Well said, Huw. Personally, I'm an advocate of No Guilt gardening and feel no shame for not following any particular methodology. I'm a lazy gardener and look for the easiest and cheapest way to grow my food. Digging is too much like hard work and covering the ground with compost every year is too expensive. I do whatever feels right for me and my garden.
Not exactly 'no guilt gardening'...if I suddenly started applying agro chemicals once a month, planting seeds covered with fungicides, poisoning the squirrels I'd feel as guilty as can be. The no dig method is to say you can get a weed free bed, without having to dig out the tough weeds if you are willing to wait at least the time to smother out the weeds and make a pile of compost. It's a question of how much of a rush you are in. In my situation, drylands, broad forking to aerate the soil isn't desirable because the whirl winds knock over the plants. Plants grown from seeds and a bit of fungi get through compacted clay.
Exciting progress. I finally got the worms in my garden to stop disturbing the soil. I gave them smart phones and now they just sit around scrolling through TH-cam all day. Now I am preparing slippers for the chickens so they may tread more softly upon the Earth.
The world is loosing its grip on reality. When this is a concern you realise people have too much time on their hands, and too much venom towards those that are trying. Good on you dude.
There is a subset of people who seem to want to find some kind of spirituality in something they do, gardening being high on that list, because of it's connection to 'Gaia' or whatever spirit they believe in. That's fine till you try to put your boot on my neck an force me to your worldview. I've always been skeptical of total no-dig, there are times when disturbing the soil is productive if not necessary. Bacteria, fungus, etc are resilient, here they die off and hibernate in the cold winter then come right back in the spring. Obviously some tillage or forking at the right time in the right way is not harmful and IMO helpful.
@@dudeusmaximus6793 As a botanist myself with an organic farm in the south of France, I use whatever method feeds me. No chemicals obviously but I use a fork, as much as I do plastic weed suppressant fabric. My main concern is how the weather is changing faster and more extremely. Therefore we need to adapt and put away silly concepts of strict ideology to meet the challenges face on. If we can't do it - then who can?
The fact that you had to make this comment validates your comment. People have way too much time on their hand and I would never 'feel guilty' for ANYTHING I do on my own land.
@rosedoucet2188 - I think the concept of "minimal disturbance" was intended for commercial farms, not home gardeners. What commercial farms do is entirely different from what home gardeners do. Home gardeners should do whatever needs to be done based on their own awareness of soil, type of veggies being sown, climate conditions, etc. and ignore what the Agricultural experts say. Your own backyard will tell you what needs to be done.
Huw, greatly appreciate your insights and willingness to speak up. To me, you summed it up in your comment above...'make growing food as accessible and practical as possible for as many people as possible'. That's what it's all about. If people are growing their own food and paying attention to how the process is working they will arrive at the best possible solution of growing for themselves. Let's all continue to learn and grow so that we can maximize our gardens.
Well said, Huw. Five years ago, my backyard was a bare wasteland of rock-hard, dried out clay where no insects lived, no birds would land, and even weeds refused to grow. A pick ax was a necessary tool to even begin to work this soil that mimicked concrete. I didn't know where or how to begin until I stumbled upon David the Good and Black Gumbo here in US and learned how to compost in place by digging trenches in my sad plot of earth. So, I buried every kitchen scrap and leftover along with straw, dried leaves, dead mice and birds, brown paper bags, cardboard and egg cartons, watering well. In four to six months I had the darkest, richest soil imaginable. The day I found my first earthworm was joyful! Now, I generously cover my many raised beds with the excellent compost that I purchase by the truckload every year and lug home countless bags of chicken manure to nourish my little patch of heaven on earth. My garden is full of lovely birds, butterflies, insects and food I can eat. I dig when I need to period. I love my beautiful garden and am proud of all that I have accomplished. I've learned from your videos as well, Huw. Thank you sincerely for all you have taught me.
Thank you for sharing your experience! My mother has a small frontgarden where the soil bears plants but it is very heavy. I will try your method when I am at my mothers the next time. Thanks again!
I love the minimal disturbance and no guilt mentality. "You cant have potatoes without a little soil disturbance" is my new "you cant make an omelet without cracking a few eggs"
@@andrewgoodbody2121 The property I am looking to move to has hard clay barren soil. Figure I'll have to till in a ton of organic matter the first season. Hopefully i can just plant it with some cover crop where ever I don't have perrenials after that.
@@zedmeinhardt3404 I have sticky nasty red clay. You will definitely have to fill in organic matter for a season or two. And keep a thick layer of mulch on it so it won’t turn to a brick during the summer.
Before the pandemic, Gardeners sermed to be a happy and accepting group. I feel a serious increase in the insanity over the last 3 years. I believe that "all things in moderation " is a great life montra.
i think it is all the newer gardeners who are so dogmatic. Give them time to mellow and possibly they will relax a little. On the good side-look at all the people who are new to gardening! Growing things and being protective of growing things is good for all of us. The issue is when folks from one side believe theirs is the 'only' way and try to press their way on others. Seems like there are some folks who are just going to try to force their way from both ends of the spectrum in so many areas of life. Hold on tight to common sense, y'all! Thanks, Huw, for championing common sense gardening!
I totally agree with you! Anyone who criticizes a gardener who is helping so many people and growing food, isn't someone to worry about. Sometimes we have to dig or disturb the soil, with respecting to the soil.
Thank you Huw. You said it perfectly. As an older woman just starting to garden in soil that's at least as hard as a rock, it can be very defeating to be told not to till it. Sometimes you just have to face reality. I can't get a manicured garden without considerable expense of time, money, and hard labor. So you just have to admit your limitations. Something from the garden is better than nothing Working with nature is always the smartest idea .
In any garden with little to no ‘soil’, you have to make do with what works for you. My ‘soil’ is sand. Not sandy soil, just sand. I used to dig in composted manure, but one year my bad knees would not let me dig, so I threw the manure on top and went to town planting in it. Best garden ever, and the effects are lasting better into the next growing season. In your situation, I would consider growing some comfrey and dandelions and other deep-rooted plants. Comfrey leaves make wonderful, nutritious mulch for other plants, and the deep roots of those types of plants will work their way into your soil, hopefully improving drainage, breaking up your rock a bit, and bringing up nutrients from subsoils that will help other plants grow. Perhaps plant in islands around a fruit tree or two, which will add leaf mulch to the soil year by year, and any birds or wildlife that beat you to the fruit will add their manure…. Oh, and use mulch, too, and if you happen to come across any - mowed grass, bagged leaves, used straw - collect it and bring it to your garden (a tarp can help with this potentially messy project). I was always told not to mulch with hay or mowed road easement grass, due largely to the high numbers of seeds contained in each. I use them in compost piles and it is easy to pull any weeds that sprout. I hope these ideas are helpful, as I gardened on (more than in) clay for a few years. Getting through the hard pan can be tough.
It's always the people bringing in compost that say not to till. . . which is beyond silly because they are replacing their soil with material that is the same as tilled soil and spending an insane amount more.
@@aquaticaaficionado2004 It's simply not even close to accurate to claim that, "...compost...is the same as tilled soil." I somewhat agree about rather unsustainable inputs being often overlooked, but many gardeners generate their own compost. Regardless, repeated tilling of the soil renders it lifeless, while compost is chock full of life and nutrients. Yes, it's all churned up when transported and applied, but that's not at all the, "...same as tilled soil."
Perspective from someone who has been organic gardening 30 yrs.-- I've seen fads come and go. I've recently incorporated some "no-dig" methods after moving to a new property that needed tamed quickly. I never saw the "no dig" part as the main point of the thing. Rather, it was the weed control benefits that this method offers. I'm older now. Weeding is like a full-contact sport these days for me. 😂 The no dig method makes the whole thing so much easier. In all of my gardens, from the first to the current, soil health has been the obvious King. My first garden was heavy unworked clay. Every hole I dug for a new plant was dug oversized and filled with dry leaves and new loamy soil around the new plant. Every Autumn, dry leaves were layed down over the entire bed to break down all winter. Those were then turned over into the soil as I worked the bed. In 2 yrs, the entire bed was beautiful loamy soil. The no dig method is a faster & less labor intensive way to achieve that. If anyone had ever told me I had to adopt a strict no tool policy, I would've laughed and gone on abt my business. 😆
Ditto on pretty much everything you just said! "No Dig" was an easy way in to a garden for me, not a rules-laden finger-pointing fest. People just need more fun in their lives lately.
Thanks Huw, I am new to no dig, and we have slowly improved our garden that way, but I clearly don’t fully understand it. How do you plant seeds or seedlings without disturbing the soil somewhat? I have had to open the soil in order to place the seedling, is that not correct? I guess I need more information.
Exactly my reason: weed control. But i feel no guilt having to put in a spade to loosen my parsnips. I have voles in my soil and mice and an occasional mole. They dig
I don't garden but I read somewhere that you can grow annuals with very long tap root, let it wither and chop it and leave it on top for mulch and the roots are going to decompose and aerate the soil. Basically you let the plants do the digging for you.
Well said Huw! I left a no dig social media group because I had a couple of comments removed. I said that digging post holes for a fence taught me about my soil profile and that digging just a little area in your garden might be a useful exercise. I said I actually liked digging sometimes! Just a bit of humour! No discussion, no humour, just dogma… sometimes the case with Permaculture zealots too unfortunately. A lot of these ‘no dig’ fanatics are just bone idle! Joking aside i actually practice no dig in the main and think it has huge benefits in most circumstances. But people… get a grip!
This made me giggle. I know some of those people. I've raised food plants for real subsistence for over 60 years. They think they've discovered the Grail, but this is just their first go round. I got a post banned on a gardening group because I said "fig nuts".... apparently there is some perceived slur about that phrase.... but I was talking about actual fig trees. Of which I have 50. So, clearly, they had no need for my experience there. So Buh bye.
I had to do the "no dig" method because we'd have needed to hire a backhoe to get to actual soil under the rock hard, topsoil-less several inches. But that's how it started, a no-dig garden, and from then on I did as the garden demanded. Not some book, armchair warrior or "expert". By the time I was done, we were finding earthworms everywhere. Before that, absolutely minimal soil life, if any.
@@Paula_T I'm not sure people who are on English speaking forums even fully comprehend English anymore. How weird that someone would find exception to "fig nuts". Heaven forbid we discuss that flowers are plants' sexual organs lol.
Yes! I’ve been waiting for someone to make this vid. The question shouldn’t be dig/no dig, it’s about pragmatism vs blind fundamentalism. Big admiration for you Huw, and anyone else who puts their neck on the line. Well done, keep doing what you’re doing. (Love your book btw)
SO WISE. The concept of extreme views becoming ideology can be applied to so much else as well! Here on our homestead, we grow what we eat, and eat what we grow. (obviously aside from sugar, coffee and flour, etc.) We put our pigs in the the garden at the end of the season, over winter, and let me tell you, they dig lol. But they also have exponentially increased our soil nutrition in that area, which 5 years ago, was a bog. Ban Moles made me laugh out loud 😂😂😂❤❤❤
Well said Huw. I had no dig guilt when creating a ‘new no dig ‘raised bed garden this year. I just did not have enough wood,cardboard and compost so one area which is quite heavy clayey I dug out all the couch grass and brambles and planted lots of potatoes. I have a lovely crop too. Common sense and trying to grow as much food as possible must prevail . 👍
This is such an important viewpoint, Huw. I, too, have felt no-dig guilt, but it's completely ridiculous. No dig is an excellent methodology, but minimal disturbance makes so much more sense. Soil will and does heal itself 💚 PS - there's no moles here on the Isle of Man. Guess they got banned 😂
Interesting what you said about 'soil healing itself' because as a new gardener, I worried I had ruined my soil when I dug the whole lot up and seived it before I heard about 'no dig'.
That's why I prefer the US term "no till" as "no dig" implies one must never disturb the soil with an implement more than a rake or hoe, even when harvesting - not going to happen (I have to use a long trowel or rabbiting spade to harvest leeks, carrots, parsnips...).
@@jenkitching43 My home garden has been 'no till' for 7 years now, as I believe in the principle (but not the fanatics...). The allotment I took over this year was 10-15cm of topsoil over iron ore waste, so I stripped off the weeds, then the topsoil, then moved/removed the quarry waste & trucked in 12 tons of topsoil to give 30cm in the growing areas. Drastic? You bet but doing that, plus 7-8cm of composted green waste & my own compost over the top of cardboard means I've no need to dig in future. Oh & the three bulk builders bags of weeds & turf mixed with racing pigeon muck rotted down into weed free infill for the last part of the plot.
Garden whatever way that works for you. There are always people that are going to criticize things we do. Love your page. I like watching and learning from the different ways people garden. If you are growing your own food…you are doing amazing.
Well said! You do you Huw! 👏 Had 'no dig shame' for digging to plant potatoes this year. Didn't have buckets or the compost to fill them so dug - it was either that or no potatoes. We gotta do what we gotta do, especially in the present economic climate. 😅 ... Now waiting for the 'Huw's philosophy' channel, where you discuss other ideologies & tell it like it is!! 😂❤
This is a welcome and fresh breath of air, Huw. It seems the crazy armchair warriors have fought their way through rock N roll, diets, cars, tools, machines and have reached gardening in the last few years. Minimal disturbance, a motto that can lubricate most problems in life. Someone who grows, plants and tries is by far ahead of the ones criticising from their expensive, earthworks machined forests. My hat tips for you, and all of you who do. Keep growing. Keep eating.
I put tarps down on my former horse paddock which was covered in all kinds of grass and weeds (even tussock grass). 12 months later when I lifted the area the grass and weeds were all dead and the soil beneath was soft and fluffy, and teaming with worms. It was honestly the best start to any garden that I’ve ever had. I built low raised beds above, filling with compost and manure. I am thrilled with how fertile the garden is. This no dig gardening is excellent.
I appreciate you explaining this. In the woods where I live, poplar trees will come up first to start to shade and then the oaks and maples come up. I did let most of acreage go wild. The brambles show up really quick. And there is what we call orchard grass. This land had tobacco for over a hundred years, then they grew soy beans. So, when we moved here we let most of the land rest and let nature and wildlife have a bunch of space.
This actually makes a lot of sense, I had a bare spot in my yard where no grass grew, just tilled it a bit with a rake by hand and never added any seed and watered it and had grass growing like crazy, better than the rest of the yard by the end of the summer
Excellent video Huw! I’m such a believer in testing different methods in your own garden, observing what works for you and going with it. That’s part of the joy of gardening - the freedom to experiment and create your own masterpiece. We get so caught up in trying to find the one correct way of doing something and fear of doing it ‘wrong’ that we forget to just go play in the dirt and get curious! I am constantly surprised and delighted by what nature has to teach me, and I think we miss that when we are fixated on ideologies and rule books. Happy gardening everyone! 💚 Alex
Thank you for discussing this - it needed to be clarified. Due to aging and site conditions I practice “no dig” but the term IS vague and negative. Maybe “wholistic gardening” or intuitive gardening is closer to the ideals of looking after all aspects of gardening/food production. Common sense is also a requirement. Thank you!💕🌳
I find no dig works well on beds that are well established, it works well on containers, but with new ground it makes sense to dig deeply,remove stones and any roots,use manure or compost near surface,then after a few years of cropping move to no dig,but above all else grow organically.
I liked the No Guilt gardening comment. There are so many different scenarios for our gardens. Due to the nature of my soil, most of my vegetables grow in raised beds. I make as much compost as I can each year and mulch grass and leaves to cover what I can when it starts to get cold. I try to learn from a variety of sources and eachh year's experience. I continue to expand my growing area as I can. Thank you for working to take the shame out of growing our own food.
Ah, you almost suggested what I'm trying for the first time this year. Where you suggested that annuals might be sown directly after soil is disturbed - I did something slightly different. In a very small trial area, I'm not using annuals (because I'm thinking of water absorption from the soil, extra water loss through leaves of annual plants, competition for light, the potential for moulds and diseases in high density areas, etc). But last year, I found a lot of very low growing, hardy, perennial succulents growing over a large, old, cracked concrete yard (belonging to a local industry that's lately closed down). These succulents were not just growing in open, full-sun exposure in the middle of the yard, they were also found growing in a surprising amount of shade too. Believing they might have potential, this Spring, I loaded a couple of carrier bags with pieces from these succulents, brought them home, and pushed them into the soil around some of my new vegetables. (Everyone knows how quickly and eagerly succulents will set down roots). Vegetables have quite a tough time in my garden (the state of my joints and back means there's only so much I can do), but those (broad beans, peas and a courgette) underplanted with succulents weren't any worse off in this trial border than they were in other vegetable borders. Plus! The succulents not only produced a few flowers to attract bees, they also better protected the ground against the drying hot sunshine during our drought period. In fact, I barely needed to water this piece of ground at all once the vegetables were established. When I needed to pull anything up; yes, I broke up the succulent in that vicinity. However, instead of mourning over an annual lifted in its prime or trying to save it by frequent watering, all I had to do was push the broken pieces of succulent stem back into the soil again, and they did the rest. A few days later, and no one would notice the ground had been disturbed. I've now started transferring pieces of hardy succulent to a new border which I've just planted up with 50 nicely-rooted Blackcurrant cuttings. And that's the other thing about these succulents - even if I'd bought them in the first place, I will never have to buy another. They are ridiculously easy to propagate. Even the Blackbirds propagate them when they are snuffling about for grubs. I know I will have to dig some over as I forage about for potatoes a little later, but enough pieces will break off and can regrow on their own. What gets dug in and rots down will add a little something to the soil at the same time. One of these succulents is English Stonecrop (Sedum anglicum), the other seems to be called Jenny's Stonecrop (Sedum reflexum). As for no-dig. Well, I don't think it's possible to not dig, unless you don't plant at all. Besides, animals dig. Voles, moles, mice and their predators are always digging about in my garden. Foxes and badgers just beyond my fence-line. They must have undertaken more digging work in a year than I have in the last 5. Animals being introduced into this country - Bison - have a natural instinct to scrape up the ground (as well as smash down trees), while Wild Boar churn their way through the soil in their pursuit of tubers. How can one man with a spade, digging up his own potatoes and carrots for his own family's needs, be in any way worse than a collection of animals occupying the same amount of space as his allotment/garden? Especially if he is being careful not to dig up the roots of other annuals that are cut off at ground level, their roots left to rot in the ground. I think some of this no-dig business is carrying an idea just a bit too far. We're still doing far less harm than conventional food-raising, with its tractors pouring out exhaust fumes, encouraging problems with monoculture environments, spraying unpleasant chemicals all over the place and then all the transport and packaging nonsense afterwards.
I am a farmer, and past market gardener, and totally agree with most of your observations (obviously more tolerant of using synthetic inputs). We were attempting to farm no-till ( direct seeding) for 2-3 decades, & find problems developing that are easily solved by a well timed tillage pass. I will never go back to trying to plow before each crop, but an occasional tillage pass to achieve a purpose can be a good thing!
Oh my goodness Huw! I’m amazed at your knowledge of gardening! How could anyone ever, ever criticize you especially about soil and any type of digging?! You keep on sharing your expert gardening knowledge with us and sharing all you know to help us become more food self sufficient. I really appreciate you!!!
Excellent balanced viewpoint. In all areas of life, people have a tendency to take one extreme or another & not analyze what is needed to maximize benefits, in this case, to the land & the gardener together.
The proof is in the pudding! Your garden is beautiful, vibrant, healthy, productive. You are obviously doing many things right! The last video you posted that I watched talked about having a little bit more relaxed viewpoint on putting extra produce that you just can’t eat or donate into the compost and feeling OK about that. Thank you! And a big thank you for this post as well. Why do we put ourselves under so much pressure resulting in guilt? Thanks so much for all you do and the inspiration you are.
Thank you for discussing the "guilt" issue. I was struggling with adding organic soil to my terribly sandy mounded beds. But like you said, by adding compost I was creating a self repairing environment. Two days ago I removed about 6", gently forked the subsoil, and put back a blend of existing soil, the beautiful new stuff, and compost, then sowed a cover crop of crimson clover. Any doubts about my decision are now gone thanks to you.
A timely video for me. Yesterday, while pulling carrots from one of the older beds, it was clear that the soil had become compacted and nearly impossible to pull the carrots. I have to use a garden fork to loosen the soil enough to pull some of the larger carrots. After the bed was cleared I added 3" of compost, and then used the garden fork to work it into the soil to help loosen it and get some air into it before planting the fall brassica plants. My beds are mostly no-dig, but sometimes they need just a little help. 😀
I can tell this is something that’s been on your mind for a while Huw, and that you’ve given it a great deal of thought - but you also have the lived experience of growing your own food to back it up, so for me, it’s a balanced viewpoint. I completely agree with everything you’ve said.
I’m glad you’re not taking these arguments to heart. You’ve chosen to share your story with us for so many years now, people are always going to find the negative. Your gardens are lush and thriving. No one can tell you how to run it but you. Keep up that great spirit and thanks again for sharing! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Thank you again Huw, always appreciate your opinions and knowledge. I helped my daughter and her son create a vege garden this year, we had no option but to do some digging to create beds. We decided most important was to get it going, which we did and already she harvests all her greens and herbs. We are now planning for her summer garden. As a gardener for many years, I was so happy to see her take it up, its now a 'thing' we discuss and share, worth so much! In a world gone a bit mad, this is something we can do that saves money, environment, and sanity,-putting your hands in the soil is literally grounding.
I feel like this could easily be a chapter or a small book on its own. Like you quickly go over so much, from natural life cycles and how one could theoretically take advantage of them to problems with our mass mono-culture-culture to a philosophical comment on extremes creating/being products of ideology and how that can be limiting. Idk lots of stuff. I found it all helpful and very thoughtful as usual. I'm pretty new, on year two. First year with raised beds and learning a lot. Also yes! Cancel the moles but only the ugly, weird ones (looking at you star nosed moles)
Gardening is about learning, paying attention, being aware, awake. Not judging, natural doesn't judge or be mean. It's always great to see what you are doing. We are all doing different things and need to respect others ways
Such wisdom in one so young reassures me. It seems obvious to me (much older) that we should take all information and add a good dose of commonsense and experience and then adapt and make our own. Well done for being so real. Those who want to bring down others have much maturing to do. Love your videos!
YES! I love the way you explained 'No Dig". And you are not afraid to say why! I believe if one cant be respectful and kind, then keep you remarks to yourself. I love to experiment with different ways, if it doesn't work, there is always a solution. I have watched many videos. I am still learning, in times we are living just grow something and learn along the way. Feeding the soil is the most important, if you want a thriving garden. Its never to late to start. We had floods and heavy hail and strong winds. The hail was the last straw. Lost 3/4 of my tomtoes, all my beautiful curly Kale. All my cabbage etc. But I told myself, I am not giving up. So I had start from scratch again. I have only been gardening in this garden for last twenty months. My husband has been so supportive and doesn't mind getting his hands dirty. Helps me a lot. Built me a green house. So grateful to have had the greenhouse, as protected many of the plants from the flooding and hail. Really grateful for people like you Huw, that are willing to share your experiences and gardening knowledge with us. Thank You Huw! ❤💚❤️💚❤️💚❤️🇿🇦🌍👋
Huw, you are a beacon of good-sense realism in a time when many people are a bit deranged by dogmas of unnecessary fear, blame and guilt. I agree with Carol Sharp (see comment below) on the great benefits of "No Guilt" gardening. What a great way to put it. Thank you. Just ignore the blame and guilt mongers. They will go away one day.
When I was really into lifting I had similar problems when dialing in my diet. I had gone vegetarian/vegan for the most part with the rare meat/animal product. It's tough to hear that I'm not a vegan for eating out with X and having meat once in three months. The lables we use are overly simplistic and are used to define us yet in reality we're all coplex and always in flux. Don't let anyone lable you Huw, do what works.
Absolutely right, don't criticise until you have seen their garden. I use no dig where I can. But I live in the dry eastern side of England which is very different to Somerset.
Having grown mostly traditionally for years, I tried no dig on one bed in a new veg patch. I’d simply run out of energy and couldn’t be bothered to dig yet another area. I put down 4 or 5 layers of cardboard and spent a small fortune on compost and mulch. Within a few weeks after planting 3 things became obvious 1. This area was drying out sooner than the dug beds, 2. The new plants were not penetrating down into the soil but instead mostly growing on top of the cardboard, 3. All the perennial weeds began coming back through the cardboard and by now I couldn’t dig them out or do anything other than break them off. After the first year the bed was full of perennial weeds, all back to what the ground looked like before I started. In order to do another season I found myself back to square one needing more cardboard and more mulch and compost. I gained nothing at all except a year of near wasted growth and frustration at weeds which in my dug beds I’d more or less dealt with by digging and further maintenance. My ground had a lot of years of waste including plastic waste which I’d now buried under cardboard and compost. My new philosophy is to stop being lazy - dig, dig well, remove big stones and plastic waste, roots and weeds, add plenty of organic matter and then move to a system of as little disturbance as possible. Dig once rather than no dig. Old, weedy, compacted and waste ridden ground, which most people have to deal with is not and never was ideal growing soil hence generally and traditionally people would dig.
Thats always what ive understood the definition of no dig to be. You prepare the soil whichever way you see fit, and the no dig is about not working in the compost, but laying it on top? As in 'not digging' in the fresh compost into the soil.
Haven't had that experience at all . I even added a relatively small amount of compost on cardboard for tomatoes,just this year, and they did great . I think a lot depends on your added soil and its qualities. And weeds can come back from added compost, from other areas, but overall, I've been very happy with "no dig".
Don't feel guilty! Your logic and experience are spot on... thanks for sharing. I tried a small patch of 'no dig' and the result was pathetic... besides, digging gives me much needed exercise... something which seems in short supply these days!
I started gardening when I was 12 , am now 70 . The number of fads and fashions that have passed through the gardening world in that period of time might surprise some younger gardeners . Dont let anyone ruin the joy you can get from growing things ,it is a privilege and a treasure . Commonsense and balance in all things is the best way to go .
Thank you Huw, I’ve always struggled with this when looking at my raised beds after winter. The many feet of snow here in Newfoundland Canada causes a lot of compaction and I could never see anything growing if I didn’t disturb the soil a small amount. I strive to be no dig where I can but realize that the best thing for my soil is as you described, minimal disturbance.
I always appreciate your garden life perspective. No one is more kind to the soil, gentle with vegetables! Earth Mother is treated like a queen in your garden.
Well said - love the term minimal disturbance! And annuals do enjoy that bit of disturbance!! As you say, the end goal for most of us here is growing a variety of good food without chemicals, and building healthy soil. One of a gardener's first jobs is to see what works for their soil, plants and conditions, and to keep experimenting! I also garden on heavy clay soil, and vary what works!
You are a smart guy, Huw, and you make a great point. I too felt guilty as I harvested my potatoes this year, but I was harvesting potatoes for my family to eat! That was backwards thinking. Thank you for this video. I needed to hear this.
I absolutely love this video. We should not be so dogmatic with what we do as much as we should be observant so that we can always learn what is actually best for us and for the soil and for nature.
Minimal disturbance, high benefit! I love it. Thanks for your videos. Brings warmth to my day. I know it’s silly but it’s like watching an old friend who happens to love the same things I do. 🌱 Hope you and your team have a lovely season!
Thank you! I'd been advocating for my mother in law to try no dig techniques, and she created a new no dig garden last year. Then she called me in a panic this spring wondering how she could harvest her carrots without disturbing the soil! Oh man. Thank you for being a voice of common sense!
Thanks for making gardening accessible to the average person. I have been waiting for you to make this video since the No Dig hit its peak in popularity. It is clear that you care more about people producing food than what method is used and this is evident even in your old videos. I fell into the trap of following gardening ideas in 2020 which were not suitable for my situation. My 77 year old Italian father who has gardened since he could walk ignored me when I talked about no dig. He double digged my lawn when converting it into a vegetable patch and again the following year but he was right we needed to mix the clay into the top soil to bring up the nutrients plus break up the clay so root crops would grow well. It was the cheapest way to start a garden. The second year was my first and best parsnip year! My garden doesn't need that level of disturbance now it is in it's 4th season here in Australia and I have focused on soil health but if I need to fork it, I will. Cheers
Parsnips!! Where are you in Australia? Any hope of growing them in Sydney? And what your father did was exactly what I did. I didn't even have top soil, just clay and rocks so I dug it up, pulled out as many rocks as I could, literally broke up the clods by hand, dug in compost and gypsum, turned it over, let it sit and repeated that process 2-3 times. The soil is now fabulous and I'm doing no-dig as much as possible. Cheers back!
Glad to hear you've improved your soil. The East Coast of 🇦🇺has a great gardening environment. I'm in the Penrith area and not every season is successful. Although it's costly I use blood & bone plus homemade compost which has really helped and I never leave my garden naked so my growth is good considering I'm a built up area where my garden gets about 6 hours of sunlight mostly morning light. Happy Gardening 🌱
No guilt gardening. Yes! I love the minimal disturbance principle of no dig, but lets keep it real here! A breath of fresh air to us mere mortals who arew grappling with doing as well as we can in our gardens. 'How to videos' with the addition of Huw unfiltered. I'm loving this new direction you're taking Huw.
Thank you. I have had the worst growing year ever. As in all that I have managed to grow are tomatoes. Many eaten by slugs ! Cucumbers, a little sweet corn and a few squash. No brassica. Root veg or salads. Not even courgettes that will tell you how bad it has been. I’ve tried doing no dig for years now and realised year on year my produce getting less and less. My soil is so compacted I don’t walk on it I put compost etc on top and leave worms to do the work. I’ve now realised I have to dig to some extent to get the air in and improve the soil with organic matter and so will do minimal disturbance in the hope that I can now grow some produce as in the past
It is about time someone of your standing has vocalised this. I also describe what we do as "pragmatic" and not organic for similar reasons. Our farm is not organic certified but I don't see how adding commercially manufactured organic fertiliser blends as being in anyway superior adding our own home made compost and wood ash to the garden. I am tried of people turning words into a gardening religion and judging others when they themselves do not have a solid understanding of the underlying biology.
I believe in finding what is right for my family. What can my old bones handle the easiest and what will keep the cost of growing below the cost of buying. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and for being able to discuss the overall and fine details of your thought so plainly.
Hi there, I agree with you about the strictness of the term "no-dig". In French, the term sometimes used is "non-labour", which is a little smarter about it, "labour" is when you really turn the soil whereas "dig" is has a much wider meaning.
No-dig to me means not turning the soil with a spade, certainly no back breaking double dig. That's what it's reacting to. From there you could take it to less disturbance. But no need to feel guilty about forking up potatoes. Perhaps, as with many things, English should adopt a posh sounding French phrase?
Love the way you care for yr garden ! Ignore the nasty folks you’ve really helped me in my new garden it’s a good size and I’m 66 so I just do my best Errr I reckon yr “Diggin yrself deeper 😁“ DO NOT feel like you ever have to explain yourself .Your a talented lad and yr parents must be VERY PROUD OF YOU ….I have two words “ Keep Going “ I Love yr knowledge 🥬🥦🍎🫐🥑🌶️🥕🥔🧅🫑🧄
Well said. I agree. I don't rototill my garden but I do lightly disturb the soil at the beginning of the season. When I see how squirrels and other wildlife dig in my garden I tell myself balance is key (micro-organismes do reproduce in 48h after disturdance). My yard was a dry patch of hay when I moved here and now its a green and lush food yard, so I'm doing something right. This year I even barely watered!
Forking has made a huge difference in my heavy clay soil in Kentucky USA! Also watching the immense amount of soil information from the No-Till Farmer TH-cam channel has helped. I have only had this bed for 2 years and was surprised at the ability to work it in the spring after forking in the fall. Thanks for addressing this topic!!
So true, the best way to garden is the one that works best for you and helps you succeed! 👏 I totally agree with the no dig methods and will do my best to not disturb the soil matrix long term in my garden. However I have very rocky soil with huge boulders. Those really need to be removed if I’m going to put in in-ground beds. I’ll do my best to “heal” the soil afterwards but sometimes soil disturbances are unavoidable.
Same here, and I have hard clay overgrown with weeds. So I really had to dig out some areas, but I put back as much original soil as I can and then top up with grass clipping/leaves. So far it seems OK, I turned over a small area and put in some compost / garden plants. I only pull out weeds, careful fork out deep rooted ones. No chemicals or fertilizers. And the area is full of insects so it seems to be recovering OK. And full of slugs, sigh lol.
Thank Huy! As a new master gardener student I know there is so much I still have to learn. It should leave little time to judge others processes. Nuances are so important. Thank you for all you efforts at education for gardening everywhere. Be well!
One thing I found was that crumbling up my soil, taking out weeds, not turning the soil over, resulted in my brand new vegetable bed producing this result - a huge increase in earthworms and the emergence of wild plants from seed long buried in the ground - some edible, some herbal, some colourful. Any in the "wrong" place in the new bed could be transplanted. Seeds cannot last forever in the soil, so - unless we do this weed and crumble sometimes - we could eventually lose many local species previously under grass or concrete etc for decades, and so much biodiversity with them. The process of weeding out deep rooted weeds and removing grass in the beginning meant that seeds from decades ago could finally come up.
Excellent anti-dogmatic garden discussion. It really is all about developing an independence from the corporate food supply system and growing your own food with whatever your means and goals in mind. Not everybody has the space or the time to develop a self-sustaining permaculture food forest and are better off with container gardening where "no dig" is basically impossible.
Huw, thanks for being so honest. Disturbance in gardening on our land is used to reset and and creates healthier living soil. Minimal disturbance can be necessary sometimes and it is only wise to do it if you want to improve the soil and grow your own food.
Well said Huw. It's been on my mind for a few seasons now as well, and I felt the guilt before and after digging. We all try our best to amend our soils, and by now, we should all know how much we need that biology intact. But sometimes, we just need a shovel or a fork to learn from the results we are looking for in our own experiment. Electroculture....... 😅 some are really desperate to be the first to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Pro tip: ride the unicorn... you'll get there faster 🙈
love this comment! Selling these copper whatever is big business. My Dad, decades ago, was being convinced by some mage that a copper spiral buried at the side of the house will improve his sleep and general health. I was a young teenager and smirked at that. I secretly removed the copper and weeks on, asked Dad how he was feeling. Just mighty!!! Belief moves mountains, lol
I've been doing no dig in my raised beds for the last four years. I also have noticed that the soil has become very compacted, to the point that I can't even "dig" in in order to plant seedlings when the soil is dry. So this fall I will definitely be forking before I cover with compost. I watch all these video where someone will just move the soil with their hands and am coming to the conclusion it's for show 😁
Indeed! I purchased some high-quality, expensive compost recommended by folks I trust. Due to my native soil acidity, this pH balanced product made perfect sense for my raised beds. Plant the veggies directly info the compost….well, a bit unusual guidance, but ok. I followed directions. Veggies grew well. Until the soil promptly compacted! So, roots need oxygen as well as water…..sigh. I’ve added some soil-conditioner in the form of “bark fines” which immediately improved the compost. Fork away, my Dear! 👍🏻
I'm mainly no dig, my soil in the no dig beds is far better than the dig ones. My no dig soil is like apple crumble mix, my dig beds are firm and soddy. But my plot holds water and can become extremely muddy in rainy weather so maybe cardboard it's right for me and not others.
I appreciate that you make me want to try new things and make gardening a joy. Lately neighborhood kids stop by for a a few goodies from the garden. A little boy brings his toy dump truck to drive around the plants. Not exactly doctrinaire, but sure us funny for us all.
Dogma is the death of resilience. Thank you for sharing this perspective. Your call-backs to permaculture and nature were helpful. However, your mentions of cake and tapas were NOT! 😂 (I’m sooooo hungry now…) I also appreciate your nod to weighing costs against benefits. Thank you for sharing such valuable content - and being open & honest with us about your journey.
I couldn't agree more with this whole video! I'm seeing more and more dogmatic views of growing and it saddens me that people are starting to flat out alienate people who do things a little differently. I love the "minimal disturbance" outlook and as a fan of no-till, will adopt that when I'm explaining my approach to gardening and growing!
Great conversation Huw! I agree there are far bigger problems in the world and learning to grow our own food feels like a big priority right now. This season I've been playing with tapping into my intuition to feel what's the right thing to do instead of following rigid rules, dos and don'ts and that seems to working wonders for me and I'm learning lots along the way!
The opening shot of your garden is fabulous. It must be the most beautiful vege garden ever. And so abundant. Whatever you do works, which surely is the main thing
Hello Hugh, well done for telling it as it is. What we do here on the homestead is put down a new layer of compost annually and mix it in with a fork with a turning action. This aerates the soil and gets the fresh nutrients well down into root level. Works exceptionally well, ps love when clichés get a good kick into touch with a reality check. Cheers fella.
I’ve noticed this year we have almost no ragweed because I go through each year and pull them before seeds mature. However, we tilled a small section to winter sow some wildflowers and Wow! A lot of ragweed in that exact spot! Good thing it was a small area. As you talk I think of my folks and grandparents and how they communicated about gardening. They had no internet and info was by neighbor and handed down. I think there are more people today that just have way too much time on their hands because life is easier and more population not working. My dad always said, ‘Too much talk’. Enough said 😂
Totally agree with you. Thank you for voicing this and I agree 'minimal disturbance' makes a lot more sense as a term to avoid misunderstanding the principles of general soil care. Fundamentalism is the bane of human existence it seems to me it often comes from either an incomplete understanding of the subject matter and/or the need to appear more virtuous. It's a tedious trend, particularly on social media so good on you for challenging that stuff. It's also fab to see how many more folk are in accord with you. Keep doing what you're doing it's great stuff. 🌼
Thank you for all your wonderful insights. The critics like to preach from their soap box but have grossly unrealistic views of reality. Their toxicity keep us in a cycle of shame and guilt. Thank you for inspiring the joy and love of gardening to so many of us.
As a biologist, I have learned that all ecosystems need different levels of disturbance at different times. For example, landslides, tree falling, fire, hurricanes, tornadoes, and many other. Nature is never static. Constant change is the law. Without it, ecosystems decline. Thanks for sharing this "down to earth" (pun intended) perspective.
I had a new plot this year and did no dig. Laid on a bunch of compost. And the bundweed went crazy. I ended up mulching the perennial weeds. I wish I would have dug that out before doing no dig. Thanks for the video!
Yep, exactly the same for me. A wasted and frustrating year and ground back to bindweed and nettles and grass within the space of a growing season! I actually predicted it but fell into the no dig trap and regretted it.
Well said, I have desperately tried no dig here in west of Ireland. I felt totally guilty for trying to dig out yards and yards of silage plastic and Bala twin on my plot so I left it. More fool me my plants are suffering because I didn’t dig out the offending items to start with now I am stuck in a plastic Bala twine rut. I love Jessie from No Till Growers he seems to have it in perspective. Thanks for being so outspoken.
Thanks for this Huw, you have said what Ive been thinking too and feeling a little concerned about (and some guilt) It's very good to hear your views, especially about the cost of the compost.
Well said, Huw. Personally, I'm an advocate of No Guilt gardening and feel no shame for not following any particular methodology. I'm a lazy gardener and look for the easiest and cheapest way to grow my food. Digging is too much like hard work and covering the ground with compost every year is too expensive. I do whatever feels right for me and my garden.
Make your own compost!
I make as much compost as I can - but its not enough to cover my garden every year so I use it where its needed most.
All my dead stuff and kitchen waste go in my compost bin..fabulous stuff it is too.
@@carolesharp743Sound like me😂
Not exactly 'no guilt gardening'...if I suddenly started applying agro chemicals once a month, planting seeds covered with fungicides, poisoning the squirrels I'd feel as guilty as can be. The no dig method is to say you can get a weed free bed, without having to dig out the tough weeds if you are willing to wait at least the time to smother out the weeds and make a pile of compost. It's a question of how much of a rush you are in. In my situation, drylands, broad forking to aerate the soil isn't desirable because the whirl winds knock over the plants. Plants grown from seeds and a bit of fungi get through compacted clay.
Exciting progress. I finally got the worms in my garden to stop disturbing the soil. I gave them smart phones and now they just sit around scrolling through TH-cam all day.
Now I am preparing slippers for the chickens so they may tread more softly upon the Earth.
😂 fantastic!😂
You are just full of delight
😆🤣🤣
😂😂😂😂😂 too cute.
😅👏
The world is loosing its grip on reality. When this is a concern you realise people have too much time on their hands, and too much venom towards those that are trying. Good on you dude.
There is a subset of people who seem to want to find some kind of spirituality in something they do, gardening being high on that list, because of it's connection to 'Gaia' or whatever spirit they believe in. That's fine till you try to put your boot on my neck an force me to your worldview. I've always been skeptical of total no-dig, there are times when disturbing the soil is productive if not necessary. Bacteria, fungus, etc are resilient, here they die off and hibernate in the cold winter then come right back in the spring. Obviously some tillage or forking at the right time in the right way is not harmful and IMO helpful.
@@dudeusmaximus6793 As a botanist myself with an organic farm in the south of France, I use whatever method feeds me. No chemicals obviously but I use a fork, as much as I do plastic weed suppressant fabric. My main concern is how the weather is changing faster and more extremely. Therefore we need to adapt and put away silly concepts of strict ideology to meet the challenges face on. If we can't do it - then who can?
We need to return to nature.
1:29
The fact that you had to make this comment validates your comment. People have way too much time on their hand and I would never 'feel guilty' for ANYTHING I do on my own land.
“Minimal disturbance to the soil” 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻Dogmatism in anything is unhelpful. Thanks for your voice of reason Huw.💚👍🏻
@rosedoucet2188 - I think the concept of "minimal disturbance" was intended for commercial farms, not home gardeners. What commercial farms do is entirely different from what home gardeners do. Home gardeners should do whatever needs to be done based on their own awareness of soil, type of veggies being sown, climate conditions, etc. and ignore what the Agricultural experts say. Your own backyard will tell you what needs to be done.
Huw, greatly appreciate your insights and willingness to speak up. To me, you summed it up in your comment above...'make growing food as accessible and practical as possible for as many people as possible'. That's what it's all about. If people are growing their own food and paying attention to how the process is working they will arrive at the best possible solution of growing for themselves. Let's all continue to learn and grow so that we can maximize our gardens.
Well said, Huw. Five years ago, my backyard was a bare wasteland of rock-hard, dried out clay where no insects lived, no birds would land, and even weeds refused to grow. A pick ax was a necessary tool to even begin to work this soil that mimicked concrete.
I didn't know where or how to begin until I stumbled upon David the Good and Black Gumbo here in US and learned how to compost in place by digging trenches in my sad plot of earth. So, I buried every kitchen scrap and leftover along with straw, dried leaves, dead mice and birds, brown paper bags, cardboard and egg cartons, watering well. In four to six months I had the darkest, richest soil imaginable. The day I found my first earthworm was joyful!
Now, I generously cover my many raised beds with the excellent compost that I purchase by the truckload every year and lug home countless bags of chicken manure to nourish my little patch of heaven on earth. My garden is full of lovely birds, butterflies, insects and food I can eat. I dig when I need to period. I love my beautiful garden and am proud of all that I have accomplished. I've learned from your videos as well, Huw. Thank you sincerely for all you have taught me.
Good on ya mate!
Fantastic that you took the time to create n develop your garden haven - hats off to you.
Thank you for sharing your experience! My mother has a small frontgarden where the soil bears plants but it is very heavy. I will try your method when I am at my mothers the next time.
Thanks again!
You sound like Ruth Stout. Great job!!
@tmontero8492, David the Good is great as he is willing to try so many different approaches to gardening. Excellent job turning your land into soil!
I love the minimal disturbance and no guilt mentality.
"You cant have potatoes without a little soil disturbance" is my new
"you cant make an omelet without cracking a few eggs"
So true! My garden is highly productive but would be useless without digging. We have heavy clay in my parts, so I'll dig without guilt 😂
@@andrewgoodbody2121
The property I am looking to move to has hard clay barren soil. Figure I'll have to till in a ton of organic matter the first season. Hopefully i can just plant it with some cover crop where ever I don't have perrenials after that.
@@zedmeinhardt3404 I have sticky nasty red clay. You will definitely have to fill in organic matter for a season or two. And keep a thick layer of mulch on it so it won’t turn to a brick during the summer.
Before the pandemic, Gardeners sermed to be a happy and accepting group. I feel a serious increase in the insanity over the last 3 years. I believe that "all things in moderation " is a great life montra.
unfortunately it happened in almost all aspects of life, seems like having too much time on your hands make people go slightly crazy
i think it is all the newer gardeners who are so dogmatic. Give them time to mellow and possibly they will relax a little. On the good side-look at all the people who are new to gardening! Growing things and being protective of growing things is good for all of us. The issue is when folks from one side believe theirs is the 'only' way and try to press their way on others. Seems like there are some folks who are just going to try to force their way from both ends of the spectrum in so many areas of life. Hold on tight to common sense, y'all! Thanks, Huw, for championing common sense gardening!
ALL things in moderation seems like a pretty immoderate policy.
All things in moderation except moderation!
@@troll_kin9456 finding paradoxes is easy, have you ever tried absolutely not believing in an absolute truth?
I totally agree with you!
Anyone who criticizes a gardener who is helping so many people and growing food, isn't someone to worry about.
Sometimes we have to dig or disturb the soil, with respecting to the soil.
When my taters are ready, I'll dig gently. ; )
Thank you Huw. You said it perfectly. As an older woman just starting to garden in soil that's at least as hard as a rock, it can be very defeating to be told not to till it. Sometimes you just have to face reality. I can't get a manicured garden without considerable expense of time, money, and hard labor. So you just have to admit your limitations. Something from the garden is better than nothing Working with nature is always the smartest idea .
In any garden with little to no ‘soil’, you have to make do with what works for you. My ‘soil’ is sand. Not sandy soil, just sand. I used to dig in composted manure, but one year my bad knees would not let me dig, so I threw the manure on top and went to town planting in it. Best garden ever, and the effects are lasting better into the next growing season. In your situation, I would consider growing some comfrey and dandelions and other deep-rooted plants. Comfrey leaves make wonderful, nutritious mulch for other plants, and the deep roots of those types of plants will work their way into your soil, hopefully improving drainage, breaking up your rock a bit, and bringing up nutrients from subsoils that will help other plants grow. Perhaps plant in islands around a fruit tree or two, which will add leaf mulch to the soil year by year, and any birds or wildlife that beat you to the fruit will add their manure…. Oh, and use mulch, too, and if you happen to come across any - mowed grass, bagged leaves, used straw - collect it and bring it to your garden (a tarp can help with this potentially messy project). I was always told not to mulch with hay or mowed road easement grass, due largely to the high numbers of seeds contained in each. I use them in compost piles and it is easy to pull any weeds that sprout. I hope these ideas are helpful, as I gardened on (more than in) clay for a few years. Getting through the hard pan can be tough.
Well said…in my 70’s & no longer Wonder Woman…have to cover the vegetable beds with weed membrane in the Autumn otherwise have no chance
you can actually, you can plant sunflowers to break up the hard soil. Just gotta think a little
It's always the people bringing in compost that say not to till. . . which is beyond silly because they are replacing their soil with material that is the same as tilled soil and spending an insane amount more.
@@aquaticaaficionado2004 It's simply not even close to accurate to claim that, "...compost...is the same as tilled soil." I somewhat agree about rather unsustainable inputs being often overlooked, but many gardeners generate their own compost. Regardless, repeated tilling of the soil renders it lifeless, while compost is chock full of life and nutrients. Yes, it's all churned up when transported and applied, but that's not at all the, "...same as tilled soil."
Thank you for bringing what should have been obvious sanity back to gardening.
OMG. I am listening to a real, hands on, hands in the soil, gardener. Total respect. Thank You. Thank You.
Perspective from someone who has been organic gardening 30 yrs.-- I've seen fads come and go. I've recently incorporated some "no-dig" methods after moving to a new property that needed tamed quickly. I never saw the "no dig" part as the main point of the thing. Rather, it was the weed control benefits that this method offers. I'm older now. Weeding is like a full-contact sport these days for me. 😂 The no dig method makes the whole thing so much easier. In all of my gardens, from the first to the current, soil health has been the obvious King. My first garden was heavy unworked clay. Every hole I dug for a new plant was dug oversized and filled with dry leaves and new loamy soil around the new plant. Every Autumn, dry leaves were layed down over the entire bed to break down all winter. Those were then turned over into the soil as I worked the bed. In 2 yrs, the entire bed was beautiful loamy soil. The no dig method is a faster & less labor intensive way to achieve that. If anyone had ever told me I had to adopt a strict no tool policy, I would've laughed and gone on abt my business. 😆
Ditto on pretty much everything you just said! "No Dig" was an easy way in to a garden for me, not a rules-laden finger-pointing fest. People just need more fun in their lives lately.
Same here. I got a good laugh when you said weeding is a full contact sport, I can relate.
Thanks Huw, I am new to no dig, and we have slowly improved our garden that way, but I clearly don’t fully understand it. How do you plant seeds or seedlings without disturbing the soil somewhat? I have had to open the soil in order to place the seedling, is that not correct? I guess I need more information.
Exactly my reason: weed control. But i feel no guilt having to put in a spade to loosen my parsnips.
I have voles in my soil and mice and an occasional mole. They dig
I don't garden but I read somewhere that you can grow annuals with very long tap root, let it wither and chop it and leave it on top for mulch and the roots are going to decompose and aerate the soil. Basically you let the plants do the digging for you.
Well said Huw! I left a no dig social media group because I had a couple of comments removed. I said that digging post holes for a fence taught me about my soil profile and that digging just a little area in your garden might be a useful exercise. I said I actually liked digging sometimes! Just a bit of humour! No discussion, no humour, just dogma… sometimes the case with Permaculture zealots too unfortunately. A lot of these ‘no dig’ fanatics are just bone idle! Joking aside i actually practice no dig in the main and think it has huge benefits in most circumstances. But people… get a grip!
This made me giggle. I know some of those people. I've raised food plants for real subsistence for over 60 years. They think they've discovered the Grail, but this is just their first go round. I got a post banned on a gardening group because I said "fig nuts".... apparently there is some perceived slur about that phrase.... but I was talking about actual fig trees. Of which I have 50. So, clearly, they had no need for my experience there. So Buh bye.
I had to do the "no dig" method because we'd have needed to hire a backhoe to get to actual soil under the rock hard, topsoil-less several inches. But that's how it started, a no-dig garden, and from then on I did as the garden demanded. Not some book, armchair warrior or "expert". By the time I was done, we were finding earthworms everywhere. Before that, absolutely minimal soil life, if any.
@@Paula_T I'm not sure people who are on English speaking forums even fully comprehend English anymore. How weird that someone would find exception to "fig nuts". Heaven forbid we discuss that flowers are plants' sexual organs lol.
No dig isn't permaculture. Animals dig and trees get uprooted by wind.
Tell the moles and foxes they are being "unnatural ".
Yes! I’ve been waiting for someone to make this vid. The question shouldn’t be dig/no dig, it’s about pragmatism vs blind fundamentalism. Big admiration for you Huw, and anyone else who puts their neck on the line. Well done, keep doing what you’re doing. (Love your book btw)
+1, great approach and in some way we were expeting somebody to state that
I love the concept of "minimal disturbance", in fact I think we should approach all of life like that!
Quite! British government take note! Minimal disturbance and control on our lives needed.
Love that idea! If you do it, and I do it, that's already two. It may catch on!
SO WISE. The concept of extreme views becoming ideology can be applied to so much else as well! Here on our homestead, we grow what we eat, and eat what we grow. (obviously aside from sugar, coffee and flour, etc.) We put our pigs in the the garden at the end of the season, over winter, and let me tell you, they dig lol. But they also have exponentially increased our soil nutrition in that area, which 5 years ago, was a bog. Ban Moles made me laugh out loud 😂😂😂❤❤❤
Well said Huw. I had no dig guilt when creating a ‘new no dig ‘raised bed garden this year. I just did not have enough wood,cardboard and compost so one area which is quite heavy clayey I dug out all the couch grass and brambles and planted lots of potatoes. I have a lovely crop too. Common sense and trying to grow as much food as possible must prevail . 👍
This is such an important viewpoint, Huw. I, too, have felt no-dig guilt, but it's completely ridiculous. No dig is an excellent methodology, but minimal disturbance makes so much more sense. Soil will and does heal itself 💚 PS - there's no moles here on the Isle of Man. Guess they got banned 😂
I can help out with that one. St Patrick helped a Gardner out on his way to Ireland. ☘😀
Interesting what you said about 'soil healing itself' because as a new gardener, I worried I had ruined my soil when I dug the whole lot up and seived it before I heard about 'no dig'.
That's why I prefer the US term "no till" as "no dig" implies one must never disturb the soil with an implement more than a rake or hoe, even when harvesting - not going to happen (I have to use a long trowel or rabbiting spade to harvest leeks, carrots, parsnips...).
@@jenkitching43 My home garden has been 'no till' for 7 years now, as I believe in the principle (but not the fanatics...).
The allotment I took over this year was 10-15cm of topsoil over iron ore waste, so I stripped off the weeds, then the topsoil, then moved/removed the quarry waste & trucked in 12 tons of topsoil to give 30cm in the growing areas.
Drastic? You bet but doing that, plus 7-8cm of composted green waste & my own compost over the top of cardboard means I've no need to dig in future.
Oh & the three bulk builders bags of weeds & turf mixed with racing pigeon muck rotted down into weed free infill for the last part of the plot.
I have plenty of moles on my rural property. How they dig up clay soil I have no idea😂
Garden whatever way that works for you. There are always people that are going to criticize things we do. Love your page. I like watching and learning from the different ways people garden. If you are growing your own food…you are doing amazing.
I concur, Minimal soil disturbance seems to be the most logical method, the best of both worlds I suppose.
Well said! You do you Huw! 👏 Had 'no dig shame' for digging to plant potatoes this year. Didn't have buckets or the compost to fill them so dug - it was either that or no potatoes. We gotta do what we gotta do, especially in the present economic climate. 😅
... Now waiting for the 'Huw's philosophy' channel, where you discuss other ideologies & tell it like it is!! 😂❤
This is a welcome and fresh breath of air, Huw. It seems the crazy armchair warriors have fought their way through rock N roll, diets, cars, tools, machines and have reached gardening in the last few years. Minimal disturbance, a motto that can lubricate most problems in life. Someone who grows, plants and tries is by far ahead of the ones criticising from their expensive, earthworks machined forests. My hat tips for you, and all of you who do. Keep growing. Keep eating.
I love your pragmatic and holistic approach to gardening. And I respect and appreciate the fact that you share it online! 🙂❤️
this!
I put tarps down on my former horse paddock which was covered in all kinds of grass and weeds (even tussock grass). 12 months later when I lifted the area the grass and weeds were all dead and the soil beneath was soft and fluffy, and teaming with worms. It was honestly the best start to any garden that I’ve ever had. I built low raised beds above, filling with compost and manure. I am thrilled with how fertile the garden is. This no dig gardening is excellent.
And common sense prevails 😊
Right!! Turning a compost heap with a shovel does not constitute digging
I appreciate you explaining this. In the woods where I live, poplar trees will come up first to start to shade and then the oaks and maples come up. I did let most of acreage go wild. The brambles show up really quick. And there is what we call orchard grass. This land had tobacco for over a hundred years, then they grew soy beans. So, when we moved here we let most of the land rest and let nature and wildlife have a bunch of space.
This actually makes a lot of sense, I had a bare spot in my yard where no grass grew, just tilled it a bit with a rake by hand and never added any seed and watered it and had grass growing like crazy, better than the rest of the yard by the end of the summer
You are actually sowing the deeply buried seeds that would have never germinated in the first place.
Excellent video Huw! I’m such a believer in testing different methods in your own garden, observing what works for you and going with it. That’s part of the joy of gardening - the freedom to experiment and create your own masterpiece. We get so caught up in trying to find the one correct way of doing something and fear of doing it ‘wrong’ that we forget to just go play in the dirt and get curious! I am constantly surprised and delighted by what nature has to teach me, and I think we miss that when we are fixated on ideologies and rule books. Happy gardening everyone! 💚 Alex
Thank you for discussing this - it needed to be clarified. Due to aging and site conditions I practice “no dig” but the term IS vague and negative. Maybe “wholistic gardening” or intuitive gardening is closer to the ideals of looking after all aspects of gardening/food production. Common sense is also a requirement. Thank you!💕🌳
Low Labour Gardening.
I find no dig works well on beds that are well established, it works well on containers, but with new ground it makes sense to dig deeply,remove stones and any roots,use manure or compost near surface,then after a few years of cropping move to no dig,but above all else grow organically.
I liked the No Guilt gardening comment. There are so many different scenarios for our gardens. Due to the nature of my soil, most of my vegetables grow in raised beds. I make as much compost as I can each year and mulch grass and leaves to cover what I can when it starts to get cold. I try to learn from a variety of sources and eachh year's experience. I continue to expand my growing area as I can. Thank you for working to take the shame out of growing our own food.
Ah, you almost suggested what I'm trying for the first time this year. Where you suggested that annuals might be sown directly after soil is disturbed - I did something slightly different.
In a very small trial area, I'm not using annuals (because I'm thinking of water absorption from the soil, extra water loss through leaves of annual plants, competition for light, the potential for moulds and diseases in high density areas, etc).
But last year, I found a lot of very low growing, hardy, perennial succulents growing over a large, old, cracked concrete yard (belonging to a local industry that's lately closed down). These succulents were not just growing in open, full-sun exposure in the middle of the yard, they were also found growing in a surprising amount of shade too.
Believing they might have potential, this Spring, I loaded a couple of carrier bags with pieces from these succulents, brought them home, and pushed them into the soil around some of my new vegetables. (Everyone knows how quickly and eagerly succulents will set down roots).
Vegetables have quite a tough time in my garden (the state of my joints and back means there's only so much I can do), but those (broad beans, peas and a courgette) underplanted with succulents weren't any worse off in this trial border than they were in other vegetable borders.
Plus!
The succulents not only produced a few flowers to attract bees, they also better protected the ground against the drying hot sunshine during our drought period. In fact, I barely needed to water this piece of ground at all once the vegetables were established.
When I needed to pull anything up; yes, I broke up the succulent in that vicinity. However, instead of mourning over an annual lifted in its prime or trying to save it by frequent watering, all I had to do was push the broken pieces of succulent stem back into the soil again, and they did the rest. A few days later, and no one would notice the ground had been disturbed.
I've now started transferring pieces of hardy succulent to a new border which I've just planted up with 50 nicely-rooted Blackcurrant cuttings.
And that's the other thing about these succulents - even if I'd bought them in the first place, I will never have to buy another. They are ridiculously easy to propagate. Even the Blackbirds propagate them when they are snuffling about for grubs.
I know I will have to dig some over as I forage about for potatoes a little later, but enough pieces will break off and can regrow on their own. What gets dug in and rots down will add a little something to the soil at the same time.
One of these succulents is English Stonecrop (Sedum anglicum), the other seems to be called Jenny's Stonecrop (Sedum reflexum).
As for no-dig.
Well, I don't think it's possible to not dig, unless you don't plant at all.
Besides, animals dig. Voles, moles, mice and their predators are always digging about in my garden. Foxes and badgers just beyond my fence-line. They must have undertaken more digging work in a year than I have in the last 5.
Animals being introduced into this country - Bison - have a natural instinct to scrape up the ground (as well as smash down trees), while Wild Boar churn their way through the soil in their pursuit of tubers.
How can one man with a spade, digging up his own potatoes and carrots for his own family's needs, be in any way worse than a collection of animals occupying the same amount of space as his allotment/garden? Especially if he is being careful not to dig up the roots of other annuals that are cut off at ground level, their roots left to rot in the ground.
I think some of this no-dig business is carrying an idea just a bit too far. We're still doing far less harm than conventional food-raising, with its tractors pouring out exhaust fumes, encouraging problems with monoculture environments, spraying unpleasant chemicals all over the place and then all the transport and packaging nonsense afterwards.
I am a farmer, and past market gardener, and totally agree with most of your observations (obviously more tolerant of using synthetic inputs). We were attempting to farm no-till ( direct seeding) for 2-3 decades, & find problems developing that are easily solved by a well timed tillage pass. I will never go back to trying to plow before each crop, but an occasional tillage pass to achieve a purpose can be a good thing!
Oh my goodness Huw! I’m amazed at your knowledge of gardening! How could anyone ever, ever criticize you especially about soil and any type of digging?! You keep on sharing your expert gardening knowledge with us and sharing all you know to help us become more food self sufficient. I really appreciate you!!!
Thank you that's such a lovely comment to leave!!!:)
Excellent balanced viewpoint. In all areas of life, people have a tendency to take one extreme or another & not analyze what is needed to maximize benefits, in this case, to the land & the gardener together.
The proof is in the pudding! Your garden is beautiful, vibrant, healthy, productive. You are obviously doing many things right! The last video you posted that I watched talked about having a little bit more relaxed viewpoint on putting extra produce that you just can’t eat or donate into the compost and feeling OK about that. Thank you! And a big thank you for this post as well. Why do we put ourselves under so much pressure resulting in guilt? Thanks so much for all you do and the inspiration you are.
Well said! 👍
Thank you for discussing the "guilt" issue. I was struggling with adding organic soil to my terribly sandy mounded beds. But like you said, by adding compost I was creating a self repairing environment. Two days ago I removed about 6", gently forked the subsoil, and put back a blend of existing soil, the beautiful new stuff, and compost, then sowed a cover crop of crimson clover. Any doubts about my decision are now gone thanks to you.
Are you still wearing a mask?
@@jay-by1se Sorry but I'm confused by your question, can you clarify?
A timely video for me. Yesterday, while pulling carrots from one of the older beds, it was clear that the soil had become compacted and nearly impossible to pull the carrots. I have to use a garden fork to loosen the soil enough to pull some of the larger carrots. After the bed was cleared I added 3" of compost, and then used the garden fork to work it into the soil to help loosen it and get some air into it before planting the fall brassica plants. My beds are mostly no-dig, but sometimes they need just a little help. 😀
I can tell this is something that’s been on your mind for a while Huw, and that you’ve given it a great deal of thought - but you also have the lived experience of growing your own food to back it up, so for me, it’s a balanced viewpoint. I completely agree with everything you’ve said.
Thanks for your pragmatism. It's always best to look to the natural world for guidance.
I’m glad you’re not taking these arguments to heart. You’ve chosen to share your story with us for so many years now, people are always going to find the negative.
Your gardens are lush and thriving. No one can tell you how to run it but you.
Keep up that great spirit and thanks again for sharing! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Thank you again Huw, always appreciate your opinions and knowledge. I helped my daughter and her son create a vege garden this year, we had no option but to do some digging to create beds. We decided most important was to get it going, which we did and already she harvests all her greens and herbs. We are now planning for her summer garden. As a gardener for many years, I was so happy to see her take it up, its now a 'thing' we discuss and share, worth so much! In a world gone a bit mad, this is something we can do that saves money, environment, and sanity,-putting your hands in the soil is literally grounding.
I feel like this could easily be a chapter or a small book on its own. Like you quickly go over so much, from natural life cycles and how one could theoretically take advantage of them to problems with our mass mono-culture-culture to a philosophical comment on extremes creating/being products of ideology and how that can be limiting. Idk lots of stuff. I found it all helpful and very thoughtful as usual. I'm pretty new, on year two. First year with raised beds and learning a lot. Also yes! Cancel the moles but only the ugly, weird ones (looking at you star nosed moles)
Gardening is about learning, paying attention, being aware, awake. Not judging, natural doesn't judge or be mean. It's always great to see what you are doing. We are all doing different things and need to respect others ways
SO glad you posted this. This reality check is so needed.
Thank you so much!
Such wisdom in one so young reassures me. It seems obvious to me (much older) that we should take all information and add a good dose of commonsense and experience and then adapt and make our own. Well done for being so real. Those who want to bring down others have much maturing to do. Love your videos!
Thank you so much!
YES! I love the way you explained 'No Dig". And you are not afraid to say why!
I believe if one cant be respectful and kind, then keep you remarks to yourself.
I love to experiment with different ways, if it doesn't work, there is always a solution.
I have watched many videos.
I am still learning, in times we are living just grow something and learn along the way.
Feeding the soil is the most important, if you want a thriving garden.
Its never to late to start.
We had floods and heavy hail and strong winds. The hail was the last straw. Lost 3/4 of my tomtoes, all my beautiful curly Kale. All my cabbage etc.
But I told myself, I am not giving up. So I had start from scratch again.
I have only been gardening in this garden for last twenty months. My husband has been so supportive and doesn't mind getting his hands dirty. Helps me a lot. Built me a green house. So grateful to have had the greenhouse, as protected many of the plants from the flooding and hail.
Really grateful for people like you Huw, that are willing to share your experiences and gardening knowledge with us.
Thank You Huw!
❤💚❤️💚❤️💚❤️🇿🇦🌍👋
Huw, you are a beacon of good-sense realism in a time when many people are a bit deranged by dogmas of unnecessary fear, blame and guilt. I agree with Carol Sharp (see comment below) on the great benefits of "No Guilt" gardening. What a great way to put it. Thank you. Just ignore the blame and guilt mongers. They will go away one day.
When I was really into lifting I had similar problems when dialing in my diet. I had gone vegetarian/vegan for the most part with the rare meat/animal product. It's tough to hear that I'm not a vegan for eating out with X and having meat once in three months. The lables we use are overly simplistic and are used to define us yet in reality we're all coplex and always in flux. Don't let anyone lable you Huw, do what works.
Absolutely right, don't criticise until you have seen their garden.
I use no dig where I can.
But I live in the dry eastern side of England which is very different to Somerset.
Having grown mostly traditionally for years, I tried no dig on one bed in a new veg patch. I’d simply run out of energy and couldn’t be bothered to dig yet another area. I put down 4 or 5 layers of cardboard and spent a small fortune on compost and mulch. Within a few weeks after planting 3 things became obvious 1. This area was drying out sooner than the dug beds, 2. The new plants were not penetrating down into the soil but instead mostly growing on top of the cardboard, 3. All the perennial weeds began coming back through the cardboard and by now I couldn’t dig them out or do anything other than break them off. After the first year the bed was full of perennial weeds, all back to what the ground looked like before I started. In order to do another season I found myself back to square one needing more cardboard and more mulch and compost. I gained nothing at all except a year of near wasted growth and frustration at weeds which in my dug beds I’d more or less dealt with by digging and further maintenance. My ground had a lot of years of waste including plastic waste which I’d now buried under cardboard and compost.
My new philosophy is to stop being lazy - dig, dig well, remove big stones and plastic waste, roots and weeds, add plenty of organic matter and then move to a system of as little disturbance as possible. Dig once rather than no dig.
Old, weedy, compacted and waste ridden ground, which most people have to deal with is not and never was ideal growing soil hence generally and traditionally people would dig.
Exactly how I’ve worked my garden for decades.
Thank you for sharing, looking at my huge plot of land and hearing, no shortcuts. Sounds like a plan that will last, a rare treasure these days.
Thats always what ive understood the definition of no dig to be. You prepare the soil whichever way you see fit, and the no dig is about not working in the compost, but laying it on top? As in 'not digging' in the fresh compost into the soil.
Haven't had that experience at all .
I even added a relatively small amount of compost on cardboard for tomatoes,just this year, and they did great .
I think a lot depends on your added soil and its qualities.
And weeds can come back from added compost, from other areas, but overall, I've been very happy with "no dig".
Don't feel guilty! Your logic and experience are spot on... thanks for sharing. I tried a small patch of 'no dig' and the result was pathetic... besides, digging gives me much needed exercise... something which seems in short supply these days!
I started gardening when I was 12 , am now 70 . The number of fads and fashions that have passed through the gardening world in that period of time might surprise some younger gardeners . Dont let anyone ruin the joy you can get from growing things ,it is a privilege and a treasure . Commonsense and balance in all things is the best way to go .
Don't ever cut out the bloopers..lol I appreciate you Huw 💖 Another video full of helpful info
Thank you Huw, I’ve always struggled with this when looking at my raised beds after winter. The many feet of snow here in Newfoundland Canada causes a lot of compaction and I could never see anything growing if I didn’t disturb the soil a small amount. I strive to be no dig where I can but realize that the best thing for my soil is as you described, minimal disturbance.
I always appreciate your garden life perspective. No one is more kind to the soil, gentle with vegetables! Earth Mother is treated like a queen in your garden.
Well said - love the term minimal disturbance! And annuals do enjoy that bit of disturbance!!
As you say, the end goal for most of us here is growing a variety of good food without chemicals, and building healthy soil. One of a gardener's first jobs is to see what works for their soil, plants and conditions, and to keep experimenting!
I also garden on heavy clay soil, and vary what works!
You are a smart guy, Huw, and you make a great point. I too felt guilty as I harvested my potatoes this year, but I was harvesting potatoes for my family to eat! That was backwards thinking. Thank you for this video. I needed to hear this.
I absolutely love this video. We should not be so dogmatic with what we do as much as we should be observant so that we can always learn what is actually best for us and for the soil and for nature.
Minimal disturbance, high benefit! I love it.
Thanks for your videos. Brings warmth to my day. I know it’s silly but it’s like watching an old friend who happens to love the same things I do. 🌱
Hope you and your team have a lovely season!
Thank you! I'd been advocating for my mother in law to try no dig techniques, and she created a new no dig garden last year. Then she called me in a panic this spring wondering how she could harvest her carrots without disturbing the soil! Oh man. Thank you for being a voice of common sense!
Oh, Bless her. ❤
Thanks for making gardening accessible to the average person. I have been waiting for you to make this video since the No Dig hit its peak in popularity. It is clear that you care more about people producing food than what method is used and this is evident even in your old videos.
I fell into the trap of following gardening ideas in 2020 which were not suitable for my situation. My 77 year old Italian father who has gardened since he could walk ignored me when I talked about no dig. He double digged my lawn when converting it into a vegetable patch and again the following year but he was right we needed to mix the clay into the top soil to bring up the nutrients plus break up the clay so root crops would grow well. It was the cheapest way to start a garden. The second year was my first and best parsnip year! My garden doesn't need that level of disturbance now it is in it's 4th season here in Australia and I have focused on soil health but if I need to fork it, I will. Cheers
Parsnips!! Where are you in Australia? Any hope of growing them in Sydney? And what your father did was exactly what I did. I didn't even have top soil, just clay and rocks so I dug it up, pulled out as many rocks as I could, literally broke up the clods by hand, dug in compost and gypsum, turned it over, let it sit and repeated that process 2-3 times. The soil is now fabulous and I'm doing no-dig as much as possible. Cheers back!
Glad to hear you've improved your soil. The East Coast of 🇦🇺has a great gardening environment. I'm in the Penrith area and not every season is successful. Although it's costly I use blood & bone plus homemade compost which has really helped and I never leave my garden naked so my growth is good considering I'm a built up area where my garden gets about 6 hours of sunlight mostly morning light. Happy Gardening 🌱
No guilt gardening. Yes! I love the minimal disturbance principle of no dig, but lets keep it real here! A breath of fresh air to us mere mortals who arew grappling with doing as well as we can in our gardens. 'How to videos' with the addition of Huw unfiltered. I'm loving this new direction you're taking Huw.
Thank you. I have had the worst growing year ever. As in all that I have managed to grow are tomatoes. Many eaten by slugs ! Cucumbers, a little sweet corn and a few squash. No brassica. Root veg or salads. Not even courgettes that will tell you how bad it has been. I’ve tried doing no dig for years now and realised year on year my produce getting less and less. My soil is so compacted I don’t walk on it I put compost etc on top and leave worms to do the work. I’ve now realised I have to dig to some extent to get the air in and improve the soil with organic matter and so will do minimal disturbance in the hope that I can now grow some produce as in the past
It is about time someone of your standing has vocalised this. I also describe what we do as "pragmatic" and not organic for similar reasons. Our farm is not organic certified but I don't see how adding commercially manufactured organic fertiliser blends as being in anyway superior adding our own home made compost and wood ash to the garden. I am tried of people turning words into a gardening religion and judging others when they themselves do not have a solid understanding of the underlying biology.
The world needs more sensible people like you. I love your channel and have learnt so much from your videos
I believe in finding what is right for my family. What can my old bones handle the easiest and what will keep the cost of growing below the cost of buying. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and for being able to discuss the overall and fine details of your thought so plainly.
Hi there, I agree with you about the strictness of the term "no-dig". In French, the term sometimes used is "non-labour", which is a little smarter about it, "labour" is when you really turn the soil whereas "dig" is has a much wider meaning.
Just for confused English speakers, it's not "labour" in English but in French, so it really translates to "no-ploughing".
No-dig to me means not turning the soil with a spade, certainly no back breaking double dig. That's what it's reacting to.
From there you could take it to less disturbance. But no need to feel guilty about forking up potatoes.
Perhaps, as with many things, English should adopt a posh sounding French phrase?
Love the way you care for yr garden ! Ignore the nasty folks you’ve really helped me in my new garden it’s a good size and I’m 66 so I just do my best Errr I reckon yr “Diggin yrself deeper 😁“ DO NOT feel like you ever have to explain yourself .Your a talented lad and yr parents must be VERY PROUD OF YOU ….I have two words “ Keep Going “ I Love yr knowledge 🥬🥦🍎🫐🥑🌶️🥕🥔🧅🫑🧄
Spot on Huw! No Dig Guilt is definitely a thing haha! Agreed! Gardening is better than no gardening . Danny 🌱
There are so very many things I could say to this. But to keep it simple - Huw - you are right on the mark and so very wise! THANK YOU ! ! !
Well said! Thank you for this. I think it was important to clarify. I too use no dig but an occasional dig is necessary. The bottom line is GROW FOOD!
Well said. I agree. I don't rototill my garden but I do lightly disturb the soil at the beginning of the season. When I see how squirrels and other wildlife dig in my garden I tell myself balance is key (micro-organismes do reproduce in 48h after disturdance). My yard was a dry patch of hay when I moved here and now its a green and lush food yard, so I'm doing something right. This year I even barely watered!
Forking has made a huge difference in my heavy clay soil in Kentucky USA! Also watching the immense amount of soil information from the No-Till Farmer TH-cam channel has helped. I have only had this bed for 2 years and was surprised at the ability to work it in the spring after forking in the fall. Thanks for addressing this topic!!
I also have heavy clay soil and I would get nowhere without an initial forking of this soil to mix in a significant amount of organic matter.
Yes! Perspective is huge!!
So true, the best way to garden is the one that works best for you and helps you succeed! 👏 I totally agree with the no dig methods and will do my best to not disturb the soil matrix long term in my garden. However I have very rocky soil with huge boulders. Those really need to be removed if I’m going to put in in-ground beds. I’ll do my best to “heal” the soil afterwards but sometimes soil disturbances are unavoidable.
Same here, and I have hard clay overgrown with weeds. So I really had to dig out some areas, but I put back as much original soil as I can and then top up with grass clipping/leaves. So far it seems OK, I turned over a small area and put in some compost / garden plants. I only pull out weeds, careful fork out deep rooted ones. No chemicals or fertilizers. And the area is full of insects so it seems to be recovering OK. And full of slugs, sigh lol.
Excellent. Re-shared.
Exceptions prove the rule. Flexibility and attention to context are critical. Thanks for the clarification. I agree with the points you made.
Thank Huy!
As a new master gardener student I know there is so much I still have to learn.
It should leave little time to judge others processes.
Nuances are so important.
Thank you for all you efforts at education for gardening everywhere.
Be well!
Thank you, Huw! Please keep sharing your hard earned knowledge and experience. I respect and appreciate you!
Thank you Katie!
One thing I found was that crumbling up my soil, taking out weeds, not turning the soil over, resulted in my brand new vegetable bed producing this result - a huge increase in earthworms and the emergence of wild plants from seed long buried in the ground - some edible, some herbal, some colourful.
Any in the "wrong" place in the new bed could be transplanted.
Seeds cannot last forever in the soil, so - unless we do this weed and crumble sometimes - we could eventually lose many local species previously under grass or concrete etc for decades, and so much biodiversity with them. The process of weeding out deep rooted weeds and removing grass in the beginning meant that seeds from decades ago could finally come up.
Excellent anti-dogmatic garden discussion. It really is all about developing an independence from the corporate food supply system and growing your own food with whatever your means and goals in mind. Not everybody has the space or the time to develop a self-sustaining permaculture food forest and are better off with container gardening where "no dig" is basically impossible.
Huw, thanks for being so honest. Disturbance in gardening on our land is used to reset and and creates healthier living soil. Minimal disturbance can be necessary sometimes and it is only wise to do it if you want to improve the soil and grow your own food.
Well said Huw. It's been on my mind for a few seasons now as well, and I felt the guilt before and after digging. We all try our best to amend our soils, and by now, we should all know how much we need that biology intact. But sometimes, we just need a shovel or a fork to learn from the results we are looking for in our own experiment.
Electroculture....... 😅 some are really desperate to be the first to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Pro tip: ride the unicorn... you'll get there faster 🙈
love this comment! Selling these copper whatever is big business. My Dad, decades ago, was being convinced by some mage that a copper spiral buried at the side of the house will improve his sleep and general health. I was a young teenager and smirked at that. I secretly removed the copper and weeks on, asked Dad how he was feeling. Just mighty!!! Belief moves mountains, lol
Agreed, a balanced view. Balance is necessary and no dig is an ongoing project. Many phases. Thank you for sharing your experience.
I've been doing no dig in my raised beds for the last four years. I also have noticed that the soil has become very compacted, to the point that I can't even "dig" in in order to plant seedlings when the soil is dry. So this fall I will definitely be forking before I cover with compost. I watch all these video where someone will just move the soil with their hands and am coming to the conclusion it's for show 😁
Indeed! I purchased some high-quality, expensive compost recommended by folks I trust. Due to my native soil acidity, this pH balanced product made perfect sense for my raised beds. Plant the veggies directly info the compost….well, a bit unusual guidance, but ok. I followed directions. Veggies grew well. Until the soil promptly compacted! So, roots need oxygen as well as water…..sigh. I’ve added some soil-conditioner in the form of “bark fines” which immediately improved the compost. Fork away, my Dear! 👍🏻
I'm mainly no dig, my soil in the no dig beds is far better than the dig ones. My no dig soil is like apple crumble mix, my dig beds are firm and soddy. But my plot holds water and can become extremely muddy in rainy weather so maybe cardboard it's right for me and not others.
I appreciate that you make me want to try new things and make gardening a joy. Lately neighborhood kids stop by for a a few goodies from the garden. A little boy brings his toy dump truck to drive around the plants. Not exactly doctrinaire, but sure us funny for us all.
Dogma is the death of resilience. Thank you for sharing this perspective. Your call-backs to permaculture and nature were helpful. However, your mentions of cake and tapas were NOT! 😂 (I’m sooooo hungry now…)
I also appreciate your nod to weighing costs against benefits. Thank you for sharing such valuable content - and being open & honest with us about your journey.
I couldn't agree more with this whole video! I'm seeing more and more dogmatic views of growing and it saddens me that people are starting to flat out alienate people who do things a little differently. I love the "minimal disturbance" outlook and as a fan of no-till, will adopt that when I'm explaining my approach to gardening and growing!
Great conversation Huw! I agree there are far bigger problems in the world and learning to grow our own food feels like a big priority right now. This season I've been playing with tapping into my intuition to feel what's the right thing to do instead of following rigid rules, dos and don'ts and that seems to working wonders for me and I'm learning lots along the way!
The opening shot of your garden is fabulous. It must be the most beautiful vege garden ever. And so abundant. Whatever you do works, which surely is the main thing
Hello Hugh, well done for telling it as it is. What we do here on the homestead is put down a new layer of compost annually and mix it in with a fork with a turning action. This aerates the soil and gets the fresh nutrients well down into root level. Works exceptionally well, ps love when clichés get a good kick into touch with a reality check. Cheers fella.
Wish I could "like" this a hundred times! Thank heaven for your common sense & compassion.
What you're saying makes perfect sense, Huw. Thank you for addressing this issue. Minimal disturbance is a much better term than the current one. 💚
Your video here is really useful, maintains perspective and takes the weight off our shoulders. Very sensible. Very insightful. Thank you Huw.
I’ve noticed this year we have almost no ragweed because I go through each year and pull them before seeds mature. However, we tilled a small section to winter sow some wildflowers and Wow! A lot of ragweed in that exact spot! Good thing it was a small area.
As you talk I think of my folks and grandparents and how they communicated about gardening. They had no internet and info was by neighbor and handed down. I think there are more people today that just have way too much time on their hands because life is easier and more population not working.
My dad always said, ‘Too much talk’. Enough said 😂
Totally agree with you. Thank you for voicing this and I agree 'minimal disturbance' makes a lot more sense as a term to avoid misunderstanding the principles of general soil care. Fundamentalism is the bane of human existence it seems to me it often comes from either an incomplete understanding of the subject matter and/or the need to appear more virtuous. It's a tedious trend, particularly on social media so good on you for challenging that stuff. It's also fab to see how many more folk are in accord with you. Keep doing what you're doing it's great stuff. 🌼
Thank you so much!
Thank you for all your wonderful insights. The critics like to preach from their soap box but have grossly unrealistic views of reality. Their toxicity keep us in a cycle of shame and guilt. Thank you for inspiring the joy and love of gardening to so many of us.
As a biologist, I have learned that all ecosystems need different levels of disturbance at different times. For example, landslides, tree falling, fire, hurricanes, tornadoes, and many other. Nature is never static. Constant change is the law. Without it, ecosystems decline. Thanks for sharing this "down to earth" (pun intended) perspective.
I had a new plot this year and did no dig. Laid on a bunch of compost. And the bundweed went crazy. I ended up mulching the perennial weeds. I wish I would have dug that out before doing no dig. Thanks for the video!
Yep, exactly the same for me. A wasted and frustrating year and ground back to bindweed and nettles and grass within the space of a growing season! I actually predicted it but fell into the no dig trap and regretted it.
Well said, I have desperately tried no dig here in west of Ireland. I felt totally guilty for trying to dig out yards and yards of silage plastic and Bala twin on my plot so I left it. More fool me my plants are suffering because I didn’t dig out the offending items to start with now I am stuck in a plastic Bala twine rut. I love Jessie from No Till Growers he seems to have it in perspective. Thanks for being so outspoken.
Thanks for this Huw, you have said what Ive been thinking too and feeling a little concerned about (and some guilt) It's very good to hear your views, especially about the cost of the compost.