A video exploring why I no longer mulch my garden beds over winter, and what I am doing instead. I hope it provokes some food for thought! Pre-order your copy of The Permaculture Garden: https://geni.us/ThePermacultureGarden
#compost #permaculture #nodig
50 Comments
Interesting video!
I mulch my beds in winter out of needing to empty the compost bin to start a new pile. It does make a lot of sense to spread in March though. It seems like the protected compost would have more microbes in it compared to the compost being exposed to the elements.
Interesting. I think the idea of putting it down in autumn is so the worms etc have time to break it down before you plant your veg, therefore making sure the nutrients are ready to be absorbed. But with the rainy winters we now have I also have been wondering how much of the good stuff is being washed away… I think putting it on in spring is a good compromise. Still might be good to put down in autumn in herbaceous borders though, to protect the crowns of your perennial plants over winter though – I’m about to do a layer of nutritious compost topped with a layer of wood chips to protect from the weather.
Very interesting Huw, I have the same thoughts as you about heavy rain washing off nutrients from compost. Dowding on the other hand in his videos and workshops dismisses any such thoughts, citing his vegetable beds' output as proof. I have 1 tonne of compost that I'm planning to spread on my beds now that the garden is not too busy and I'm based in Ireland, so I know how much rainfall to expect!….
I've taken a similar approach too. Given I'm not going on them for months I'm chucking leaves, veg scraps, chop and drop, bit of ash from fire straight on the bed and leave it (or leaf it LOL). Will need to stop probably in December to give enough time to break down.
My gardens are all homemade compost, a bit of homemade char, mixed with the native soil. My plants want for nothing. I learned from You, C.Dowding, others, and using the resources available to me.
Food for thought Huw. I tend to think that as with everything in gardening there is no necessarily right or wrong way to approach this. I can understand that if you have only a small compost system you might want to treat what is a precious resource to an application before planting time in March to stop loosing some of the goodness to rain and leaching, but if you have tonnes of the stuff and its in various stages of being finished I can see how you might want the winter to help it break down further by applying it then. Same again for manure – you would probably want a good winter to help break it down and work into the soil better – otherwise it would be too hot to use straight away in Spring. Also from a practical position you've got to think about getting the stuff moved on rather than just storing it indefinitely. FWIW this year I'm applying a 15cm depth of manure from a trusted source across most of the plot to mulch and kill the weeds to get a new start next year after having tried in many years to just use compost. We just couldn't keep the compost producing enough to apply across the whole plot in previous years and it badly needs some bulk adding to it. At least that's the plan! Cheers, Andy
I'm intrigued how you ground that biochar up so fine? Will you do a process video of some sort? Thanks
In the Ariege, South of France I need to add all the year round due to the caves and cracks in the mountain sucking all the water out of the soil. Basically I use free junk and my rabbit manure
For a couple of seasons I've been doing a load of chop and drop (covered with cardboard) on raised beds for annuals, and loads of free scavenged ramial woodchip on perrenial areas. Been working pretty good!
I also don't believe that you have to put compost down every year. The purpose of composting by chop and drop or by adding aged compost is by improving the soil beneath. If we are doing that over and over, then eventually we should be able to draw back from putting it every year. At some point, the soil beneath should be nutrient packed enough to sustain and make plants thrive without relying on compost. In my case, I only added compost 1 time over a 3 year period when I felt the soil looked good enough.
I throw down a mulch of wood chips and when it comes to planting/sowing I dig a hole into which I put compost, into which I sow or plant.
I really want a decent compost pile for next year! I threw all my fruit and veg scraps in the compost bin but it only made a small amount that i havent used yet but i intend to use pallets and get a proper one started using grass, cardboard etc. Have no clue where im going to find all the things to go into it though 😂
Great insight. Thanks. I'm experimenting with a green manure, red clover this time as I'm in establishment phase. Great for developing structure and concentrating nitrogen.
A couple thoughts: Compost is NUTRITION, not mulch. And it's only nutrition after it has broken down. So to me, the 'correct' answer is…if your compost has finished breaking down completely, then mix it into your soil in the spring/summer when the plants need to eat. Otherwise, all that nutrition might wash away over the winter. If it still has some breaking-down to do, mix it into the soil in the fall so it can finish over winter. Either way, though, mulch should go OVER the compost so that the moisture & shade from the mulch keeps the environment safe for all the microbes in the compost. When compost is used as the top layer, all those beneficial microbes built up in the living compost that now happen to be on the surface, die when the top layer dries out.
I'm a bit confused Huw. At around 1 min 50 sec you talk about "this thin little layer" of compost, but then at 2 min 23 sec you are talking about "sticking 2 or 3 inches of compost on". Which is it? Either way, mulching with compost should be done in autumn to allow time before winter for organisms in the compost to get deeper into the soil, or in spring a few weeks before planting. If you get lots of bad weather over winter then using an organic cover like cardboard, hessian or sheep's wool to protect the soil is always a good idea. These will rot down into the soil but more slowly than compost. Inorganic options like plastic sheet or gravel can also work, but have their disadvantages. Using a cover crop of fast-growing plants to protect bare soil is also nothing new and neither is mulching with grass cuttings, wood-chip or even cardboard over winter. It all comes down to time/cost/convenience calculations that only the individual gardener can make. Love your books and this channel, it is great to see an inspirational gardener constantly evolving.
Every few years I also like to add volcanic rock dust to boost mineral content in the soil. I think this is important for trace elements which naturally deplete over time and won't be replenished by compost alone. I add it in spring to avoid it leaching away in winter rains.
Good morning from a garden in Ontario, Canada. Big wide range of zones here in this province. Climate change is causing weird things here. Its almost the end of November. Usually it would be a big freeze annnd gardening done for the year. But now, its been really warm, like 8 degrees on average with rain, rain, rain. So this fall, Im taking advantage and re-landscaping tiered beds with a layer of leaves, then compost and then a 4 inch layer of partially decomposed wood chips. Why? I'm getting older and want to have a less work garden. The wood chips prevent soil splash onto plants, retain moisture in our blazing hot summers and prevent weed growth. The wood chips take a minimal amount of nitrogen from the first cm of soil, but the compost or alfalfa pellets mitigate that. Have a go at it Huw. . You could mulch pathways with chips from an arborist and eventually bomb the broken down chips into garden beds. I know you have tons of grass, but I don't. My property is only 3/4 of an acre and mostly garden and hedges. Btw, put hinges on that compost bin!
"why I have started mulching my beds with compost in spring"
Not a strong argument
I don't see how compost is "damaged" by being exposed to the elements.
I wish there were well controlled studies in gardening, to answer these questions.
I get compost for all my seedlings from my regular growing beds, sieved nice and fine.
That way from seed to seedling, transplant to harvest, the plant lives in the same soil biology the whole time, no chopping and changing through different bacteria, fungus and microbes.
I wouldn’t change a thing.
I am not going to say one is better than the other, but i would encourage you to do a side by side trial. We can theorise till the cows come home, but testing it is the way you will find the answer.
Can you recommend a poly tunnel? We are a bit exposed, but not very.
I just want to mention that every garden is different, and to truly know what best applies to you is all about context and means trying out different methods to see what brings you the best results. There is no real right or wrong for most things in gardening, I am just sharing this video as food for thought, and to be open and honest about my reasonings based on my own experience of multiple experiments over the past few growing seasons. My goal is to have less dependence on compost, and so the compost I do use I want to make sure is as effective as possible, and let other natural resources protect the soil over the worst months.
I will also make a video soon that explores the fact that some of my beds haven't and will not always get an additional application of compost on an annual basis. This will build on from the things I have covered or alluded to in this video, and I hope you find it very interesting!
Jo Huw, shouldn't be the combination of both be the perfect solution? Putting down compost in Oktober/November an the grass clippings on top? This was worms etc. can work in the kompost and it is protected from the elements…
Compost is made up of partially broken down organic matter, you can’t see the banana peel anymore but its large molecules are there. The nutrients that will eventually feed your plants are locked into the large molecules. Microbes will break down these large molecules over the course of three to five years, releasing the form of nutrients that plants can use. Rain can’t wash away the nutrients over winter because they are locked into those large molecules, waiting to be slowly broken down by microbes.
Compost doesn't really do much to protect the soil unless you chuck all those inches on. In many ways it's only like having deeper bare soil. Grass mulch is an exceptional choice for protecting the biology under the soil and keeping water in. It's also free.
Agree it's probably better to wait until spring. You're right, we don't want the nutrients to wash too deep into the soil too early (or eventually out into water courses – another reason to use less). The grass and leaves should be enough for the worms and adding back over winter.
I'm definitely not as good at keeping my garden as full as yours over winter though
Over the last year I saved a 30 gallon garbage can of chicken manure to apply to my garden bed in the fall and let it rain down into the soil. It smells a bit like ammonia. Should I not use it and just throw it away? Thank you for your help in advance 🙏🏼❤️🙏🏼
From the US here – this topic interests me. From my perspective, I see "Mulch" and "Compost" as being separate things. I don't use compost to mulch soil. Here in the States, I think it's typical to take straw, leaves, and bark mulch to apply as mulch – and separately – use compost as a soil amendment. Two separate things. Apparently, over there in the UK, there is much less of a distinction between the two. Interesting.
At the end of the season Just chop and drop the plants and let it sit for it can disintegrate for the next season… then top the compost at the beginning of the growing season
Hi Huw, great video. I've been watching you for ages, and recently stumbled upon a podcast episode you did with "My Self Reliance", which sent me off down a rabbit hole of exploring ramial woodchip which you'd mentioned. I think I'm appreciating more and more the permaculture way of thinking, which is just to make use of whatever natural resource you have in abundance. For me, I've got some tree prunings, but also in the process of weeding a very large natural pond, so getting plenty of organic matter from that for mulch/compost.
Here in western washington i overwinter greens for family and chickens. I only pick the leaves and let the roots continue all winter to nourish the soil.
Here in Thailand I put compost down a week before putting in my propagated seedlings, I do this all year round and my crops and beds are fantastic, so much soil life 🙂
I learned compost does not just sit there, it feeds the microorganism! So it does not matter when you put it on the soil.
I utilize the rains to rinse the soils of salts… and the compost to return salts as nutrition.
That God guy does the same thing.
Compost is a soil amendment NOT a mulch. Use cut grass and leaves as a cover for your garden beds.
Anyone else yelling “winter rye” at the screen?
Hi, I usually add compost just before planting time as my garden floods every winter and spring and any top dressing just washes away, it works for me.
Activated vs charged /inoculated biochar are 2 different things. Perhaps you meant charged.
I'm here in Alabama USA and I feel you are right. It seems to be a waste to put your compost out before winter. I feel it leaches out and is less affective this way.
Tangentially related thought about conserving compost, though coming from a very inexperienced gardener. Putting a few inches of compost made my soil so unbelievably fertile the first time or two I made a garden that over time I have realized I didn't need that much at all. I think, if you have it to use and don't need it for anything else, it can make everything very big and healthy. But, for instance, I regretted that my flowers were unbelievable enormous monsters even though I liked the way the vegetables turned out. I wasn't going for zinnias over 6 feet high! It was pretty, but yeesh. On a related note I realized I don't ever want to put sunflowers anywhere near my food because they self-seed into the next season and create a gigantic forest that takes a lot of strenuous chopping to remove. TLDR: I'm not gonna use compost on flowers.
I'm in Canada, zone 5a. It gets really cold here (-30C), so I've never been too sure how to use cover crops because they really don't have much time to grow after my vegetable growing season until the ground gets dead frozen. I have been mulching over winter with a mix a grass clippings and dried leaves from the trees on my property. By the time I'm ready to add compost in the spring (I was also concerned about the leaching from the snowmelt, seeing as snow gets to about 1.5m – 2.5m thick, and heavy spring rains aspect so always added compost in spring) the mulch layer is pretty much all gone and the ground is buttery soft and full of worms. I have very fertile ground as a thick top layer (about 30cm or a foot) with a clay underlayer, but I feel like my plants the last two years have not been as lush. This could be from conserving water as i basically only water when the plants are seedlings, first 2-3 weeks or so, and when we get no rain for over 3-5 days (3, for smaller plants, 5 by the end of the season) which really does not happen very often! I would like to know more about the use of bio-char/ash amendment. Have you made a video on this? Thx!
I put crushed leaves or grass on my beds here in Upstate NY to have SOMETHING over it, (snowy zone 6b) and then put the compost down in the spring. The leaves and the grass that I pulled back is the bottom layer for the newly emptied the compost bin for the following year.
I'm discovering here in NE Arizona zone 6b that different mulching has different functions. Compost lays directly on the soil surface and adds nutrients, but without a layer of straw type of mulch, it does not shade or protect from wind. A third type of mulch is using sticks and branches to create a structure that can shade or insulate.
I am also learning that soil life comes in layers, too. There is the rhizosphere underground where root exudates stimulate microbes. The dead microbes and tiny animals create necromass, the carbon-rich dead bodies they leave behind to be taken down by rhizosphere dwellers.
On top of the soil is the detritus sphere, where insects, toads, etc hang out. They need a thick layer of fluffy straw, leaves, chop and drop, etc to eat and hide in.
In the open air, the leaves of the plant are coated with more microbes. Also, their stomata open up to take in the CO2 emitted by the creatures in the detritus sphere.
Plants make exudates out of their tops to attract herbivores (I call nectar, pollen, fruits, and leaves etc that plants create in the open "exudates" because a plant is a Giving Tree above and below! ❤
I always really appreciate your videos as they're not preachy. You offer information as a way of interrogating the logic of a particular method. This way of presenting information helps myself and others reflect on our growing practices in each individual context and offers avenues in to notice things that may or may not be working. I really appreciate your creativity, openness and mindfulness.
My only green space is my allotment plot. I generally leave crops in the ground or use green manures rather than mulching in winter. I add a layer of compost over crops like garlic. Otherwise I only mulch over less hardy perennials (eg dahlias) as a way of offering frost protection, I use free wood chippings or fallen leaves netted down. And then I wait until spring to use compost when planting out annuals – this is partly because it allows me to stagger the amount of compost I need as I get around to planting each section. I make a lot of my own compost but I need to buy at least some each year, and as someone on a low income it's better for my finances to buy smaller amounts of compost each month rather than bulk buy.
Another random thought: Gardeners would do well to keep a few rabbits (whether for pets, fiber, or meat). You can feed them clean greens and get perfect manure that doesn't need to compost before application.
That waz why I used heavy pvc sheeting after putting my compost down ,.
Do know if anyone else does this. In November , I put a thick layer of 3 to 4 inches off home made compost made from grass cuttings and ripped up cardboard and household waste, i don't have a lot of beds. And cover the whole thing with a layer or two of cardboard laid flat and place wooden boards to hold it all down. All I know come april may when I'm taking the cardboard off the amount off worms under the cardboard is 6 r 7 times the amount in beds that didn't get covered and the plants covered bed always seem to give a better harvest. I aways leave one bed exposed just for a experiment
Yes! I’ve seen this in the UK and it pained me to see it. It will be exciting to see the transformation from here 👍👍
My raised beds are filled with just compost and Biochar, and they have always been very productive. Every fall I add a layer of 2" or 3" of new compost to compensate for the drop in the beds as the beds used by the plants, and then mulch them with several inches of wheat straw for the winter months. The straw protects the compost from the winter's wind, rain, and snow, while allowing earthworms to continue working the compost.