In his passive solar greenhouse, Rob Avis of Verge Permaculture constructs wicking beds from food grade 1,000 L tote tanks. Each tank( which makes two wicking beds) is roughly $ 100 and is much more affordable than constructing a raised wooden box. In his DIY version Rob puts weeping tile into the bottom and up the side of the wicking bed to increase the reservoir capacity and act as a fill tube. Then, he adds enough gravel to cover the weeping tile. Landscape fabric is placed over the gravel to keep the upper level soil separated.
PHOTO COURTESY VERGE PERMACULTURE. to build a wicking bed is moderate, but it’ s not the easiest beginner project to construct,” says Angelo.“ If you’ ve never built anything of the sort previously, I’ d recommend building a smaller scale wicking bed before attempting a giant-sized bed that may take a few hours to complete. Websites, such as Deep Green Permaculture( see resources), offer fairly elaborate designs and images to show how to create a wicking bed.
ANCIENT TECHNOLOGY FOR A MODERN WORLD
Colin Austin of Waterright, Brisbane, Australia, observes that wicking beds occurred naturally over a billion years ago in deserts, where a layer of sand covered a clay layer. But Austin says it was the Aztecs who were the real inventors.“ They had a really nice system of a network of canals around their cities. They made a raft of rushes covered with a layer of soil to create the first and still the largest wicking bed system that the world has ever seen— feeding thousands of people in their major cities.”
Austin, an engineer, maintains that many drought and famine problems are caused more by erratic rain than no rain, and that wicking beds offer a possible solution to once again feeding thousands of people— sustainably— in many places around the world.
To get more out of your wicking bed, Angelo Eliades of Deep Green Permaculture suggests:
• Mulch. A thick layer of mulch up to 3 inches( 7 cm) deep keeps the moisture in the soil, prevents evaporation, keeps plant roots cool and conserves water.
• In-soil worm farms. A wicking worm farm can be constructed directly in the wicking bed to produce worm castings, one of the best-known fertilizers.
• Extra growing space. Put up trellises to grow climbing plants like beans, peas, cucumbers and watermelons. Attach this outside the wicking bed so the liner will not be punctured.
• Protective covers. Make a frame to support netting to protect the plants from insects and birds.
RESOURCES:
• Deep Green Permaculture, Wicking Bed Construction
• Urban Food Garden, How to Build a Wooden Wicking Bed
• Verge Permaculture, From the Bottom Up – A DIY Guide to Wicking Beds
• Waterright, Wicking Beds
• Wicking Bed, Types of Wicking Beds
Anne Marie Van Nest is a past president of GWA and member of the Sustainability Committee. She is a freelance garden writer, teaches classes on tropical plants during the winter and is a greenhouse grower for Niagara Parks in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.
An incorrect caption ran with a Sustainability column photo on page 18 of the December 2016-January 2017 On the QT. The caption should read: A permaculture garden in Wisconsin emphasizes edibles.
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