Lovely idea, combining a swale with composting in such a creative way. The idea that this is so productive that it can support resident wildlife is compelling. Well done and enjoy the joy you are creating.
Bio char as a possible addition? I’m in Ohio so pretty temperate- I do just what you mentioned...Dug pathways in my veg garden, tossed the dirt onto my beds, added wood chips to the paths to decompose and planted clover in the pathways. Come winter the clover has been cut back to ground level, any wood chips raked back and the “new” soil gets tossed on the beds with new chips added to the paths. Love this system since it also encourages the water to sink in around the beds.
How might something like this be implemented on a slope? I'm thinking a mulch filled swale with trees planted on the berm? and the mulched swale as a walkway?
I'm on a slope in temperate N. America and I'm doing something similar. Excavating about a foot deep and about 2' wide, placing the excavated soil/rocks just downhill to form the berm (using some larger rocks to make a pretty basic retaining wall at the most downhill part of the berm). I plan to put logs, sticks, and branches in the trench first, and maybe some woodchips, then top it off with soil from the back cut (just uphill) and ideally create a level surface without too much standing water on surface so it can serve as a good pathway. I'm in the process of doing this now so not sure exactly how it's going to pan out but that's the basic idea. I plan to plant trees primarily below the berm, but may do some on the berm itself. If not trees on the berm then some sort of plant cover or mulch/debris to cover any bare soil. Good luck!
I have been doing this in south Florida for decades, it makes a difference! Some pathways I scoop out the composted materials and layers onto adjacent beds.
So glad to see this video. Decided I needed to do something that would hold water longer than our dry sandy soil and build organic matter. Your system is exactly what I had decided to try around my struggling blueberry "bushes." Thank you for sharing the encouraging results.
Thanks so much- this is confirming what I suspected. I have a 3ksf corner front/side yard that is neglected, eroded "turf" in the Seattle area. We go four to five months with maybe a couple of showers totalling no more than 1/2" of rain. I have a gentle slope on about 2k sf that we can direct our downspouts into to soak during our rainy seasons, and we are planning permaculture fruit and nut guilds on that side. Wish us luck- we are on the notorious suburban clay fill, with no topsoil on that part of the property. I'm looking to dig fishscale swales by hand, flipping the turf, piling on whatever soil I can dig, laying on cardboard and arborist chips on the bed areas, then filling the paths with chips. (I may cover the beds with a layer of imported compost and cover crops for winter instead of chips- I have a few baby trees I can get in the ground this fall.)
I used crushed tumbleweed to make a path. It was awesome! Sunflowers grew alongside, even had mushrooms (likely poisonous) come up in it! Sadly it was not maintained after the property was sold. But I'm stomping down tumbleweed that blows into my new place. It's started helping by at least shading the soil, acting as a kind of mulch. Surprisingly, less tumbleweed is growing. 🕊️ Edit: didn't have access to wood chips. There was only grass, cows and tumbleweed lol. It was a crazy experience.
I put fruit guilds around each of our 3 young fruit trees. I added compost mulch then a few rotting logs ( logs around the dripline). Almost immediately the trees required less water!
So cool to see this in practice! When reading about the dangers of hugel swales, I've often wondered "what if you just bury the wood below grade?" Thanks for sharing the video!
Lovely idea, combining a swale with composting in such a creative way. The idea that this is so productive that it can support resident wildlife is compelling. Well done and enjoy the joy you are creating.
I love the way you are doing your huglekulture. I have applied about 20 inches of wood chips to my garden in 18 months.
Bio char as a possible addition? I’m in Ohio so pretty temperate- I do just what you mentioned...Dug pathways in my veg garden, tossed the dirt onto my beds, added wood chips to the paths to decompose and planted clover in the pathways. Come winter the clover has been cut back to ground level, any wood chips raked back and the “new” soil gets tossed on the beds with new chips added to the paths. Love this system since it also encourages the water to sink in around the beds.
. Hello from NE Ohio! I'm slowly turning my yard in a giant hugel forest.
@@chainsawasmr8736 I'm also ne ohio- where are you located? It'd be nice to connect other odd folks!
I'm east of Cleveland in Mentor for the time being. Looking for some acres farther out though.
@@chainsawasmr8736 We're south of Youngstown, but have relatives in and around Cleveland. Small world!
How might something like this be implemented on a slope? I'm thinking a mulch filled swale with trees planted on the berm? and the mulched swale as a walkway?
I'm on a slope in temperate N. America and I'm doing something similar. Excavating about a foot deep and about 2' wide, placing the excavated soil/rocks just downhill to form the berm (using some larger rocks to make a pretty basic retaining wall at the most downhill part of the berm). I plan to put logs, sticks, and branches in the trench first, and maybe some woodchips, then top it off with soil from the back cut (just uphill) and ideally create a level surface without too much standing water on surface so it can serve as a good pathway.
I'm in the process of doing this now so not sure exactly how it's going to pan out but that's the basic idea. I plan to plant trees primarily below the berm, but may do some on the berm itself. If not trees on the berm then some sort of plant cover or mulch/debris to cover any bare soil.
Good luck!
I have been doing this in south Florida for decades, it makes a difference! Some pathways I scoop out the composted materials and layers onto adjacent beds.
So glad to see this video. Decided I needed to do something that would hold water longer than our dry sandy soil and build organic matter. Your system is exactly what I had decided to try around my struggling blueberry "bushes." Thank you for sharing the encouraging results.
Thanks so much- this is confirming what I suspected. I have a 3ksf corner front/side yard that is neglected, eroded "turf" in the Seattle area. We go four to five months with maybe a couple of showers totalling no more than 1/2" of rain. I have a gentle slope on about 2k sf that we can direct our downspouts into to soak during our rainy seasons, and we are planning permaculture fruit and nut guilds on that side.
Wish us luck- we are on the notorious suburban clay fill, with no topsoil on that part of the property. I'm looking to dig fishscale swales by hand, flipping the turf, piling on whatever soil I can dig, laying on cardboard and arborist chips on the bed areas, then filling the paths with chips. (I may cover the beds with a layer of imported compost and cover crops for winter instead of chips- I have a few baby trees I can get in the ground this fall.)
Thank you again for the content, much love friends. Great seeing how everyone puts their take on working the soil. 👏🙌💚
WoW, I definitely needed to see this, busy with swales & hugel beds, thank you!
I used crushed tumbleweed to make a path. It was awesome! Sunflowers grew alongside, even had mushrooms (likely poisonous) come up in it! Sadly it was not maintained after the property was sold. But I'm stomping down tumbleweed that blows into my new place. It's started helping by at least shading the soil, acting as a kind of mulch. Surprisingly, less tumbleweed is growing.
🕊️
Edit: didn't have access to wood chips. There was only grass, cows and tumbleweed lol. It was a crazy experience.
I have a tangerine tree and it is drying up, what can I do so it doesn't dry out? should I do swales around the tree?
I put fruit guilds around each of our 3 young fruit trees. I added compost mulch then a few rotting logs ( logs around the dripline). Almost immediately the trees required less water!
Amazing work!!
Totally have plans for something exactly like this!
Great work…
So cool to see this in practice! When reading about the dangers of hugel swales, I've often wondered "what if you just bury the wood below grade?" Thanks for sharing the video!
check species know your geo strata all for decades later...
Great content! Thanks for the lesson!!
Great content as always 👏👏
Where is this location?
We are in the Tampa Bay Area and I’m wondering if this is best for our pathways. But, we have very wet summers.
NorCal - it would work great for you all - it'll help hold and incorporate water into the paths
nice hat monami my sensei,professor, master or teacher anyway big fan student of agriculture.