Who would have thought, that at 73, I would be so excited about a garden! I had made up my mind that this would be the end of gardening for me. I had a ten yard truck to deliver my compost. I have completed a 50 ft bed and planted tomatoes and cukes and no weeds! You are an absolute wonder! Thank you Charles!
If I was a seed or a plant, I'd be so honored (and lucky) to be in your hands and care! I know I would thrive :) It's a joy to see others derive joy from Gardening and growing tasty and healthy food!!
I discovered you just by chance a few days ago when I wanted to learn how to grow potatoes and you have me so hooked that all I have wanted to do is watch your videos. I absolutely love each one of them!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge so freely and enjoyably. I am all set to order your books, do some composting and hopefully some wonderful growing of vegetables!
This short series has been such an inspiration. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and passion with us. Your influence on others, in addition to your personal labor of love, is bringing beauty into the world on a scale one could hardly fathom.
I Love your projects and works for learning, but this small garden speaks to me the home gardener with small yard or garden. I really Loved it and followed its progression thru the seasons, thank you!❤️
Hi Charles, Thanks for sharing your years of knowledge. I live in Zone 3 central Canada. We have long cold & freezing winters and very short summers which makes gardening quite challenging. But it's my passion so I make it work. You have a good day sir!
Terra Verde - I live in Zone 7b in Norway. But dreaming with my Zone 9a in the highlands of Portugal (+800m sea level). I taught all this was way bad. Well in fact it is for Portugal... But damn 3!! I would consider migrating with the birds next time they fly South. LOL :-)
No dig works, together with careful planning its an abundance of different food all year round,no matter how big a growing area you have. thanks for the video.
Taste and nutrition value are more important that quantity. Unfortunately in a garden with excess nitrogen, say like a garden where your mulch is pure compost, which is the case here, you lose that. I know a potato organic farmer in France who refuses to use compost like this because it dilutes the taste. Sure you get bigger potatoes, but his clients don't want giant potatoes, they want GOOD potatoes. You're better off using real mulch : wood chips, hay, straw, than compost.
@@nicolasbertin8552 I will also use straw and wood-chips for the mulch and the compost as a food for my vegetables. Will try different methods and see what works best for me. I know that quality > quantity :)
Thank you, Charles! I'm always referencing your name when people ask me for advice! And that "sorry, kale" detail it just show the care you put into your work/life :)
I just love your updates, Charles. When I went looking for no-dig information last year, you were the first person I found on youtube and I am just so glad! I appreciate all of your great information and your lovely gardens. (OH! And my eggplant is now a whopping four inches tall.) .
Hello Charles, Appreciate these presentations about succession plantings throughout the season. They are really usefull to plan and visualize the beds occupation. All the best, Sam
I’m always amazed at your easy methods! I’ve got my dibber ready! I can’t get in my garden yet due to snow. One more month and I’ll start putting compost on my beds! Thank you lovely video!
Love love this video. Such encouragement I am in the process of my no dig garden in zone 7a Northeast Arkansas US. I take you to bed with me every night. 😉😉😉😊😊😊I have your book to read No Dig Organic Home and Garden. I highlighted areas of specific things and have learned so much from you. Thank you and God Bless ..
I found your channel recently and have watched several videos and learned so much. I would appreciate following along with you as you plant, rather than you telling us you planted something 3 weeks ago or last fall, etc. I am a new gardener in zone 8 and have so much to learn. I feel more confident because of the videos you share, and look forward to watching more. I appreciate them very much. Thank you! EDIT: I remembered you mentioned in your video that you have a website- Voila! There is the information I'm looking for!
Thanks Denise and yes my monthly updates cover jobs for the days and weeks ahead, so April 2019 is here www.charlesdowding.co.uk/april-2019-sowing-and-planting-no-dig-advice-and-dealing-with-weeds/
Wow Charles really love your Channel ,it's been a great source of information to us 😊as due to back probs we are changing our beds to No Dig..thanks again for your wonderful way of teaching and all the help you provide 🙋 xxxshaz 🌱🌱🙏👋
Thanks again Charles, this series of videos has given me the confidence to crop rotate, companion plant and inter plant, and increased my yield all year round
Hi Charles I love your videos and envy your location! I live in (northern) Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. We are in a zone 3 with still about 28 inches of snow in our back yard. 2 weeks ago we still had over 4 feet of snow. Finally we hope this spring is turning. Watching you helps get me in the mood and start my few seeds on the way. Over the years I too have seen the difference compost makes in the back yard and seed trays. Till next time happy gardening and good luck in your business. Gerhardt
So relaxing watching your videos here in central Texas. I was gonna pick what I thought was weeds, but I think it’s chives! Nice seeing those in your video.
Your videos have inspired me to grow my own and currently I have a windowsill with some chilli peppers, red and green basil, chives, parsley, mint and coriander and I'm amazed at how easy it has been. I have an electric propogator on the way for more chillies and sweet peppers, and when I move my balcony will have a table with beets, spring onion, lettuces, lambs lettuce and radish. I also have a wildcard - I'm going to try cucamelon up an obelisk from a pot. You never know! Thanks again for all the great advice - I've binged loads of these videos and it's obvious how much work and planning goes into each one. I also have some pollinator favourites on the way - borage, nasturtium and poached egg plants :)
I have been watching your videos for the past couple of months and love the simplicity and logic of your methods. I am relatively new to gardening and am learning a lot from your videos and, in the process, enjoying being in my garden. Your enthusiasm for gardening is definitely infectious! A big thank you from Kashmir.
why didnt I find your sight before last fall. We have a friend that gave us cedar trees, we cut them into boards and I made 4 5' x 10' one side 18" and the back side 30" high 4'x 10' raised beds are about 8 "...I planted herbs in one, though it does take lots of material to fill them (tree limbs , leaves , grass clippings ext) but it's nice tot to have to bend over a lot. I am learning so much from you so I am trying sweet potato no dig on the edge of the bed. This video is a real eye opener. I can grow things really well, I detest reading and love visual so you are the "MAN"!! SE Missouri is beautiful this time of year to get started, Blessings for all you do and the wonderful knowledge that you share, that is your gift to the world!
Many thanks Donna, your beds sound good, although when there are no sides and one can put a foot onto the edge of a bed to reach down, that also means less bending. My back has its moments!
Nice video enjoyed... I tried planting beetroot in clumps for the first time in the fall great success every time I need a few beets I go harvest the biggest from each clump.. I just planted onions in clumps the beginning of spring for the second time the first ones already starting to bulb up..
Great video once again Charles and thank you for making them. Your very good at explaining all the natural techniques in a subtle way, this helps encourage more of the conventional gardeners. :D
Wonderful information, such well crafted videos. It's amazing how peaceful and calming your videos are while at the same time teaching so much. Thanks!
Very interesting. I'm growing Purslane and Chervil for the first time this year, and it's good to see how they should look if I do my job right :) I don't know if you have already received your silver play button for 100,000 subscribers, but apparently there's a place in your TH-cam dashboard to redeem your awards. There are lots of videos on TH-cam showing where to find it.
Wonderful lessons to be learned in this series of the small garden and I'm inspired to have one of my own; interplanting with seedlings, multi seeding (never considered that before). The why's and wherefore's of success and failure. Daughter is not keen on anything onion flavored and I'm not going to try and change that so will just plant a few for myself. Also, I'm not really a salad eater but your winter salads sound so tasty and flavorful I'm willing to give them a shot. What's there to lose, some seeds and time and might even gain a new way of eating greens. The root crops, yum, can't get enough of them and the brassicas likewise. It's late winter early spring and a great time to start.
Your last bed looks similar to my spring bed here in California - Miner's lettuce, Land Cress, Spinach, etc. One thing I would say about the kale though - have you considered cutting it back instead of pulling it out? I find that I get several new heads forming, basically sprouting into 5 or 6 flowering shoots, like purple sprouting broccoli. Cut halfway down the bare stem. If it works, you get a free extra crop. If the plants die, you get the intercrop. Personally, I find in CA that I can grow all kales as perennials, with greens in winter and they go dormant in autumn, when water is short.
I would really love to keep leeks and kale through the winter. However, we're in zone 6 and susceptible to -15 Fahrenheit temperatures in the winter. We are not allowed a greenhouse in our area, but I have two raised beds and a space in between the beds I could put a hot bed. If I do a small hoop cover over the raised beds and the hot bed, do you think it would protect against "hard" freezing temperature underneath? As always, THANK YOU for what you are doing! You have revolutionized the way I garden and I am trying to spread the word in Ohio!
Teresa G I started with almost exactly the set up you’re describing in Saint Louis, 6a. I have had great success and I don’t heat my hoops. You can do two layers of poly if you’re concerned but you should be fine. I’m from WV and I have lived in PA and I would grow the same as I do here in Saint Louis.
1 second ago Hi Charles!! Thanks for everything you do! I will be jumping into my first full size garden this year and I will be using your 'How to create a new Vegetable Garden' book every step of the way. I am wanting to direct-sow as much as possible but I am wondering if there are any veggies you would 100% recommend to be started indoors?? Thank you!!
Thank you for everything You do to share Your gift! We so much appreciate it! If I may ask one question..: Do You recommend keeping the cardboard under the compost in beds after killing the weeds with it, or one have to remove it in order for the roots of veggies to grow deep? Thank You!
Thanks Ioana. No need to worry as the cardboard decomposes within 2-3 months, it's a temporary barrier only. Find more such answers in my no dig FAQ's www.charlesdowding.co.uk/faqs/
Charles, love your video's, I learn a lot from it :). I have a question, you always add more and more compost as a mulch each year, but doens't this mean your beds getting higher and higher each year? Or does or settle down enough so you don 't have to rise your paths for example every other year?
Its amazing how much food you can get from a small space as long as your not growing corn. Considering each plant will produce 3-4 ears it takes a large space for a decent crop. This is why I am skipping corn this year and have planted potatoes, beans and many greens. This should produce a large harvest using a quarter of the space corn is great but not the most efficient use of garden space in my opinion. Trying to maximize the yield lucky for me sweet potatoes thrives in our clay soil so I have them planted about like weeds. Strange how uncertain times readjusts your priorities corn will be a luxury for us I guess besides my neighbors have huge fields of corn I could barter lol
Awesome! Thanks for showing this small garden. I have a couple of questions: How long do you spend on this garden per week? How should I adapt this to a warmer climate (zone 9b)?
Your interplanting Charles is incredible. I’ve put a few pots under my fleeces to not squash the baby plants. Is it more effective sitting on the plant? 🌱
Charles Dowding it rained today and the water is pushing on the leaves with a potential for frost in the morning. We shall see. It’s an experiment to see how it goes. Thanks for getting back to me Charles
Don’t know if you will still see this comment, but just in case… I love the way you are able to change your plans according to what happens along the way. Would you still be able to do this if you only had this small garden, or is this possible because you have so many things growing for your main veggie beds? I have a very small space, including minimal space for sowing, so I won’t be able to have so many backups. I will have to plan every centimetre. (I will hopefully have 1/3 of this space, and no greenhouse, just 2 window ledges and a tall polyethyleen cold frame thing.) Also how much extra do you sow just in case, e.g, should I sow double of everything in case of problems? Many thanks for the inspiration and all the knowledge. And greetings from Holland.
A good question Dominique. Anyone can do it but you need a reserve of plants, which means some may be wasted. I always raise a few more plants than I reckon to need, and sometimes they go on the compost heap, but some of them are really useful and make it very worthwhile to have the reserves.
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thanks so much for responding Charles. It will be my first year, so I will just plant what I'm most excited about, and sow a bit extra, and see how this goes. Seeing your harvests and all these tips already helps. Have a great spring.
i have just been watching this series of videos and hope that this winter/next summer my veg patch will be more productive. I am very inspired. Thank you for sharing this valuable experience with us. I assume your little paths were made with bark chippings are they? And do you have any problems with mice eating your beetroot? Can one protect beetroot from mice without 'harvesting' the mice?
Good luck Caroline and paths started with cardboard then some compost, now. little wood chip not thick. Mice are difficult and my neighbour's cat does a good job.
Great video Charles!! Quick question, have you ever had an infestation of insect pests, such as aphids underneath your crop covers? If so, what did you do about it? Thanks!! From Nova Scotia
Hi Charles. Big fan from Aus here. A question that I would love if u answered? Planting straight into compost, how do you know it won’t burn and yellow the plants? I have access to horse and cow manure. Thanks.
As Steph says, if the manure were fresh (mainly chicken in fact) there can be too much soluble nitrogen, or processes of breakdown preventing food reaching roots. But composted (old) manures are ... compost! The nutrients are mostly not water soluble and become available to roots through the work of soil organisms such as networks of mycorrhizal fungi. I know this contradicts the misleading statements you often see and my gardens are testimony to how successful it is, planting into compost.
Hello Charles, Love your videos! Is there any way it would be possible to make Playlists of all your videos so we could play them non stop? Some of us like to play it non-stop in the background while we work. If we have to stop working and click to the next video it disturbs our work flow too much. If you don't have time to sort them perhaps it could easily be done by year...2018 videos; 2017 videos; 2016 videos. Is that possible? I would greatly appreciate that. I like watching Playlists many times over...I usually have them playing all day long while I work and is a great way to learn things by repetition.
@@CharlesDowding1nodig You were very FAST!!! Thank you so much!....you have made my day so much easier. I will listen ALL day now while I work!!!!!! I am listening now!!!
Charles, this small garden video series is just b-r-i-l-l-i-a-n-t ! I'm going to start referring people here. -- Question: you're using fleece in Spring, would that also be useful in Fall/Winter to keep the winter greens growing in this small garden?
Many thanks and happy you like it. Fleec in spring converts unused light to warmth. In fall there is less light and often warmth already, but still some value for sure, and in winter, winds permitting
Hi Charles, thanks for these videos - awesome - we just managed to get hold of an allotment so will be starting soon! One question I had is around plants for pollinators - You have tulips there, and in your views I've noticed marigolds and others. Do you have any recommendations for which flowering plants to add, and in what combinations? thanks.
Great and just have a look in this Channel,. See my Pest Prevention video for details of avoiding pests mostly. See How to Grow Onions. We show as much as possible.
Hi Charles, have you an opinion on used coffee grounds being put into the compost heap or directly into the soil? I can get a lof of free used grounds in work and know they are generally high in nitrogen
Professor Moriarty into soil,I mixed a thick layer through my soil and I mean thick,the bed is just over 3.5m rectangle I got close to twenty kg of it from a friend and turner it through the soil and the tomatoes 🍅 and the basil and parsley love it,don’t forget different ph levels for different plants 6.5 general rule of thumb but tomatoes love acidic.
Great videos. I wonder, have you compared to grow on stone plus compost mulch vs no dig plus mulch? Sometimes I really wonder how much plants root down to the undug soil. Thanks
Ah no they root down a long way in undug soil. Like last summer 12.3kg from 7 plants could not happen from compost only, no feeds given. If stones below, plants root around them. I have Broccoli plants 1.6m high and standing in high wind, thanks to deep roots. Etc!
When do you replenish compost? I thought I heard you say you do once a year. But on that little area where you’re sowing, growing, and planting something new as the old is waning, when do you give it new compost?
In early spring it's both for weather protection, especially against wind, and also to keep off the small flea beetles. Otherwise they do eat the small leaves very quickly, and there's always a few under the cover but not too many
“Sorry, Kale” 😂😂😂😂 I love this person
Who would have thought, that at 73, I would be so excited about a garden! I had made up my mind that this would be the end of gardening for me. I had a ten yard truck to deliver my compost. I have completed a 50 ft bed and planted tomatoes and cukes and no weeds! You are an absolute wonder! Thank you Charles!
Ah this warms my heart and thanks for sharing your adventure Cathy
If I was a seed or a plant, I'd be so honored (and lucky) to be in your hands and care! I know I would thrive :) It's a joy to see others derive joy from Gardening and growing tasty and healthy food!!
Lovely to hear, thankyou and glad you like that
You are to gardening what the late great Bob Ross is to painting. Thank you for the content
Thanks Jacky I am honoured by that comparison
@@CharlesDowding1nodigmay happy little clouds always dot your sky.
This is so beautifully accurate!
I discovered you just by chance a few days ago when I wanted to learn how to grow potatoes and you have me so hooked that all I have wanted to do is watch your videos. I absolutely love each one of them!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge so freely and enjoyably. I am all set to order your books, do some composting and hopefully some wonderful growing of vegetables!
Nice to hear Kamal and I wish you success, even more that you enjoy growing
Forget conventional methods, I'm with Mr. Dowding! Thanks so much for sharing your methods generously on youtube.
This short series has been such an inspiration. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and passion with us. Your influence on others, in addition to your personal labor of love, is bringing beauty into the world on a scale one could hardly fathom.
Sounds amazing, happy to help 😀
This small garden experiment is excellent. So useful to see the whole process in a single space over several years.
I have been doing your method of no dog two seasons now. Grass to garden. I love it. Thank you
Thanks for your feedback, nice result
I Love your projects and works for learning, but this small garden speaks to me the home gardener with small yard or garden. I really Loved it and followed its progression thru the seasons, thank you!❤️
Nice to hear
Thank you for passing on your knowledge, skill and love of growing.
Hi Charles, Thanks for sharing your years of knowledge. I live in Zone 3 central Canada. We have long cold & freezing winters and very short summers which makes gardening quite challenging. But it's my passion so I make it work. You have a good day sir!
Nice to hear and I don't envy you zone 3!
Terra Verde - I live in Zone 7b in Norway. But dreaming with my Zone 9a in the highlands of Portugal (+800m sea level). I taught all this was way bad. Well in fact it is for Portugal...
But damn 3!! I would consider migrating with the birds next time they fly South. LOL :-)
Great video Charles , as always . I end up watching them twice to catch what i might have missed. What a great gardener you are.Thanks for sharing.
Many thanks Lorraine
I really enjoy watching you explain your gardening, if it ever dries up here, I'll be no dig gardening......forever.
Ah bother I hope the sun appears
I love EVERY video you put out, I always learn so much!
No dig works, together with careful planning its an abundance of different food all year round,no matter how big a growing area you have. thanks for the video.
93 kilos! Woow i can feed my family for 180 days! Good to know because I started a raised bed garden almost the same size.
180 days? 90 kg for a family?
I can happily eat about 1 kg of vegies per day myself!!
Taste and nutrition value are more important that quantity. Unfortunately in a garden with excess nitrogen, say like a garden where your mulch is pure compost, which is the case here, you lose that. I know a potato organic farmer in France who refuses to use compost like this because it dilutes the taste. Sure you get bigger potatoes, but his clients don't want giant potatoes, they want GOOD potatoes. You're better off using real mulch : wood chips, hay, straw, than compost.
@@rubygray7749 We are a family of 2 so 0,5 kg per day for me is enough.
@@nicolasbertin8552 I will also use straw and wood-chips for the mulch and the compost as a food for my vegetables. Will try different methods and see what works best for me. I know that quality > quantity :)
@@nicolasbertin8552
I don't believe Charles has had any complaints re taste from his customers!
Thank you, Charles! I'm always referencing your name when people ask me for advice! And that "sorry, kale" detail it just show the care you put into your work/life :)
Cheers Hugo
Small garden is always my favourite update. Thank you for showing us😁
Generous as ever with your information Charles. I am always inspired by your videos. Thank you.
Inspiring and much useful to us with the small gardens! Thanks and we are waiting for more advises!
Thanks, and read this page for April advice, no dig tips www.charlesdowding.co.uk/april-2019-sowing-and-planting-no-dig-advice-and-dealing-with-weeds/
Thank you for another inspirational offering. I so appreciate your kindness and generosity in sharing your garden wisdom.
I just love your updates, Charles. When I went looking for no-dig information last year, you were the first person I found on youtube and I am just so glad! I appreciate all of your great information and your lovely gardens. (OH! And my eggplant is now a whopping four inches tall.) .
Many thanks, nice to hear and wow!
Hello Charles,
Appreciate these presentations about succession plantings throughout the season.
They are really usefull to plan and visualize the beds occupation.
All the best,
Sam
Cheers Sam
I’m always amazed at your easy methods! I’ve got my dibber ready! I can’t get in my garden yet due to snow. One more month and I’ll start putting compost on my beds! Thank you lovely video!
Sounds like you will be very busy and these time saving methods will help a lot
Charles Dowding indeed I shall be busy incorporating your methods to make the gardening more productive and enjoyable! 🥬
Love love this video. Such encouragement I am in the process of my no dig garden in zone 7a Northeast Arkansas US. I take you to bed with me every night. 😉😉😉😊😊😊I have your book to read No Dig Organic Home and Garden. I highlighted areas of specific things and have learned so much from you. Thank you and God Bless ..
Thanks Jenny, I am happy to hear you are encouraged and like the book too
Seems like you've got an incredible sense of timing
I found your channel recently and have watched several videos and learned so much. I would appreciate following along with you as you plant, rather than you telling us you planted something 3 weeks ago or last fall, etc. I am a new gardener in zone 8 and have so much to learn. I feel more confident because of the videos you share, and look forward to watching more. I appreciate them very much. Thank you! EDIT: I remembered you mentioned in your video that you have a website- Voila! There is the information I'm looking for!
Thanks Denise and yes my monthly updates cover jobs for the days and weeks ahead, so April 2019 is here www.charlesdowding.co.uk/april-2019-sowing-and-planting-no-dig-advice-and-dealing-with-weeds/
Hello again! Spring has arrived and I have missed your videos! Happy to see and hear all your wonderful ways of gardening again!
I am always amazed at how much you can grow in such a small space!
Wow Charles really love your Channel ,it's been a great source of information to us 😊as due to back probs we are changing our beds to No Dig..thanks again for your wonderful way of teaching and all the help you provide 🙋 xxxshaz 🌱🌱🙏👋
Nice to hear Shaz
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thank You Charles xxxshaz 🙋
Thanks again Charles, this series of videos has given me the confidence to crop rotate, companion plant
and inter plant, and increased my yield all year round
What a lovely result, thanks for commenting
Hi Charles
I love your videos and envy your location! I live in (northern) Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. We are in a zone 3 with still about 28 inches of snow in our back yard. 2 weeks ago we still had over 4 feet of snow. Finally we hope this spring is turning. Watching you helps get me in the mood and start my few seeds on the way.
Over the years I too have seen the difference compost makes in the back yard and seed trays.
Till next time happy gardening and good luck in your business. Gerhardt
Thanks Gerhardt and I don't envy you the long winter, and appreciate how you need to be speedy in spring. No dig and compost mulch help with that.
I love the videos on the small garden, especially the succession and interplanting as I only have a small plot myself. Thank you, Marty
Started no dig after seeing yourself on tv and then followed your TH-cam, got your books and looking forward to this year ahead allotment 👍
Sounds excellent
Another fantastic video from you Charles just shows what can be achieved in a small space and garden 😀
I am loving your no-dig course! Can't recommend it highly enough!
Ah great Ann, thanks for sharing this
So relaxing watching your videos here in central Texas. I was gonna pick what I thought was weeds, but I think it’s chives! Nice seeing those in your video.
Thanks and phew!
Your videos have inspired me to grow my own and currently I have a windowsill with some chilli peppers, red and green basil, chives, parsley, mint and coriander and I'm amazed at how easy it has been. I have an electric propogator on the way for more chillies and sweet peppers, and when I move my balcony will have a table with beets, spring onion, lettuces, lambs lettuce and radish. I also have a wildcard - I'm going to try cucamelon up an obelisk from a pot. You never know! Thanks again for all the great advice - I've binged loads of these videos and it's obvious how much work and planning goes into each one. I also have some pollinator favourites on the way - borage, nasturtium and poached egg plants :)
Lovely to hear Paul. Cucamelon is v sour flavour just so you know.
@@CharlesDowding1nodig should go great in a gin and tonic, or muddled into a mojito rather than the usual lime.
You’re like the best gardener I’ve ever seen.
I have been watching your videos for the past couple of months and love the simplicity and logic of your methods. I am relatively new to gardening and am learning a lot from your videos and, in the process, enjoying being in my garden. Your enthusiasm for gardening is definitely infectious! A big thank you from Kashmir.
Thankyou Fozia, you are such a long way away yet the internet means we can communicate, happy to hear you are growing keen
why didnt I find your sight before last fall. We have a friend that gave us cedar trees, we cut them into boards and I made 4 5' x 10' one side 18" and the back side 30" high 4'x 10' raised beds are about 8 "...I planted herbs in one, though it does take lots of material to fill them (tree limbs , leaves , grass clippings ext) but it's nice tot to have to bend over a lot.
I am learning so much from you so I am trying sweet potato no dig on the edge of the bed. This video is a real eye opener. I can grow things really well, I detest reading and love visual so you are the "MAN"!! SE Missouri is beautiful this time of year to get started, Blessings for all you do and the wonderful knowledge that you share, that is your gift to the world!
Many thanks Donna, your beds sound good, although when there are no sides and one can put a foot onto the edge of a bed to reach down, that also means less bending.
My back has its moments!
Thanks so much for these videos, Charles! So inspiring and informative.
An impressive amount of food from a very small garden space! Thank you for bringing us along on your journey! Best wishes. Kate in Olympia, WA
Cheers Kate
Nice video enjoyed... I tried planting beetroot in clumps for the first time in the fall great success every time I need a few beets I go harvest the biggest from each clump.. I just planted onions in clumps the beginning of spring for the second time the first ones already starting to bulb up..
Great result Lance, thanks for feedback
Amazing to see how much can be grown in a small space. That’s really useful information. Thank you so much 😊
LOVING your videos!! Thank you! In Australia we are just coming nto winter so getting some good ideas of what to do later on.
Mr Dowding thank you for sharing! Brilliant 👍
Thank you for a very interesting look at your plantings. Must get out there and do some mulching.
I had your book from the library.....but had to return it..someone else wanted it ....so I finally bought my own copy..it arrived today ...yay ! :) x
Glad you like it Daisy!
You are my favourite Charles. this is similar to my allotment size so it gives me a good idea of what I can do
Great video once again Charles and thank you for making them. Your very good at explaining all the natural techniques in a subtle way, this helps encourage more of the conventional gardeners. :D
Ah thanks, and I am loving the changes happening and people getting great results for less effort and time
I have learned so much from you and am very grateful for your wisdom! Watching your channel is a pleasure.
Lovely to hear and thanks
This guy is the best. Many Thanks.
Cheers Josh
Wow nice. I love your garden
Wonderful information, such well crafted videos. It's amazing how peaceful and calming your videos are while at the same time teaching so much. Thanks!
Thanks so much and glad you like them
Thank you, I've learned so much from you, and I love how the no dig method gives me more time with less weeds by doing less work. Just love it
Melissa that is music to my ears, lovely result
Very interesting. I'm growing Purslane and Chervil for the first time this year, and it's good to see how they should look if I do my job right :)
I don't know if you have already received your silver play button for 100,000 subscribers, but apparently there's a place in your TH-cam dashboard to redeem your awards. There are lots of videos on TH-cam showing where to find it.
Nice to hear and I did write to YT following their link about the award, but never received anything.
Shall have another look!
most enjoyable video
I need to watch this whole series. Thank you.
I watched the entire thing and got many good ideas. Thank you for making this valuable series. Have a lovely day.
Inspiring, as ever. Thank you.
Wonderful lessons to be learned in this series of the small garden and I'm inspired to have one of my own; interplanting with seedlings, multi seeding (never considered that before). The why's and wherefore's of success and failure. Daughter is not keen on anything onion flavored and I'm not going to try and change that so will just plant a few for myself. Also, I'm not really a salad eater but your winter salads sound so tasty and flavorful I'm willing to give them a shot. What's there to lose, some seeds and time and might even gain a new way of eating greens. The root crops, yum, can't get enough of them and the brassicas likewise. It's late winter early spring and a great time to start.
Thanks for sharing that Brenda 🥬and yes salads can have amazing flavours
Thank you for the update Charles. You just reminded us to do something we had forgotten 😉. Happy BST
Cheers Vince, you mean put the clock forward!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig yes. But hey the plants don't know any different
Keep inspiring Charles! Kudos from USA zone 6b!
Cheers Brian
Wonderful information !
Your last bed looks similar to my spring bed here in California - Miner's lettuce, Land Cress, Spinach, etc.
One thing I would say about the kale though - have you considered cutting it back instead of pulling it out? I find that I get several new heads forming, basically sprouting into 5 or 6 flowering shoots, like purple sprouting broccoli. Cut halfway down the bare stem. If it works, you get a free extra crop. If the plants die, you get the intercrop.
Personally, I find in CA that I can grow all kales as perennials, with greens in winter and they go dormant in autumn, when water is short.
I shall try that, thanks Riverstun
What a great video mate, I really enjoyed watching.
SurvivalAustria
🙏 Thanks
I would really love to keep leeks and kale through the winter. However, we're in zone 6 and susceptible to -15 Fahrenheit temperatures in the winter. We are not allowed a greenhouse in our area, but I have two raised beds and a space in between the beds I could put a hot bed. If I do a small hoop cover over the raised beds and the hot bed, do you think it would protect against "hard" freezing temperature underneath?
As always, THANK YOU for what you are doing! You have revolutionized the way I garden and I am trying to spread the word in Ohio!
Try it and see!
Teresa G I started with almost exactly the set up you’re describing in Saint Louis, 6a. I have had great success and I don’t heat my hoops. You can do two layers of poly if you’re concerned but you should be fine. I’m from WV and I have lived in PA and I would grow the same as I do here in Saint Louis.
Thank you for great video
Converted another digger gardener to your no dig method today at my allotment 🤗
How nice they will love it!
Loving your videos!
I love it 🥰
"Sorry kale" - beautiful. Do you ever play your wonderful music for your plants?
Nice thought and no, but they have lovely birdsong
1 second ago
Hi Charles!!
Thanks for everything you do! I will be jumping into my first full size garden this year and I will be using your 'How to create a new Vegetable Garden' book every step of the way. I am wanting to direct-sow as much as possible but I am wondering if there are any veggies you would 100% recommend to be started indoors??
Thank you!!
Shelby see my answers to your earlier comment!
Thank you for everything You do to share Your gift! We so much appreciate it! If I may ask one question..: Do You recommend keeping the cardboard under the compost in beds after killing the weeds with it, or one have to remove it in order for the roots of veggies to grow deep? Thank You!
Thanks Ioana.
No need to worry as the cardboard decomposes within 2-3 months, it's a temporary barrier only.
Find more such answers in my no dig FAQ's www.charlesdowding.co.uk/faqs/
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thank You so much!
Charles, love your video's, I learn a lot from it :). I have a question, you always add more and more compost as a mulch each year, but doens't this mean your beds getting higher and higher each year? Or does or settle down enough so you don 't have to rise your paths for example every other year?
Thanks Bart, and you got it - compost is eaten by soil organisms whose excretions are much denser than good ol compost. So just a slight rise!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig thanks Charles :)
Its amazing how much food you can get from a small space as long as your not growing corn. Considering each plant will produce 3-4 ears it takes a large space for a decent crop. This is why I am skipping corn this year and have planted potatoes, beans and many greens. This should produce a large harvest using a quarter of the space corn is great but not the most efficient use of garden space in my opinion. Trying to maximize the yield lucky for me sweet potatoes thrives in our clay soil so I have them planted about like weeds. Strange how uncertain times readjusts your priorities corn will be a luxury for us I guess besides my neighbors have huge fields of corn I could barter lol
Good to consider all this :)
Bravo تحية من الجزائر
I love how you say Tomatoes. I live in the US and we say it differently LOL
So true - and compost, basil, herbs!
Awesome! Thanks for showing this small garden. I have a couple of questions:
How long do you spend on this garden per week?
How should I adapt this to a warmer climate (zone 9b)?
Time is mostly picking, some edge tidying, around two hours per week I estimate.
Just sow and plant earlier, grow more peppers and aubergines!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thanks for your reply!
Time to start planning super-hot chilli varieties!
Your interplanting Charles is incredible. I’ve put a few pots under my fleeces to not squash the baby plants. Is it more effective sitting on the plant? 🌱
Jack the fleece resists wind better when flat and holds warmth + moisture close to plants - but the 30gsm can cause frost damage where touching leaves
Charles Dowding it rained today and the water is pushing on the leaves with a potential for frost in the morning. We shall see. It’s an experiment to see how it goes. Thanks for getting back to me Charles
Don’t know if you will still see this comment, but just in case… I love the way you are able to change your plans according to what happens along the way. Would you still be able to do this if you only had this small garden, or is this possible because you have so many things growing for your main veggie beds?
I have a very small space, including minimal space for sowing, so I won’t be able to have so many backups. I will have to plan every centimetre. (I will hopefully have 1/3 of this space, and no greenhouse, just 2 window ledges and a tall polyethyleen cold frame thing.)
Also how much extra do you sow just in case, e.g, should I sow double of everything in case of problems?
Many thanks for the inspiration and all the knowledge. And greetings from Holland.
A good question Dominique. Anyone can do it but you need a reserve of plants, which means some may be wasted.
I always raise a few more plants than I reckon to need, and sometimes they go on the compost heap, but some of them are really useful and make it very worthwhile to have the reserves.
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thanks so much for responding Charles. It will be my first year, so I will just plant what I'm most excited about, and sow a bit extra, and see how this goes. Seeing your harvests and all these tips already helps. Have a great spring.
Great costume change trick LOL
It’s amazing to see the way you use no-dig way to keep the weeds away Charles..just beautiful...but how do you keep the rodents & the pests away ?
Rodents with mousetraps mostly. See my Pest Prevention video for details
I Love all your videos.. I can set seeds on just about anything but the darn spinach.. it never sprouts, do you have any suggestions?
Is the seed good quality? Best sowing time is August, it germinates in warmth.
i have just been watching this series of videos and hope that this winter/next summer my veg patch will be more productive. I am very inspired. Thank you for sharing this valuable experience with us. I assume your little paths were made with bark chippings are they? And do you have any problems with mice eating your beetroot? Can one protect beetroot from mice without 'harvesting' the mice?
Good luck Caroline and paths started with cardboard then some compost, now. little wood chip not thick.
Mice are difficult and my neighbour's cat does a good job.
Great video Charles!! Quick question, have you ever had an infestation of insect pests, such as aphids underneath your crop covers? If so, what did you do about it? Thanks!! From Nova Scotia
Thanks Heidi and no.
Once I had many aphids on lettuce, but not related to the cover, from lack of moisture, helped then by watering.
Hi Charles. Big fan from Aus here.
A question that I would love if u answered?
Planting straight into compost, how do you know it won’t burn and yellow the plants? I have access to horse and cow manure.
Thanks.
It doesn't harm the plants because it is composted.
As Steph says, if the manure were fresh (mainly chicken in fact) there can be too much soluble nitrogen, or processes of breakdown preventing food reaching roots.
But composted (old) manures are ... compost! The nutrients are mostly not water soluble and become available to roots through the work of soil organisms such as networks of mycorrhizal fungi.
I know this contradicts the misleading statements you often see and my gardens are testimony to how successful it is, planting into compost.
Hello Charles, Love your videos! Is there any way it would be possible to make Playlists of all your videos so we could play them non stop? Some of us like to play it non-stop in the background while we work. If we have to stop working and click to the next video it disturbs our work flow too much. If you don't have time to sort them perhaps it could easily be done by year...2018 videos; 2017 videos; 2016 videos. Is that possible? I would greatly appreciate that. I like watching Playlists many times over...I usually have them playing all day long while I work and is a great way to learn things by repetition.
Hi Robin and I had not thought of that, shall ask a friend to make some, glad you like them.
We do the same
@@CharlesDowding1nodig THAT MAKES ME VERY HAPPY!!!!! I have been telling others about you!!!!!!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig You were very FAST!!! Thank you so much!....you have made my day so much easier. I will listen ALL day now while I work!!!!!! I am listening now!!!
I LOVE the fact that there are so many on one Playlist so it saves me time so I don't have to keep reloading!!!
Thanks.
Charles, this small garden video series is just b-r-i-l-l-i-a-n-t ! I'm going to start referring people here. -- Question: you're using fleece in Spring, would that also be useful in Fall/Winter to keep the winter greens growing in this small garden?
Many thanks and happy you like it. Fleec in spring converts unused light to warmth. In fall there is less light and often warmth already, but still some value for sure, and in winter, winds permitting
Hi Charles, thanks for these videos - awesome - we just managed to get hold of an allotment so will be starting soon! One question I had is around plants for pollinators - You have tulips there, and in your views I've noticed marigolds and others. Do you have any recommendations for which flowering plants to add, and in what combinations? thanks.
Thanks, and plant what you like but not too big such as French marigolds, Californian poppies, link, zinnias, scabious, rudbeckia.
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thanks! looking forward to it. All the best.
Just stumbled onto your channel today (subbed) and as a beginner I never see anyone mention pesticides, why? How do you grow outside and control that?
Great and just have a look in this Channel,. See my Pest Prevention video for details of avoiding pests mostly. See How to Grow Onions. We show as much as possible.
Hi Charles, have you an opinion on used coffee grounds being put into the compost heap or directly into the soil? I can get a lof of free used grounds in work and know they are generally high in nitrogen
Professor Moriarty into soil,I mixed a thick layer through my soil and I mean thick,the bed is just over 3.5m rectangle I got close to twenty kg of it from a friend and turner it through the soil and the tomatoes 🍅 and the basil and parsley love it,don’t forget different ph levels for different plants 6.5 general rule of thumb but tomatoes love acidic.
I find best as compost material, is undecomposed though looks like soil, pH is 6.8
OK so best not to apply directly to the soil around plants, just into the compost heap
1000 feet up , near Inverness, its a hit or miss with the weather here.
Great videos. I wonder, have you compared to grow on stone plus compost mulch vs no dig plus mulch? Sometimes I really wonder how much plants root down to the undug soil. Thanks
Ah no they root down a long way in undug soil. Like last summer 12.3kg from 7 plants could not happen from compost only, no feeds given.
If stones below, plants root around them.
I have Broccoli plants 1.6m high and standing in high wind, thanks to deep roots.
Etc!
great! thanks for your answer.
My hero
When do you replenish compost? I thought I heard you say you do once a year. But on that little area where you’re sowing, growing, and planting something new as the old is waning, when do you give it new compost?
Whenever there is a brief pause so in each small area it's at a different time, once a year. Sometimes even around existing plants
Any winter varies that'll survive the -45 Canadian winters?? 😜
Ah nooo, I don't think so but JM Fortier may have ideas for you
Do you put on the white cover over your radishes for the frost or for?
Thoughts on how to keep critters from eating the baby plants?
In early spring it's both for weather protection, especially against wind, and also to keep off the small flea beetles. Otherwise they do eat the small leaves very quickly, and there's always a few under the cover but not too many