tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8503965173390785713.post5702957931638512463..comments2024-01-13T01:12:09.513-08:00Comments on Wood for Food ~ Gardening with the Slow Burn of Rotting Wood: Un-irrigatingAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07381205300806328192noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8503965173390785713.post-4023788195219349982017-09-29T06:23:51.312-07:002017-09-29T06:23:51.312-07:00Great to hear from you, Kristin! Yes, my first abo...Great to hear from you, Kristin! Yes, my first above-ground beds had a lot of pine in them (http://woodforfood.blogspot.com/2014/02/first-hugelkultur-bed-2012.html) and the vertical bed started with a layer of pine (http://woodforfood.blogspot.com/2014/06/going-vertical.html). Both did fine; I see no problem with using pine, especially if the wood has already started to decompose. I think the real issue is the moisture factor in this climate, as you have identified. My above-ground bed had a dripline installed over it, which made a big difference. The other factor is how moist the wood is when you cover the pile with soil; locking in moisture from the beginning is crucial in this dry climate. I agree that even better is to invert the hugel beds and go for the subterranean sponge. It seems to work really well and like you said, collects water instead of shedding it! I think even a shallow pit would help. Don't give up! You can always dig a pit next to your mounds and shove them in: http://woodforfood.blogspot.com/2014/02/hugelkultur-goes-underground.html. :-)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07381205300806328192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8503965173390785713.post-70055919577376733562017-09-28T10:31:50.039-07:002017-09-28T10:31:50.039-07:00Julie, have you experimented with Ponderosa wood,...Julie, have you experimented with Ponderosa wood, yet? We have an abundance of old pine slash at our place, so a couple of years ago we constructed a few raised Ponderosa beds, just to try it out. At the time, all of the discussions we could find about using pine in hugel beds were just theoretical ("It probably won't work..."), so we decided to just give it a go to get a more definitive answer. Unfortunately, we still don't have running water here, so we've never tended or irrigated the beds at all. Consequently-- in our dry environment-- the mounds aren't sustaining much life. (But the ground squirrels flipped them into condos this year, which may be beneficial in the long run. :) ) So our experiment is still on the table, due to lack of proper inputs and effort; and we're still left wondering if aged pine slash is a viable option. At any rate, the mounds look bone dry most of the year, which makes sense since they are shaped to shed water, not catch and sink it. I wouldn't bother making mounded beds again. You've definitely got the right idea for our dry part of the world: invert hugel beds to be subterranean sponge basins. :) Thanks for the update on your experiments!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06730087376067462796noreply@blogger.com