here's an article about a guy who doesnt dig his beds:
http://www.latimes.com/features/home...,0,55177.story

yep great stuff lots of it happening, we haven't dug a bed in a decade
see our site it might also be a good read?

On Sun, 15 Jun 2008 14:25:42 -0700 (PDT), eatsoil
wrote:

here's an article about a guy who doesnt dig his beds:
http://www.latimes.com/features/home...,0,55177.story
With peace and brightest of blessings,

len & bev

--
"Be Content With What You Have And
May You Find Serenity and Tranquillity In
A World That You May Not Understand."

http://www.lensgarden.com.au/

On Jun 15, 5:25 pm, eatsoil wrote:
here's an article about a guy who doesnt dig his beds:http://www.latimes.com/features/home...8jun12,0,55177....

They say it's great because it saves not only digging but watering.
But how much water went into growing the hay and alfalfa they layer
down? I bet it breaks even.

Chris

In article
,
Chris wrote:

On Jun 15, 5:25 pm, eatsoil wrote:
here's an article about a guy who doesnt dig his
beds:http://www.latimes.com/features/home...8jun12,0,55177...
.

They say it's great because it saves not only digging but watering.
But how much water went into growing the hay and alfalfa they layer
down? I bet it breaks even.

Chris

Good point. I'm guessing that the oats, wheat, and alfalfa are
self-shading and don't use that much water to grow (compared to
vegetables). Additionally, there are food crop harvested from the hay
(oats & wheat) so water usage there is a twofer (food and mulch).
In any event, traditionally a cover crop requiring water would be
grown to add nitrogen to the soil instead of purchasing inputs of
manure or petro-chemical chemferts.

Lastly, no-till, after the initial prep, is a trade-off vis-a-vis
labor. Instead of the heavy lifting of spading your garden, there
is the process of acquiring the mulch and then (depending on the
specific plants) spreading it for the heat of summer and pulling
it back for the coolness of the spring and fall, and the
re-spreading of it again for the winter in order to feed the web
of life in your garden soil.

The superior benefits to the soil, however, of lasagna gardening (a form
of no-till) are unquestionable.
--

Billy
Bush and Pelosi Behind Bars
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KVTf...ef=patrick.net
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0aEo...eature=related

right. they arent watered, arent fertilized. they are "cover" crops and alfalfa is
a nitrogen fixer and good feed for ruminants. in no till eventually mulch is no
longer needed to rehab the soil. just compost and some well aged manure.
Ingrid


Chris wrote:
They say it's great because it saves not only digging but watering.
But how much water went into growing the hay and alfalfa they layer
down? I bet it breaks even.
On Tue, 17 Jun 2008 10:02:41 -0700, Billy wrote:
Good point. I'm guessing that the oats, wheat, and alfalfa are
self-shading and don't use that much water to grow (compared to
vegetables). Additionally, there are food crop harvested from the hay
(oats & wheat) so water usage there is a twofer (food and mulch).
In any event, traditionally a cover crop requiring water would be
grown to add nitrogen to the soil instead of purchasing inputs of
manure or petro-chemical chemferts.

Lastly, no-till, after the initial prep, is a trade-off vis-a-vis
labor. Instead of the heavy lifting of spading your garden, there
is the process of acquiring the mulch and then (depending on the
specific plants) spreading it for the heat of summer and pulling
it back for the coolness of the spring and fall, and the
re-spreading of it again for the winter in order to feed the web
of life in your garden soil.

The superior benefits to the soil, however, of lasagna gardening (a form
of no-till) are unquestionable.

On Jun 17, 8:21 am, Chris wrote:
On Jun 15, 5:25 pm, eatsoil wrote:

here's an article about a guy who doesnt dig his beds:http://www.latimes.com/features/home...8jun12,0,55177....

They say it's great because it saves not only digging but watering.
But how much water went into growing the hay and alfalfa they layer
down? I bet it breaks even.

Chris

Alfalfa roots can exceed 25 feet down, so it's probably
very water thrifty.