Using some of the cardboard that I brought back from my mom and dad's house this past weekend, I decided to extend the garden all the way out to the fence loosely following the "No Dig" method practiced by Charles Dowding.
So I laid out the cardboard, being sure to overlap it so that the sunlight couldn't reach the grass and weeds. But because I don't feel like I have compost to spare, and also because I only have three potatoes that have "chitted," I didn't put out as much compost as Charles Dowding puts on a new no dig bed. I only spread out a small bit of composted cow manure to put the potatoes in, but I made sure it was about 4" deep in the center of the row.
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| Three little potatoes planted in some composted cow manure somewhat in Charles Dowding's "No Dig" method. |
I next covered the potatoes and all of the cardboard with some of the hay that the cows didn't eat - I have been taking the cart down into the field and scooping up the hay they had pooped in, stomped into the mud and left uneaten. Some of it had already started to rot in the field from all the rain we've had this spring, and Yikes! Some if it also already has grass sprouting in it! I'm really going to have to keep on top of that or I'll just have created a new "grass and weed bed" all along the west end of the garden!
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| A layer of hay over the cardboard. |
Both the hay and cardboard will eventually rot down, and hopefully that will create a nice area to plant in later. This whole project is loosely following the gardening method promoted by Ruth Stout, although I am not aware that she ever put down cardboard under her hay. But without digging out the Bermuda grass that's growing in that area, I don't think I would have much success without the cardboard. Might not anyway. But I think the cardboard at least gives me a fighting chance!
Now this all would have been better done last fall, giving everything a chance to rot some over the winter. But since I didn't think of it until just recently, I probably won't try to grow much in it this year...maybe just the potatoes and something like a few sunflowers. But I hope that by next year, it might make a great place to grow peppers or pumpkins or even tomatoes.
When I called RAF over to have a look, he seemed quite displeased with what I had done. By putting all of this along the west side of the garden, I've cut off one of his only two paths to get into the back yard with his lawnmower! I tried to make it Ok by telling him that he can still get through by the back steps, but secretly, my plan is that he won't have much to mow back there anyway!
I've already used up all of the cardboard that I brought home this weekend, and in just doing a rough estimate this afternoon, I think I need about 32 more of the old feed boxes just to cover the rest of that area between the fence and the garden! And that's not counting the walking rows in the existing garden...I want to cover all of the walking rows with cardboard (and eventually wood chips) too. I'm going to need a lot more cardboard.