[Mel]

Started ours today,cleared out the old strawberry patch which is some 15ft x 7ft,then dug a trench down the centre,the ground is awful hence this used to be a raised bed and there are lots of bricks or builders rubble.

We cleared the trench area and put ground cover down either side as are going to put a small path either side and the rubbly areas are stricken with twitch,nettles and docks which would take us a week to get out!

Luckily we have a woods just out of the village so we went and picked up some large rotting chunks and trunks  to place within the trench,this brought it up to some three and a half feet ,I finished off this evening by filling in the gaps with barrow loads of wood chip/mulch which I get from a local farmer,£10.00 a tonne bag-or in the last case two extra large joints of free range pork for 5 tonnes plus a tenner!

This wood chip mulch is cheap because it has been in the sacks for a while,it stinks of loveliness and has mushrooms growing from it .Tomorrow hopefully the grass is being cut so shall rake all of this up,plus all the old hay/leaves from the winter and such-is this right Chairman? and put it on top.then i shall cover with all the topsoil which was the old strawberry bed,we have about 2 tonnes of it so should do the job?!

[chairmanphil]

sounds like jobs a goodun! well done. got any pics?

[Mel]

sounds like jobs a goodun! well done. got any pics?

Hope it is reasonable enough!

[chairmanphil]

that all looks very good to me. but i am in at the deep end myself! will be interesting to see what we think this time next year! nice one kidda!

[clydesdaleclopper]

Leghorn - bear in mind that wood chip rots much faster than the solid logs and will draw down more noitrogen as a result. You will need to compensate for this. Looks fab btw 

[Mel]

Leghorn - bear in mind that wood chip rots much faster than the solid logs and will draw down more noitrogen as a result. You will need to compensate for this. Looks fab btw 

Hi,what would you propose? I was going to add grass cuttings and or straw? prior to covering with soil,I had even though of the use of the turf? Any suggestions would be very welcome please!

[chairmanphil]

i covered my logs with wood chips, straw, beech leaves, 2 years worth of compost that is about 3-4 years old and grass clippings. going to cover it in top soil this weekend and put the broad beans and peas on top as clydes says to fix the nitrogen theft. but as it says in the first post it will all break down in the end. it all depends how quickly you want it to be very productive. i have all the time in the world and needed to shift the logs and chips. the next lot will be a very different construction with lots of rotten willow going into the heart of it. as people visit it is the centre point of the garden. they just are drawn to them, want to know what they are and how they work. can't wait to see what pumpkins we get off them next year!

[clydesdaleclopper]

Leghorn - bear in mind that wood chip rots much faster than the solid logs and will draw down more noitrogen as a result. You will need to compensate for this. Looks fab btw 

Hi,what would you propose? I was going to add grass cuttings and or straw? prior to covering with soil,I had even though of the use of the turf? Any suggestions would be very welcome please!

sow it with nitrogen fixers and for your other plantings for the first couple of years don't plant anything that is too nitrogen hungry. Hoof and Horn is also high nitrogen - maybe ask some horsey people for the trimmings when the farrier has been and grind them up a bit.

[deepinthewoods]

 hair and feathers are high in nitrogen, and blood is too.
i would be adding serious amounts of nitrogen if you intend using this kind of bed in the next 3 years, but ive no doubt that it will be amazing soil when finished.

[Mel]

Oh,That's ok,I have last years chicken manure with all the rotting runner and broad bean plants so this should help.I wanted to place a good lot of cut grass over the top,however,I went to start the lawnmower over the weekend and the pull handle came off ,the spring thingy has broken to pieces and I am looking to buy another mower-this one is a bit old.

I suppose on this Hugelkultur I could use all the old straw which has been laying around on the ground all winter,trouble is,it does have some ears on it and they are likely to set and grow,or normally they have when I used this on  the old strawberry bed just to keep the berries off of the soil.

Thank you all for your kind comments and help with this,it is appreciated and I cannot wait to plant it,which I am going against waiting and planting it this year-or when it is finished,I am following a hunch with this and which materials and at what level within the Kultur,i.e. All my strawb plants are waiting to go back in,the do not really have deep roots so these shall be the first back in.

I am going to keep taking pictures of the progress all the way,especially of the resulting growth

[chairmanphil]

good innit? 

[chairmanphil]

was going to cover the beds today, but rained off today so will probably Saturday now. 

[chairmanphil]

both beds covered in top soil, very happy gardener. pics to follow later! 

[chairmanphil]

very proud of my boy Byron, without his work this would be just an idea! 

[Fleecewife]

Those beds look lovely     So do your artichokes (I can never get mine to overwinter here)

I'm looking forward to seeing the beds planted up and to see how they crop  .