Article and photos by Gilda Galvad
Sought After Seedlings
Hügelkultur is a composting process employing raised planting beds constructed on top of decaying wood debris and other compostable biomass plant materials.
W
e made a marvellous discovery this
week after being
booked to do a
consultation in Chartwell, Johannesburg by one of our course attendants, on our Organic Vegetable Growing course.
The farm we arrived at had a moderate slope and presented horizontal mounds running across the
property. The owner introduced us
to his Hugelkultur beds which, for
me, was a first to see in 'real life.'
South Africans generally are not
familiar with this amazing technique, so although it is certainly
not a new innovation, it is definitely an innovation for many South
Africans.
Hugelkultur is very popular
in Europe and has been used for a
long time. It is a perfect application for water scarce South Africa.
Hugelkultur is a system of garden
beds, ditches and swales, also
known as mound culture, is a form
of permaculture and has as its
base woody debris. It imitates the
natural nutrient cycle of woodlands where the floor of the forrest is sponge like, absorbing water when it rains and releasing it
slowly, making moisture available
to nearby plants. It builds soil fertility, improves drainage and
makes use of wood and woody
debris.
Hugelkultur beds are constructed
by digging a trench about a half a
metre deep. Place cut trees and
large logs at the bottom of the
trench. Next layer on top of these
trunks, branches and other wood
debris. Put a generous amount of
animal manure, then straw, grass
clippings, leaves, kitchen scraps,
etc. (all your greens) and finally
top with soil and mulch. As you
see this creates your compost
'heap' viz your carbon layer - the
wood, and your nitrogen layer the greens. It is important to have
sufficient green matter to create
the balance between carbon and
nitrogen... Water well between
each layer. If you can source old
wood chips add this with your
branches and twigs, as these will
provide the fungi that are required
to break down the trees and will
also fill the spaces created between the large trunks of trees.
The watering will also help to settle the smaller matter into the
spaces. The purpose of these beds
is to have water retaining mass
which needs to break down with
fungal colonising carbon masses
which are nutrient rich.
To reach a point of advantage of
the system, it is best to start building your Hugelkultur beds several
Images:www.richsoil.com/hugelkultur/