Mulching...

[Shadylane]

I don't think the page is finished. Maybe he got fed up. Some of it makes sense but sweeping, sexist generalisations make him look a bit of prat.

[Kaiya]

I thought the same. He's not keen on SFG for some reason either *shrugs*

It's hard to know with gardening which facts are worth testing and which you should just take as gospel!

[oldie]

That's why it's important to find out WHY they do things, not just HOW

What an important point. On a recent edition of Gardeners Question Time a gentleman was asking for replacement chemicals for ones which were now banned. When asked for further information he did not know why he used them, only his father and grandfather had and further probing showed he was not even using them for the correct purposes.

[Two_Sheds]

recent edition of Gardeners Question Time a gentleman was asking for replacement chemicals for ones which were now banned. When asked for further information he did not know why he used them, only his father and grandfather had and further probing showed he was not even using them for the correct purposes.

I heard that one, and I thought the presenters dealt with it very well. They completely proved why these chemicals are being banned ~ because the general public can't be trusted to follow the instructions (or even read them).

[bethduckie]

I still do really really like bare soil. I think it's beautiful, the colours, the textures, changes with weather and time of day. A freshly ploughed field (or dug lottie patch) is every bit as visually stunning as one filled with Van Gogh flowering rape seed (and a mite more subtle). And bare soil is so inviting.... now what can I stick in there?

Oh, I agree. I have a bed at the moment covered in cardboared and then maure... it looks amazing, I have to keep admiring it. And the spaces I dug today, with lovely, crumbly, freshly turned earth.... yum. I have other beds covered with weeds, I'll admit... but I like nice empty ones too, you are right, they are inviting.

[Snadger]

A freshly turned over plot is an abomnation to the eye as far as I am concerned!

There's only one thing worse and thats a plot covered in black polythene!

Each to their own tho.............................

[di]

One of my best mates got the lottie opposite me a couple of years ago. The P is taken out of us quite a bit when we go on about how beautiful the last bit of turned soil looks....and actually go crumble each others for comparison.....for me though, that perfection needs planting ASAP.

I know it's deflecting slightly from OP but I have visions of nasturtiums covering any bare patch this year.
If soil were meant to be bare...nature wouldn't have given us 'weeds'.

[bazzaboy]

So it's not bare for long, is it? Ideally, get a crop in it. If not, mulch it

I'm really excited about my first year of manic mulching... I now have a ready supply of horse manure. Now I know I shouldn't be using it fresh but could it go fresh on top of cardboard or would the whatever isn't good about it still leach into the roots?

The urine could burn any plants...
There's also the potential problem of nitrogen robbing...
Horse poo is notorious for containing lots of undigested weed seeds, esp. docks
Plus, smell?
Also: flies laying eggs in it?
How long does manure take to rot down and be good> dunno. "a few months".

the spaces I dug today, with lovely, crumbly, freshly turned earth.... yum.

A freshly turned over plot is an abomnation to the eye as far as I am concerned! There's only one thing worse and thats a plot covered in black polythene!

we go on about how beautiful the last bit of turned soil looks....and actually go crumble each others for comparison.....for me though, that perfection needs planting ASAP.

I didn't realise this topic had resurfaced... Following 2S's earlier recommendation of Hemenway's "Gaia's Garden" (an alternative home-scale permaculture approach) and along the Ruth Stout technique recommended by Snadger, I'll be trying "sheet mulching" in a couple of bare soil areas. But as it can be over a foot (30 cm) deep (!) I think it will have to be the equivalent of "fallow" until it settles a bit or seedlings will either be swamped or growing in an entirely imported environment. I've the luxury of a bit of spare space on the allotment to try that in one small area to see what happens, and I'll try it with one raised bed in the garden as well. Partly the reason for this cautious approach is simply the quantity of materials required....

The Hemenway technique appears to be LAYERS (they are the "sheets" of "sheet mulching") of various materials, not too much worry is afforded seeds in the lower layers or how mature and weathered the manure but the whole affair is capped by a two inch layer of SEEDLESS mulch.

Going down from the top the layers are:
9. 2" (5 cm)seedless mulch (if none easily available use straw - NOT hay! - which should be seedless).
8. 1-2" (5 cm max) compost from the compost bin.
7. 8-12" (20-30 cms) (!!) hay, stable bedding or other bulk organic matter.
6. Thin layer (1" (2.5 cm) max) of manure.
5. Half inch (1.25 cm) max layer of cardboard or newspaper.
4. Thin layer (1" (2.5 cm) max) of manure.
3. Scattering of any "soil amendments" which might be needed, e.g.lime, sand etc.
2. Slashed green vegetation.
1. Existing soil surface.

Although that all sounds very precise Hemenway also adds "sheet mulching is very forgiving" so probably an odd millimeter variation here and there won't make that much difference. But I suspect that top seedless layer is important. I promise not to top it with black polythene, Snadger, though very tempting. (D'you think a patterned carpet might look nice? )

I imagine these conditions are going to be very popular with worms - there is something quite "wormery" about these layers so perhaps that's part of the strategy. Will be trying it soon and posting the results sometime in..... er, 2020?

[Two_Sheds]

it will have to be the equivalent of "fallow" until it settles a bit or seedlings will either be swamped

Not at all. If you top off with a layer of top soil, MPC or even mole hills, you can plant straight into it. I did, here, layer of newspapers, and planted up. This is what came out

(also you could look up lasagne gardening, it's the same principle)

[super trowel]

A freshly turned over plot is an abomnation to the eye as far as I am concerned!

There's only one thing worse and thats a plot covered in black polythene!

Each to their own tho.............................

I would love to know how I can get rid of hedge bind weed withiout turning my plot over

[jdlondon]

Not at all. If you top off with a layer of top soil, MPC or even mole hills, you can plant straight into it. I did, here, layer of newspapers, and planted up. This is what came out

(also you could look up lasagne gardening, it's the same principle)

I notice you have the pages with colour print in there too. I've seen people say not to use the coloured pages, toxic or something. I mean, I don't bother sorting it out for gardening simply due to laziness and the fact there's so much colour in papers now. But do you have a reason?

[bazzaboy]

If you top off with a layer of top soil, MPC or even mole hills, you can plant straight into it. I did, here, layer of newspapers, and planted up. This is what came out

That's excellent, thank you. I've never really investigated "lasagna" techniques (have just looked at some interesting discussions on GYO as far back as 2009), variations of it and Hemenway's layers seem much of a muchness even if the ingredients and thickness of layers varies (and they all seem to have a certain 'essence of wormery' about them which must be good). I've some broad beans in root-trainers chewing at the bit for the off now the harsh frost has ended, can amass the necessary material for at least the raised bed in the garden by the weekend and will give it a shot with them. Thanks 2S, will take pics to document stages.

[Two_Sheds]

I notice you have the pages with colour print in there too.

Newspapers use vegetable inks now. I don't compost glossy mags, because they use harsher petroleum-derived inks

[Snadger]

I would love to know how I can get rid of hedge bind weed withiout turning my plot over

Mulch..........when green leaf appears, mulch again.........when green appears mulch again......ad infinitum!

Try it on a small area first..........you may be pleasantly surprised!

PS If it doesn't work.........move plot!

[Snadger]

Newspapers use vegetable inks now. I don't compost glossy mags, because they use harsher petroleum-derived inks

What does the Beano use....................