Thanks John, in south india we plant aloevera plants near to tree saplings. This will create root bonding between them. Aloevera will retain water in its leaves, so when trees need moisture it will borrow some from aloevera roots. even heavy mulching near saplings will harvest moisture from air everyday. Thanks
I use booth and they are very useful, and if I direct plant cuts from other plants I use a bit of aloe and insert the cut inside it, its a fantastic natural option for promoting root growth and preventing infections.
In South Africa we do something similar - we use any of the succulents that have a complete amino acid profile. Aloe Vera is the best for this, but the Prickly pear cactus (looks like your paddle cactus) provides a longer period of moisture and 'slow compost'. We also use Aloe Ferox off cuts for plants that are sensitive to root rot because the ferox prevents rotting and bad mould. If you want to know if any of your plants will provide a wide range of nutrients, then chop it up and put it in a bucket of water and wait for it to rot. If the decomposition smells really bad, like baby poop from a breastfed child, then you know that you have ALL the right bacteria present that will inoculate the soil and provide a habitat for the kinds of support mycelium that tree roots need. Another way to provide deep water is to dig a really deep hole and plant a pvc pipe so that it ends a short way below the bottom of the tree root when planted, and then for a few months water the tree via the pipe and the surface but slowly wean the tree off surface watering so as to encourage the roots to grow deeper down. Another thing I do is plant a tree or any other plant over any meat that has gone bad. Sometimes we have loadshedding and we lose a whole chicken and a fish or a roll of boerewors etc, and instead of throwing it away, I freeze it, and then dig a DEEP hole and plant something over it. So far my dog has not dug it up (which is why I dig quite deep down)
Un poco de madera, en chips y en trozos, para que la lignina sirva de alimento a los hongos del suelo, más importantes que las bacterias para los árboles.
This technic is used by my parents and ancestors since centuries here in Kabylie north Algeria ,they never watered theire plantations even during arid miditerraneen summers and trees still alive for many decades ,i'm happy that the same tech is used else where specially on miditerraneen climat
This is amazing... But will this work still if the buried cactus bits don't grow to have some part of themselves above the ground? And are there other plants that can do things like this to do symbiotic relationship benefits?
New to Texas here and I have tons of prickly pear cactus on my property. I planted some trees last year and they all started, but then died. I will try this thanks!
Texas resident here. Plant in early fall to winter. Never plant anything in spring unless you’re pushing growing zones on tropical plants. Don’t listen to full sun/shade recommendations Texas heat can kill some “full sun” plants. Providing trees some shade while young and mulching helps a lot.
Thanks for this important tip, i live in a dry area and i have just started on my next fruit tree row. I will definitely be giving this a go, i have a few big prickly pear cactus that i will get my fresh paddles from. Thanks again, happy gardening everyone around the world. Green love from Queensland Australia 💚🌲🌏🙏
I will try this in the Philippines. Some parts can no longer count on enough rain even in the wet season. We don’t have paddle cactus but we do have dragon fruits plants which we cut back after each fruiting season. Really valuable information, thank you.❤
Thanks for the tip! While in the topic of making trees resistant to drought, here in the semi-arid region of Brasil, where I live, I'm planting these types of paddle cactus close to the trees among other succulent plants so that they can aid the saplings providing moisture through its roots. Cheers
Thank you I didn’t know about this. I have run an organic gardening company in northern Va. for 34 years. Just a comment to mention. I have found that over the last few years the growers have used fertilizer with mycorrhizal fungi which is causing roots to grow above the crown and this time shortening the life of the plant. You need to also check the base of the plant where it meets the soil and possibly remove some soil from there to prevent curdling down the road, or the plant drowning because it was planted too low.
@rickjohnson2302 Wow, I didn’t have a clue that could happen, thanks for the tip. My place is full of biomass, and when I look under it, it’s full of fungi. Can this affect my plants?
@@wildalentejo just make sure not to put planted trees into their hole too deeply, and don't pile up mulch against the trunk too high up (i.e. don't cover the trunk above the crown with mulch). And do as said in the video, keep the earth surface a bit lower *around* the tree, so the water doesn't collect right at its trunk but a bit away from it. And fungi as such are nothing bad, fungi are good and essential. They do major recycling work for dead plant matter, making nutrients available again... some also help mine nutrients out of rock underground, as well as maintaining a good soil structure so that it has sufficient pores for air and water to enter the soil so plants can breath and the ground can absorb rainfall without being washed off. Last but not least, many types of fungi can enter symbiose with plant roots, sharing water, minerals and nutrients between different plants and fungi, which helps all partners in the network to flourish - think a small village with different households collaboratively sharing different foods, news and work assistance to help each other out. Many plants will grow a lot better with symbiotic fungi and other plants in a shared network than in isolation on their own. However, *some* (different) fungi can indeed attack living plants in a predatory way. But those are, as mentioned, different ones than the common fungi that enjoy composting dead, decaying plant litter or connect with plant roots for synergies.
@@TheNaturalFarmer I fully belive in this idea... I have personally been digging down cactus for planting trees, making vegetable beds and mixed with manua for compost. There is something magic with the cactus that I can not explain... Your expantion is of great value! Thanks for teaching us this!
Great tip. I am in process creating a food forest in Vietnam where this type of cactus is abundant. I will greatly benefit from this. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you John. I'm looking for paddles now in readiness for my next tree planting stint. Makes so much sense. We live in the desert. So this will be great.
I am glad you started posting videos again! My Sicilian born father is thinking of returning to Sicily and buying agricultural property. Does the Sicilian government give you a problem with your rainwater catchment earthworks that you have in your previous videos? Do they require permitting?
I live in the most arid area in Portugal, been doing this for years in my system with great success, another trick I use is planting the prickle and then planting other ones around it, the difference is abysmal, then after one year I start to prune it intensively and in year two they are out of the space.
@@jakesgrobler1634 sorry my English is quite weak. When Im going to plant a tree or bush I plant one prickle pear palm together with what im planting. Promotes soil health, moisture retention and is a nice windbreak. If you go around in the end of the summer take a look at the plants that are still green, that's the one you can start with, they will last the summer and help the other ones to establish, then when not needed just prune them and use to biomass. Soil needs to be always covered, or with biomass or with living plants.
Thank you John😀❤️😀. Great to see a video from you againThis is a great tip I was unaware of. Hope you and your family are well and thriving 😀🙏. Thanks also to other commenters who also have experience with this technique from us in Queensland Australia 😀❤️😀
COOL TIPS..THANKS ..REMEMBERING OUR 613 COMMANDMENTS..HAPPY HANNUKAGH..8 DAYS..NO IDOLS..BE LIGHT..THANKS FOR LIGHT..KNOWLEDGE WISDOM U SHARE..SHARING IS CARING..HALLELUJAH 😊😅😢😂❤LOVE U ALL
This is a wonderful and informative video! I am focusing on water preservation and biologically shared sugar nutrient systems. This video has been added to my interesting by others playlist for others to find. Thank You for sharing this video!
I will be trying this with aloe… I don’t see why not unless your soil has been poisoned. Aloe is penetrating. But, slow would be a great choice to grow for this purpose. Very nice to deal with. But, the opuntia pads are nutritious to humans and may offer more nutrition for plants as well. But I have these in abundance… Will def try the aloe.
This makes me wonder if you can use cactus juice similar to aloevera? Are they close enough that there would be some benefits to cuts, hurts, etc from cactus bits, juice instead?
Thanks for the tip John. I am transplanting some cacti plants around my yard, now I will do so with more purpose since I an use them for growing more plants. At the moment, i use them medicinally for the most part.
thanks for sharing your method of tree planting. it clearly shows how to mulch without the mulch touching the trunk! people always say mulch but stay x inches away from the trunk and so i end up with a dip around the trunk….doh.
Thank you, this is great info John. I use aloe vera in a similar way but now you have me thinking about the wide variety of succulents I could be using, like 'prickly pear' as we call it here.
Thank you for sharing this COOL tip John,😊 will try this here in central Mexico, plenty of cactus pads here, you did this technique with an apple, I wonder if will work with avocado, mango and black sapote trees?🤔👍
Great to hear. Yes, give it a try and let us know how it works. If I'm not mistaken the tree in this video is actually a type of plum. But as I said in the video, it will work with any type of tree. All the best to you...
Pretty neat!!! I've always composted them when I lived in Southern California. I'm not sure what I can get to survive in eastern Nebraska though. Thank you!!!
A very interesting method. Thank you!! I will try it with pieces of Agave americana buried near the root zone of already established trees. I hope it works
Thanks John . I’m going to plant a raspberry plant in a flower pot in Melbourne Australia . I will try it with am Allow Vera plant . Let you Know-how it goes
Great information John. I've implemented it on my land in Tamil Nadu, thank you for explaining it. Any chance of coming back down to South India in the near future?
@TheNaturalFarmer How long does the benefit of the buried cactus last? Wouldn't you lose the drought resistance after the first year when the buried cactus is decomposed and gone?
@avmxkppp it has a longer effect cause from the beginning some roots have gone to deep soil in search of moisture so after the few weeks when the cactus drought, roots continued in search of moisture deeper and wider
@@halnelson5936 Ok so it's more of a training method to get the roots to go straight down, after which they'll keep going deeper and find moisture after the cactus is gone. So no need to re-bury more cactus in the future, right?
So great a new video is out! Do you know of the dryGrow foundation? They are based in Sicily too and work a lot with prickly pears, though mostly for animal fodder. I have planted many prickly pears on my land in Greece to act as nurse plants + the technique you are doing, for future tree planting. I've also planted other succulents (ice plants) and has a similar effect, with my almond tree (started from seed) growing great! Looking forward to future videos. Would love to know the list of trees you have planted.
I’m not aware of any cactus in my country, but i do have a very large specimen of Aloe Ferox in my garden and wonder if I could chop up its very fleshy leaves and use in the same manner?
Thanks for the video, great reminder. We had done this in some previous tree plantings but i will admit we have forgotten to do it in our most recent ones! Is it possible to put them in a hole next where you have recently planted a tree to improve the adjacent soil?
John Kemp had a fantastic interview about fungal endophytes from drought resistant plants being used to make other plants more drought tolerant. Which explained why this helps the tree survive. It can also be done with seeds before planting😊
Do you think if you dug two or three other little holes off the side and put these cactus paddles down in the ground and those little wells. Do you think that would help out as well?
Very interesting. Will certainly try it. Just have to point out that the Italian name for that plant is 'Fichi d'India' (literally 'Indian Figs'). 'Ficchi' with two 'C's has a rude meaning in Sicily. ...just guess it...
? Question, can you use any species of prickly pear? Just Found your video and WOWZA!!!!! I live in New Mexico and we have huge swings in our temps and our moisture. I will definitely be a subscriber. Where do you live? Sometimes our climate is compared to a Mediterranean climate. Best wishes.
To do this method for existing trees use a cordless post hole digger to make a 8" hole 40" deep and drop them down the hole and backfill with compost. Use the augured out dirt up in your compost tumbler.
The mycelium found in aged woodchips is likely of saprophytic fungi not mycorrhizal. Still not the worst idea though since those saprophytic fungi will break down the wood and make more nutrients available to the soil
You can continue feeding / irrigating the soil with Opuntia even after the tree planting: Just bury pads into the woodchip ring! They will feed the soil biology which will feed the tree.
Side note: if you chop up the cactus leaves, they decompose much faster. So decide on that action, depending on the size of the tree and the amount of rain you get.
Charcoal is the best! But this is good too! Soak charcoal and mix that in with the soil all the way down! Charcoal is the most effective and the only permanent fertilizer that I know.
@@davidbryden7904 is this good for tomato plants? I mean you have to make biochar right? Can't just go to the store or order organic biochar? In the US
John, I have prickly pears myself. I use gloves and a kitchen knife. Your harvesting needs much improvement. You poked the pad where a newbies would have done. You were using a sickle, and not a scythe. There is big difference.
This works well, if you bury them 0.5.m or close to 2' deep they don't seem make it to the surface. Good with other dead wood or charcoal. The Road Warrior was right about Hollywood.
Ill have to make a better video of it but i simple dig my hole use wet cardboard as a bowl base and fill with alittle grass mulch and then top that with fresh worm castings worms and all still semi wet and add alittle sand on top then add my tree and the add soil to fill in once stable. I top with alittle more castings and add a heavy layer of grass mulch and so far so good. Im near the beach in florida though so humidty helps me ALOT
Step first: Choose a drough resistant tree. But seriously, has somebody tried that and it worked? I live in a Mediterranean island, I only get 450mm rain/year and got a Preakly pear cactus that I need to relocate... I could get rid ofna few of pads
Cherries suffer from bad drainage and lack of cold...in clay must be planted high, extra high, almost like advocatos, but in a north facing place, a cooler place.
We've reached temperatures of 45 C (113 F) the last two Summers. Cherries also suffer from this. I actually used this same technique of burying cactus paddles under one cherry, and did not use it under the other cherries, maybe 4 years ago? As a result, two cherries died and the one with the paddles below is still happy. Here in the Mediterranean we have a few varieties that are well adapted to the heat, as you probably know. The Temperate varieties don't really have a chance in the open here, with no canopy protection around. Also elevation plays a major role. We're at 130m but cherries do pretty well, along with chestnut, at around 500m. Our Surinam Cherry (eugenia uniflora) does fine. Anyhow, thank you for your helpful comment. Always appreciated...
@TheNaturalFarmer agree. Im also in mediterraen climate. 100 m elevation. Clay. Dont even grow cherries for fruit anymore, just for the flowering. Althou sometimes still get a few cherries, but the birds get it and eat it most of it first. Also have chestnut, and they produce, and yes, they need cold too, but i see a big chestnut hill from my house, 50 m of elevation...its on a north facing shady hill.
Thanks John, in south india we plant aloevera plants near to tree saplings. This will create root bonding between them. Aloevera will retain water in its leaves, so when trees need moisture it will borrow some from aloevera roots. even heavy mulching near saplings will harvest moisture from air everyday. Thanks
Nice information
Thank you for adding this. I'm sure many people will benefit from this information. All the best to you and yours...
it doesnt work this way. Aloe will compete with your tree. Any evergreen plant will.
I use booth and they are very useful, and if I direct plant cuts from other plants I use a bit of aloe and insert the cut inside it, its a fantastic natural option for promoting root growth and preventing infections.
@@unpopuIaropinion been doing it for years, no competition on sight and was the way for my plants to start to thrive in this semi arid place.
In South Africa we do something similar - we use any of the succulents that have a complete amino acid profile. Aloe Vera is the best for this, but the Prickly pear cactus (looks like your paddle cactus) provides a longer period of moisture and 'slow compost'. We also use Aloe Ferox off cuts for plants that are sensitive to root rot because the ferox prevents rotting and bad mould. If you want to know if any of your plants will provide a wide range of nutrients, then chop it up and put it in a bucket of water and wait for it to rot. If the decomposition smells really bad, like baby poop from a breastfed child, then you know that you have ALL the right bacteria present that will inoculate the soil and provide a habitat for the kinds of support mycelium that tree roots need. Another way to provide deep water is to dig a really deep hole and plant a pvc pipe so that it ends a short way below the bottom of the tree root when planted, and then for a few months water the tree via the pipe and the surface but slowly wean the tree off surface watering so as to encourage the roots to grow deeper down. Another thing I do is plant a tree or any other plant over any meat that has gone bad. Sometimes we have loadshedding and we lose a whole chicken and a fish or a roll of boerewors etc, and instead of throwing it away, I freeze it, and then dig a DEEP hole and plant something over it. So far my dog has not dug it up (which is why I dig quite deep down)
Dankie Becky. Ek gaan dit probeer. ❤
Thanks for these tips, Becky🇿🇦🙏🏽
Un poco de madera, en chips y en trozos, para que la lignina sirva de alimento a los hongos del suelo, más importantes que las bacterias para los árboles.
This technic is used by my parents and ancestors since centuries here in Kabylie north Algeria ,they never watered theire plantations even during arid miditerraneen summers and trees still alive for many decades ,i'm happy that the same tech is used else where specially on miditerraneen climat
Thank you for sharing this,.
Interesting. Which kind of trees did they plant?
I've just learnt of it. Quite interesting.
This is amazing... But will this work still if the buried cactus bits don't grow to have some part of themselves above the ground? And are there other plants that can do things like this to do symbiotic relationship benefits?
@@marc4687 endemic trees like olives, figg trees, grenades, vines🍇and some others i don't know their english names 😜
New to Texas here and I have tons of prickly pear cactus on my property. I planted some trees last year and they all started, but then died. I will try this thanks!
Yes it should help. Let us know how it goes next Summer
Texas resident here. Plant in early fall to winter. Never plant anything in spring unless you’re pushing growing zones on tropical plants. Don’t listen to full sun/shade recommendations Texas heat can kill some “full sun” plants. Providing trees some shade while young and mulching helps a lot.
Thanks for this important tip, i live in a dry area and i have just started on my next fruit tree row. I will definitely be giving this a go, i have a few big prickly pear cactus that i will get my fresh paddles from. Thanks again, happy gardening everyone around the world. Green love from Queensland Australia 💚🌲🌏🙏
I will try this in the Philippines. Some parts can no longer count on enough rain even in the wet season. We don’t have paddle cactus but we do have dragon fruits plants which we cut back after each fruiting season. Really valuable information, thank you.❤
I just ordered prickly pear (just a pair of paddles tho, last in stock). Gonna try grow them in pots.
Thanks for the tip! While in the topic of making trees resistant to drought, here in the semi-arid region of Brasil, where I live, I'm planting these types of paddle cactus close to the trees among other succulent plants so that they can aid the saplings providing moisture through its roots. Cheers
Eu penso que ajuda. Ele diz no video que a gente nao quer que o cacto brote perto das arvores mas eu acho que ajudaria tambem.
We love your channel:) We're working on setting up an orchard with swales and just planted our first trees using this technique! Thanks for sharing.
Great idea! I’ve used banana stalks like this and like mulch here in S. Cali. I’m going to try this as well!
Great to see you again. We missed your videos for a long time. Welcome back. I wish you and your family a happy and blessed life.
Thank you I didn’t know about this. I have run an organic gardening company in northern Va. for 34 years. Just a comment to mention. I have found that over the last few years the growers have used fertilizer with mycorrhizal fungi which is causing roots to grow above the crown and this time shortening the life of the plant. You need to also check the base of the plant where it meets the soil and possibly remove some soil from there to prevent curdling down the road, or the plant drowning because it was planted too low.
@rickjohnson2302 Wow, I didn’t have a clue that could happen, thanks for the tip. My place is full of biomass, and when I look under it, it’s full of fungi. Can this affect my plants?
@@wildalentejo just make sure not to put planted trees into their hole too deeply, and don't pile up mulch against the trunk too high up (i.e. don't cover the trunk above the crown with mulch). And do as said in the video, keep the earth surface a bit lower *around* the tree, so the water doesn't collect right at its trunk but a bit away from it.
And fungi as such are nothing bad, fungi are good and essential.
They do major recycling work for dead plant matter, making nutrients available again... some also help mine nutrients out of rock underground, as well as maintaining a good soil structure so that it has sufficient pores for air and water to enter the soil so plants can breath and the ground can absorb rainfall without being washed off. Last but not least, many types of fungi can enter symbiose with plant roots, sharing water, minerals and nutrients between different plants and fungi, which helps all partners in the network to flourish - think a small village with different households collaboratively sharing different foods, news and work assistance to help each other out. Many plants will grow a lot better with symbiotic fungi and other plants in a shared network than in isolation on their own.
However, *some* (different) fungi can indeed attack living plants in a predatory way. But those are, as mentioned, different ones than the common fungi that enjoy composting dead, decaying plant litter or connect with plant roots for synergies.
@@Heroesflorian thank you for the reply, have a nice day
I heard mention of this years ago and despite my efforts, have been unable to learn more about the method… until now! So grateful 🙏🏻
Good to know. I hope you can put it to use. All the best...
Great to see a new video from you!
Thanks Max
@@TheNaturalFarmer I fully belive in this idea... I have personally been digging down cactus for planting trees, making vegetable beds and mixed with manua for compost. There is something magic with the cactus that I can not explain... Your expantion is of great value! Thanks for teaching us this!
Great tip. I am in process creating a food forest in Vietnam where this type of cactus is abundant. I will greatly benefit from this. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you John. I'm looking for paddles now in readiness for my next tree planting stint. Makes so much sense. We live in the desert. So this will be great.
Thank you John! Hope you and the family are well.
Thank you very much ☺
Such a good technique! The water succulents hold also help in hard freezes, I would imagine!
Possibly! Good thought!
Awesome. Just made my day with this, totally new info to me. Thank you. So happy to see a new video on this channel.
Nice video, John! Great to see you on here again.
Thank you
One of the best well rounded videos I've seen on TH-cam, thank you!
But I have a question, how long will that cushion of hydration last for the tree?
I am glad you started posting videos again!
My Sicilian born father is thinking of returning to Sicily and buying agricultural property. Does the Sicilian government give you a problem with your rainwater catchment earthworks that you have in your previous videos? Do they require permitting?
I live in the most arid area in Portugal, been doing this for years in my system with great success, another trick I use is planting the prickle and then planting other ones around it, the difference is abysmal, then after one year I start to prune it intensively and in year two they are out of the space.
Thank you for sharing that. Great stuff!
Sorry, I don't quite get what you're saying?
I live in SA and I've hard a damn hard time get my new little trees to make it through the dry late summer months
@@jakesgrobler1634 sorry my English is quite weak.
When Im going to plant a tree or bush I plant one prickle pear palm together with what im planting.
Promotes soil health, moisture retention and is a nice windbreak.
If you go around in the end of the summer take a look at the plants that are still green, that's the one you can start with, they will last the summer and help the other ones to establish, then when not needed just prune them and use to biomass.
Soil needs to be always covered, or with biomass or with living plants.
@@wildalentejo thank you for your reply.
Thank you John😀❤️😀. Great to see a video from you againThis is a great tip I was unaware of. Hope you and your family are well and thriving 😀🙏.
Thanks also to other commenters who also have experience with this technique from us in Queensland Australia 😀❤️😀
Good to see you're still at it John. All the best👍
Greeting from Cape Town. So lovely to see and listen to you again. Blessings and abundance to you and your family.❤
Thank you ☺
@@luciatheron1621 hi CT, nice seeing you around. I'm from Twee Riviere in the Langkloof.
@@jakesgrobler1634Moresê Jakes en Lucia. Groete hier van Vishoek! ❤
COOL TIPS..THANKS ..REMEMBERING OUR 613 COMMANDMENTS..HAPPY HANNUKAGH..8 DAYS..NO IDOLS..BE LIGHT..THANKS FOR LIGHT..KNOWLEDGE WISDOM U SHARE..SHARING IS CARING..HALLELUJAH 😊😅😢😂❤LOVE U ALL
This is a wonderful and informative video! I am focusing on water preservation and biologically shared sugar nutrient systems. This video has been added to my interesting by others playlist for others to find. Thank You for sharing this video!
Like you did with the cactus paddle, could you do something similar with aloe or jade? Other succulents?
I will be trying this with aloe… I don’t see why not unless your soil has been poisoned. Aloe is penetrating. But, slow would be a great choice to grow for this purpose. Very nice to deal with. But, the opuntia pads are nutritious to humans and may offer more nutrition for plants as well. But I have these in abundance… Will def try the aloe.
I always like to say....you never know until you try. Nature will decide if it works or not. Let us know...
This makes me wonder if you can use cactus juice similar to aloevera? Are they close enough that there would be some benefits to cuts, hurts, etc from cactus bits, juice instead?
Thanks for the tip John. I am transplanting some cacti plants around my yard, now I will do so with more purpose since I an use them for growing more plants. At the moment, i use them medicinally for the most part.
Love your informative videos! Hope to see YOU real soon! thanks!
Yes! Very nice
thanks for sharing your method of tree planting. it clearly shows how to mulch without the mulch touching the trunk! people always say mulch but stay x inches away from the trunk and so i end up with a dip around the trunk….doh.
Great presentation!!! And thank you.
Thank you, this is great info John. I use aloe vera in a similar way but now you have me thinking about the wide variety of succulents I could be using, like 'prickly pear' as we call it here.
Thank you for sharing this COOL tip John,😊 will try this here in central Mexico, plenty of cactus pads here, you did this technique with an apple, I wonder if will work with avocado, mango and black sapote trees?🤔👍
Great to hear. Yes, give it a try and let us know how it works. If I'm not mistaken the tree in this video is actually a type of plum. But as I said in the video, it will work with any type of tree. All the best to you...
Thank you John you are an inspiration!
Pretty neat!!!
I've always composted them when I lived in Southern California.
I'm not sure what I can get to survive in eastern Nebraska though.
Thank you!!!
Haha. Yeah you might have to drive a bit to find one of these. Nice to hear from you
Brilliant! I loved it, and will be giving this a try.
Oh hallelujah! Totally new to me! Thank You!
Haha! Good to hear! All the best..
Im a farmer in vietnam and im doing like you very very great❤❤❤
A very interesting method. Thank you!!
I will try it with pieces of Agave americana buried near the root zone of already established trees. I hope it works
I learned something new. Btw, I ordered an opinel. It arrived today, what an amazing tool!
Ah cool! I'm so happy that you like the opinel
You are a wonderful teacher.
Nice, I am going to try that with my next tree, thank you. Cape Town is also a mediterranean climate.
Thanks John . I’m going to plant a raspberry plant in a flower pot in Melbourne Australia . I will try it with am Allow Vera plant . Let you Know-how it goes
Great information John. I've implemented it on my land in Tamil Nadu, thank you for explaining it. Any chance of coming back down to South India in the near future?
That's a great idea. It makes sense, thanks for the video 👍
Thank you John. Nice to hear from you
Thank you, John, this is a great inspiration. Do you if this technique has a specific name?
thanks for the inspiring videos 💯
Thank you for your nice feedback
Grazie mille! I have these in Central Fl. Now I know how to use these.
Prego! I hope it works out well down there...
I think you can also cook them 😋
@@NorthernChimp going to try, thanks!
@TheNaturalFarmer How long does the benefit of the buried cactus last? Wouldn't you lose the drought resistance after the first year when the buried cactus is decomposed and gone?
The goal is to make the roots going deep from the beginning
Yeah I would also be interested if this effect is only the first year, to enable deep root growth fast or if it also has a longer effect.
@avmxkppp it has a longer effect cause from the beginning some roots have gone to deep soil in search of moisture so after the few weeks when the cactus drought, roots continued in search of moisture deeper and wider
@@halnelson5936 Ok so it's more of a training method to get the roots to go straight down, after which they'll keep going deeper and find moisture after the cactus is gone. So no need to re-bury more cactus in the future, right?
@jeffmeyers3837 Yes it's for incite the roots to search water deeper and no need to redone it
Great. Going to try it on my shrubs. And veg garden. Nothing to loose.
Great tip. Thanks😮
Loads of these "Frankish figs" as they are called here on Crete, but I had never heard of this technique before. Thanks for the tip!
Definetly going to try this method next time I plant a tree. I wonder if it wiol work on brambles(berries bushes)
So great a new video is out! Do you know of the dryGrow foundation? They are based in Sicily too and work a lot with prickly pears, though mostly for animal fodder.
I have planted many prickly pears on my land in Greece to act as nurse plants + the technique you are doing, for future tree planting. I've also planted other succulents (ice plants) and has a similar effect, with my almond tree (started from seed) growing great!
Looking forward to future videos. Would love to know the list of trees you have planted.
I’m not aware of any cactus in my country, but i do have a very large specimen of Aloe Ferox in my garden and wonder if I could chop up its very fleshy leaves and use in the same manner?
Thanks for the video, great reminder. We had done this in some previous tree plantings but i will admit we have forgotten to do it in our most recent ones! Is it possible to put them in a hole next where you have recently planted a tree to improve the adjacent soil?
I am sure it will help making an adjacent hole it is a good idea i will implement!!!
In Michigan we have native cactus that look similar to this but smaller (they are edible too!). Maybe this can work where i live. Thanks!
Yes of course. Give it a try and let us know how it turns out. All the best...
John Kemp had a fantastic interview about fungal endophytes from drought resistant plants being used to make other plants more drought tolerant. Which explained why this helps the tree survive. It can also be done with seeds before planting😊
Thanks for sharing! Nice to get some new input. 😊
great video
Thank you
Great information
what about more colder climates? Maybe softwood, like willow logs will work?
Thank you for sharing.
Fabulous tip!!! Thank you 🙏 😊
Very nice sharing, from pune, maharashtra
Do you think if you dug two or three other little holes off the side and put these cactus paddles down in the ground and those little wells. Do you think that would help out as well?
Very interesting.
Will certainly try it.
Just have to point out that the Italian name for that plant is 'Fichi d'India' (literally 'Indian Figs').
'Ficchi' with two 'C's has a rude meaning in Sicily.
...just guess it...
? Question, can you use any species of prickly pear? Just Found your video and WOWZA!!!!! I live in New Mexico and we have huge swings in our temps and our moisture. I will definitely be a subscriber. Where do you live? Sometimes our climate is compared to a Mediterranean climate. Best wishes.
To do this method for existing trees use a cordless post hole digger to make a 8" hole 40" deep and drop them down the hole and backfill with compost.
Use the augured out dirt up in your compost tumbler.
Never seen this! Thanks!
You're welcome! Thanks for your feedback
A good way of dealing with an invasive species.
Haha. Yes! That's true as well
Have you tried this step on sunken Hugelkultur Mounds used in arid climates? Probably a good setep for early year mounds.
Nice video
Well, your headline seemed exciting. I suppose this won't work in oregon
Wow this is great
More videos please ❤
CRAZY Cool!!!! Thanks!!!
Insightful
Thank you!
You're welcome
Will definitely try this
Heloo.
when doing this how often can we water the tree ???
So this is similar to the use of dry beans (for nitrogen).
Hi John. I always like to see you and your land are doing well (so I follow you on instagram too)
The mycelium found in aged woodchips is likely of saprophytic fungi not mycorrhizal. Still not the worst idea though since those saprophytic fungi will break down the wood and make more nutrients available to the soil
This should be done all around in the Canary Islands! 👍
Could be that the cactus has rooting hormone like aloe does....
This is a good way to use part of these terribly invasive cacti.
You can continue feeding / irrigating the soil with Opuntia even after the tree planting: Just bury pads into the woodchip ring! They will feed the soil biology which will feed the tree.
Side note: if you chop up the cactus leaves, they decompose much faster. So decide on that action, depending on the size of the tree and the amount of rain you get.
Charcoal is the best! But this is good too!
Soak charcoal and mix that in with the soil all the way down!
Charcoal is the most effective and the only permanent fertilizer that I know.
What kind of charcoal do you recommend?
Bio-char is the best type of charcoal. It can be inoculated to speed the process
@@davidbryden7904 is this good for tomato plants? I mean you have to make biochar right? Can't just go to the store or order organic biochar? In the US
John, I have prickly pears myself. I use gloves and a kitchen knife. Your harvesting needs much improvement. You poked the pad where a newbies would have done. You were using a sickle, and not a scythe. There is big difference.
Smart
My soil didn't match prickly pear just rot. However dragon fruit seem ok
This works well, if you bury them 0.5.m or close to 2' deep they don't seem make it to the surface. Good with other dead wood or charcoal. The Road Warrior was right about Hollywood.
Ill have to make a better video of it but i simple dig my hole use wet cardboard as a bowl base and fill with alittle grass mulch and then top that with fresh worm castings worms and all still semi wet and add alittle sand on top then add my tree and the add soil to fill in once stable. I top with alittle more castings and add a heavy layer of grass mulch and so far so good. Im near the beach in florida though so humidty helps me ALOT
Not true cactus will not make another tree drought resistant. Maybe you could provide verifiable evidence ?
You'll have a MUUUCH easier time digging a hole with a spade.
Step first: Choose a drough resistant tree. But seriously, has somebody tried that and it worked? I live in a Mediterranean island, I only get 450mm rain/year and got a Preakly pear cactus that I need to relocate... I could get rid ofna few of pads
Cherries suffer from bad drainage and lack of cold...in clay must be planted high, extra high, almost like advocatos, but in a north facing place, a cooler place.
We've reached temperatures of 45 C (113 F) the last two Summers. Cherries also suffer from this. I actually used this same technique of burying cactus paddles under one cherry, and did not use it under the other cherries, maybe 4 years ago? As a result, two cherries died and the one with the paddles below is still happy. Here in the Mediterranean we have a few varieties that are well adapted to the heat, as you probably know. The Temperate varieties don't really have a chance in the open here, with no canopy protection around. Also elevation plays a major role. We're at 130m but cherries do pretty well, along with chestnut, at around 500m. Our Surinam Cherry (eugenia uniflora) does fine.
Anyhow, thank you for your helpful comment. Always appreciated...
@TheNaturalFarmer agree. Im also in mediterraen climate. 100 m elevation. Clay. Dont even grow cherries for fruit anymore, just for the flowering. Althou sometimes still get a few cherries, but the birds get it and eat it most of it first.
Also have chestnut, and they produce, and yes, they need cold too, but i see a big chestnut hill from my house, 50 m of elevation...its on a north facing shady hill.