4 Comments
Jul 8, 2022Liked by Grandmother Birch

I so enjoyed reading about this journey with hugelkultur in the bush, and the photos were great! Very inspiring, Ruth, and informative.

Expand full comment
author

Thank you Sharon. I have very fond memories of those bush gardens. And I know that the next person who resided in the cabin for a brief period continued to grow food and medicinals in them. So, that feels like time well spent :)

Expand full comment
Jun 28, 2022Liked by Grandmother Birch

Wonderful to see the progression in your hugelkultur mounds! It's interesting to watch someone who is successful with it, and then to take that 'big' step and actually do it.

A few years ago we needed garden space, and we had the trees to cut down, and a bank that could be built upon to create a garden. We used the hugelkultur framework and did what we could to mimic it with what we had.

First we dropped the trees surrounding the area and dragged the logs. Some were mature red maple. Some were old rotting birch. We even had a few ash that were in the way. Add in some large fir and we were off to a good start.

The large logs were used to build a wall on the outside, then cut into shorter pieces to fit between the existing bank and the new 'wall'. We layered with smaller branches and leaves and soil. A neighbour had some very old square hay bales so we added that material, and some if his sheep manure and another neighbour had topsoil.

We are 4 years in now, and have topped up this year with some woodchips to make paths.

While this isn't a typical hugelkultur mound, it turned into a beautiful garden with deep matter for the asparagus to reach in, and an abundance of annual garden plants, grapes, blueberries and strawberries now call it home.

Keep gardening! It's what keeps me sane.

Expand full comment
author

I agree Kate, gardening definitely has a positive effect on our emotional well-being. Even with all the challenges and set-back we often face as gardeners, there is so much satisfaction in growing food and creating beautiful gardens.

Expand full comment