/3 of the way through Autumn here in Australia. I've been obsessed with organic gardening principles for over 20 years now, & yet so much I just never knew. I like the way you acknowledge that it's not the only way to do things, it's just your preferred method. It's also mine, now! :)
I am now doing BTE... How amazing if I combine THIS with my BTE.... will keep you posted!
When you said that you've had a 95 degree day, I had to chuckle. Here it is June 3, and we have had 9, 95-degree days where we live, including 7 days in a row. It hasn't rained for at least 20 days on our property, and our lawn looks like the Sonoran Desert. Yet, our crops are thriving thanks to Core Gardening and self-watering methods. BTW, when you take the radiant temperature in the sun, where the crops are, when it is 95 air degrees, the thermometer reads between 130 and 140 in the middle of the day.
Awesome ! You just solved two problems for me. Keeping the soil moist and giving me more soil to fill my beds !
Thanks...good idea. I always put firewood and charcoal and oak leaves at the bottom and it works great..of course manure mulch and compost with a little soil on top...works for many years of great gardening. Once prepated and layered I got over 7 years of gardens out of one garden patch this way.
It also called trench gardening , you dig a trench in your garden bed and buri your kitchen compost in the trench all winter long backfill with soil on top and plant in the spring . I done that for years and have fantastic results . Great video thanks for posting it.
Ive noticed where I have added straw to our beds, the soil and plants look great. I practice a no dig style of layering materials and started with Back to Eden in 2016. The wood chips have broken down beautifully but I don’t always have access to them when I need them because this garden is at a cottage 3 hours away where we do not yet live. I have to make sure the plants can survive at least two weeks without rain or tending to them in between visits. So far it has worked very well except in the hottest weather without rain. With normal rainfall it works beautifully. And very little weeding. I tend to plant quite a bit more dense than in normal gardens so the core bed style would help with that too. Next year I am going to set my garden up in more of a free form style instead of planting in rows. The method presented here can really benefit the garden and gives me ideas on how to plan next years’ layout. Thanks for sharing this method! I love your straight forward videos and how you stick to a main topic.
Thank you for this video. Are you able to show us from start to finish, please? (a beginner request) Thanks, heaps.
He has a video on it. How to set up core gardening. Just search in his videos.
I really like the way you explain and the topics you choose. I tried your lettuce spinach and kale seeds and got them planted late summer, the yield was fabulous. And produced thru November, I am planning to try this method for Spring 2022
I have blueberries growing very successfully in back to Eden, but I never liked having the big chunks of wood with such large texture in my vegetable beds. I guess I have done this core variation because I apply straw as mulching under my tomatoes to prevent splashback. Every year the old straw gets worked in as I put new straw on the surface again. But you are describing actually placing the straw deeper and I will try that in combination. Thank you, great idea. A word of caution for other viewers, the bail of straw that Tractor Supply sells which comes wrapped in plastic with a carry handle, is wonderful, great value and all that but is full of Timothy hay seeds and best for animal fodder and bedding, not for gardening. Ask me how I know. It made such a huge weeding job for me that it set me back the rest of the season. It is “guaranteed weed free“ but not seed free.
I have never heard of core gardening. I will definitely be trying it this year. Thank you for all the helpful information.
It's exiting to see how many people have seen this video since you put it up yesterday.... it gives me hope that people are starting to take life into their own hands.
My notes in case they might be helpful for anyone else:
Core Gardening: (maybe called sponge gardening?)
Uses small twigs, leaves and straw. It holds on to water very well.
Dig a trench, and then put 6-8 inches of straw/leaves/twigs in the center.
It’s best if it’s rotting. He puts it somewhere for a year or so to let it rot, then adds it to the garden bed.
A good nitrogen rich soil is key, you don’t need as much soil when you use this method.
Thanks for the info :)
Rock on Sarah. Rock on. That is a flawless summary of what is being done. :)
Do you cover the trench? Do we have to water the twigs regularly till it is ready?
Vikas Gupta We cover the trench yes with about 6-8 inches of soil. We water it well for a day or two to charge it up and then we are set!
Definitely going to try this. I live in west Texas and today it reached 107 degrees, and in fact is 90 even at 11:30 at night. Keeping the garden watered is a strain. I wood mulch 1 inch, build shading to protect the plants from direct sun, and have begun collecting and storing rain water to limit water usage. Maybe this will be the last piece of the puzzle.
In Vegas at my sister's we apply 2-3 inches of wood chips and extended the growing by almost month and half to 2. I don't live there but will be back for summer holidays.
I want to try this, too. I live in San Antonio and this is the first year for us to try gardening and it is a struggle to try to keep the plants hydrated. I wonder if leaves from oak would work.
+Cecille M Texas is hot, you can also follow Jake Mace "the vegan athlete" he is in Tempe AZ, I will in LV next week and try to post a video.
+Cecille M All sorts of leaves work fine, I have had used leaf mold and it's a beauty. Collect fall leaf from everywhere, ask neighbors or search and post in Craigslist.
ok thx.
I have 5 raised beds and will try this in at least 2 next year. Very cool. Thanks.
Beautiful garden.
I like the way the core gardening helps how often you water. The way you put the wood chips in the isles also helps with watering since they retain water in the wood chips like the Back to Eden method.
Great methods you're doing videos about lately. This and the high intensity gardening.
Trying this now! 1st year gardening!
*This* certainly would be a good way to garden here in SD and ND. Soil isn't the best nor is the water situation the best. Thanks Luke for the information.
🌾 Green Blessings 🌾
It it great that you get so excited and i know i am very thankful for you to share your knowledge on growing big or going home.
Hey Luke, we have very hot dry summers where we live in Australia. I am definitely going to try this as l was thinking along these lines as to how to keep moisture in the soil and save on watering. It's spring here so it's the perfect time to get started. Thanks!
Fiona Hobbs hi, I’m just wondering how you went with this, as I’m too in Australia and last year everything died in the heat, so I’m wondering if I should do this in the future? Thanks, Jan
Am also wanting an update, I’m in central qld and work a railway job which doesn’t allow me to be home to water my garden for much of the year
I'm on a tight budget with a huge yard. I've got some existing beds that I was struggling to get to work. I put in a drip system but hardly use it now.
From the grass clippings I rotted over the very hot summer in sub-tropical Australia together with a thin layer of soil and home made compost my beds are doing better than ever.
At the heart of it your comments about Africans remind us to use what resources we have at hand or look to neighbours or local free options.
Great video.
we just started a raised garden this year and got free pallets and free hay. it is doing great. remind me of what you talked about.
Luke SOIL WALKER yeees the force is with us.. You're an inspiration man.. Informative.. Practical.. Helpful.. Keep up.
We have tons of leaves and so in the fall I dig them into the soil... cool to know it helps with moisture!! Thank you for the helpful video.
I accidentally started doing this method. We are in a high desert of Colorado, and I put some hay bales I had left over after I got rid of my goats into the bottom of the raised beds I made. Worked very well.
Glad it worked so well for you!!!
We are trying core gardening this year. Thanks for the tip
I swear by core gardening! Especially because I live in a very hot climate where it never rains in the summer. As I have a never ending source of leaves from my hedges, my raised garden beds always have a supply. I put them in my "core" bin until I use them. When my grand daughter ( 4 ) asked I was growing in the bin ( lol ) I told her it's "core". haha Then I explained what core was and she was intrigued. All of my garden and kitchen waste goes into the core, just like you'd make compost, and is added to the garden every time a crop finishes.
My current garden setup has 7 beds: 2 Hugelkulture, 1 Core, 1 pure compost, 1 layered waste, 1 hybrid (Similar to a hugelkulture base, but no trench, smaller sticks like in a core system, and the hay), and 1 "standard" with just potting soil type mix. I wasn't sure what the best way to go would be so I opted this season to try em all. I also have a massive worm bin and make my own compost tea which I apply 2x a week (usually a Sunday/Thursday system).
Results wise, they all do pretty well. The hybrid bed which has my spices and lavender is doing well, the compost bed (8 in of compost 1 in of soil) which is got mostly flowers is great, the two hugelkulture beds are really going nuts, the layered waste bed (alternating layers of cardboard boxes from food stuffs and yard waste/food scraps) has beets, turnips, and radishes all flourishing, the core bed which has lettuces is producing quite a bit, and then the basic potting soil bed which is also flowers is doing ok, but is probably the worst of them all by far.
I don't think any one method works better than any other, but I will say if I HAD to pick, it'd be the Hugelkulture for sure.
for reference, I live in North Alabama near Tennessee so you can get an idea of what conditions are like.
Earthquake Photography Do you plant directly into the layered waste bed or do you let it hang out and decompose before planting? (I’m new and trying to start a garden before any of my compost heaps have had a chance to fully decompose)
@@TheLLaurenLLama Normally I would have let it decompose, but I got impatient so I went out and got 2 bags of organic potting soil, and put down a 1.5" thick layer of soil over the top to plant into. That way, while they start growing there will be a bunch of decomp underneath them.
I tried it last year and it worked awesome
Great information! Thank you for all your time making the videos for all us new or improving gardeners!! Your passion for gardening and helping others is greatly appreciated!
This video is possibly going to change my life! I've been watching recently and seen some of your videos taking about choir gardening but though you needed straw. I love back to eden method but it's not possible for me with frequent moving. I'm totally trying this one next year! We have tons of leaves and small sticks that would be perfect
hello first of all i want to tell you that i admire your work. i would like to share abquestion many people ask me. and watching this video i came to some conclusion. its about replacing peat moss or coir with saw dust. what do you think? maybe keeping a pile of sawdust for a year like you do with leaves and straw?
This might also work! You just don't want too much compaction or it won't break down well. The goal is to keep it slowly breaking down so it feeds the plants.
Ok thanks for answering
How did the sawdust go in your garden Cosas del Jardin?
Jasmin Flower i dont use sawdust :)
Love this method Luke! I have had many problems with watering in my raised beds that get so so much sun. I had decided on time just not to plant the beds because of so much sun scald and burning. I'm gonna use a couple of the beds to see how it works out this summer. I will let you know how it works out.
This explains something. Where I live I get about 15 inches of rain a year, so open-air composting is really slow. So, I started burying all the organic matter in the spring kind of between where I would be putting the plants. The beds where I did this require far less watering than beds where I didn't do this. Another thing which has really helped is mulching with my neighbor's grass clippings.
I just saw this. I built 10 raised beds about 2 weeks ago. I filled them half or more full of wood chips and added soil to the upper part. I think this s the same process. My beds are 20” deep. I use drip tape buried 2” deep for watering. I’m looking forward to this. Watering is my biggest challenge. I live in southern Utah and the heat in the summer is brutal. This may help. Thanks.
Great job. Thank you! The water bills are crazy.
I live next to a forest where there are plenty of logs and twigs that I'l completely overlooked! Basically I've only using the wood chips and leaf mulch on top of the soil. I cannot wait to try this method in my new garden beds! . :) I really hope this will help. considering our spring is hitting 90's and I have been struggling with keeping everything watered just enough.
How did it work out for you, Marlie M.?
I've lived most of my life west of the Sierra mountains, except when I was stationed at Fort Carson, CO. I was amazed that it rained during the summer. I don't rain in California from mid-spring until the beginning of winter.
I love watching these videos. Always educational. I've combined many different techniques and styles to create a style that works good for my environment. Plus it's fun to hear that some of the ideas I had already had names and have been used for 100s of years lol.
Cool I will try core gardening on my next raised bed!
Key Hole Gardening is similar in the idea of holding moisture and feeding plants as the materials break down.
I noticed a lot of people asking where MIgardener is from. For those of you who live out of the United States, MI is the abbreviation for Michigan.
I'm about to try the Mittleider method where you use an inert growing material like sawdust or rice hulls and sand and then water with an organic nutrient solution.
I think I'd like to try the method described here, and then try a combination of the core and Mittleider to see what happens.
One more thing dash I noticed another person suggested in the comments calling this "Sponge Gardening." I wonder if combining both great terms and calling this Sponge Core gardening might describe this awesome technique! Thanks for taking the time to share! I have been so impressed with your channel 😇
Interesting. Never heard of this type of gardening. Must do more research into it. Thanks Luke!
I have small garden but built hugel bed 2 years ago and does hold water amazing
I'm liking these videos more and more. Thank you for all your work and sharing this method.
Can you please do a video on how you set up and prepare a bed using this method? It would be really helpful to see how it’s done. Thank you. Love your videos!
I am absolutely going to try this! Thanks so much for the info. We struggle with watering our raised beds constantly. We have to have raised beds and "create" our soil because we live on extremely rocky (bedrock) ground. Our chickens and their waste & coop shavings along with our compost help but the core sounds like such a good idea.
I put green grass , hair and egg shells with the paper egg container also fermented veggies turmeric fermentation style in the center of the bed. we have tons of worms and if you dig an inch you will feel the water within it. The plant grow great
What an amazing technique! i am currently planning out my raised beds for my fall garden. I will definitely be using this method. I only started composting recently and i know i wont have enough soil for all the beds, But what i do have is an abundance of leaves!! Thank you so much for sharing this method. I know how i will make it all work for a lot less now!! :)
that is right! maybe next year you can go on vacation in the forest and get soil from there along with leaves for your garden! you killed 2 birds with one stone!
Thank you for this video!! I just started a vegetable garden this year and have had moments where I struggle to keep it watered well. I am going to try this method moving forward :)
I actually had done that before without even knowing what that's called lol. I used grass clippings and manure. Waited 6 to 8 months of rotating it and getting it wet till it started to smell wonderful and rich. It grew plants in half the time. They got big.
Im going to set this up when I make my raised beds this fall! thanks for sharing your knowledge
I can't wait to do this method in the fall.
I have a design I want to try it's very similar to what you have your video was very helpful it reassured my hypothesis
I haven't heard of this before. I want to try this next year. Preparation =success! Thanks for the info!
I can second that. Preparation makes all the difference.
I'm going to try a version of that come spring. Dig a trench across the bed, loosen the soil another 8 inches down with the digging fork, fill the trench with clippings of green manures, then dig another trench covering the previous at the same time. Do that all the way down the bed. That would be a mixture of "double digging" and "core gardening"
Well, I just put a rubber tarp pond in the center of my garden and it always seems to be nice and moist nowadays. For my area in Los Angeles a dry area like mine it's been helpful.
I had raised beds in my last house. I broke up small branches and put them into the bed to save on soil. Those beds grew wonderful gardens so I guess I was onto something there. Now I have different small fenced areas I rotate my chickens through to weed and fertilize.
I did something like this using a chunk of wood in one of my plant containers. I had a little plant container with a little rootbound Elderberry tree grown from a cutting. The tree had out grown the container but I didn't have any extra containers available at the time but I wanted to keep the plant alive so I took a 3x4 inch chunk of wood and soaked it in some water for a days and then I pushed it in a corner of the pot and watered the the pot very well and then threw some moist woodchip mulch on top. Interestingly enough, it helped to keep the plant alive and it helped to keep it moist even on days when I wasn't able to tend to the garden and my plants were getting dry. The moisture from the wooden block helped to keep the elderberry plant happy and it's still alive and going now. Unfortunately it's still in a small pot but I plan to rectify that this summer.
I just use a thick layer of straw but will try this now. Thank you!
i'm doing something similar. small branches from a bush i'd cut down, grass clippings, soil, then more grass clippings as a mulch.
Im off grid I hardly water im deffinetly going to employ this method next year!!
I did the wicking method and it’s great plus it built up my beds without adding compost
I learn so much from your videos.
Right on que Bro 🌠 Many thanks and blessings to you and your plants 🌱💚🌍
I will definitely try this, either in the fall so it rots over winter, or in the spring. Thank you for the information!!!!!
This may sound way out there, but what about putting loofah's in the trench. I plan on growing and know that there will be an excess. Thanks for introducing me to core gardening. I used hay from old round bale in a strawberry bed I started this past fall.
I also grow gourds but haven't tried luffas yet. I would think they would work well for this.
Show us what you're taking about!!! We NEED to see it.
I'll give it a try this year, because I bought some straw for that purpose because we're Rehabilitation a logged lot and there's not a lot of soil we have a lot of erosions so raised beds are a must and I was worried about nitrogen sequestering because we tried to go culture last year and there was some nitrogen sequestering. And so here I have all of the materials perfectly so let's give it a shot why not. I'll let you know how it turns out.