Tag: organic gardening

Companion planting

This spring, I’m chaos companion planting in a new raised bed. I planted peas, sweet peas, and wildflower seeds in a bed that was ready, hügelkultur-style, with small branches, unfinished compost, and…no watering system except a small watering can and …no protection from rabbits and squirrels. Yes, the area is fenced, but the ground is somewhat uneven and there are gaps…like, under the gate. Even the squirrels don’t need to climb, they scamper easily right under the gate.

Now I am able to keep the soil surface watered, but still I occasionally see signs of digging. Today I go scavenging around and in sheds to see if I can find some way of protecting the bed. A small piece of chicken wire would do the trick, laid on top of the bed. A larger piece, I could make a semblance of a fence…

I’m gardening on no budget and with all the strength a 75-year old woman can muster…

So even if only a few plants survive I will count it as a success.

I’ve already done a “second planting”…mixing all the veggie and flower seeds left over from years of seed purchasing and scattering them over the surface. More chaos!

What if nothing much grows? Well, the volunteer potato plant will thrive…and the four pea plants seem to be surviving! …so that’s something! I will cover the bare spots with grass clippings. In the fall I will add more compost, maybe some bagged soil, purchase a NW wildflower seed mix and scatter that…

I’ll just keep making the soil better and trying again.

Meanwhile, I’ve written another book about a more deliberate, scientific method of companion planting and am offering it as a free ebook through this Sunday, May 11th. Help yourself to a free copy!

Hügelkultur in nature

I like to think of this as hügelkultur but if I’m wrong, well, it won’t be the first time. I will never claim perfection, since I lean into chaos. Then again, maybe that is perfection? After all, nature leans into entropy, the definition of which is the natural tendency of things to lose order…a loose definition, not the scientific one…

And my mind wanders back to nature’s way of regenerating, even when we humans have tried our best to kill something. This is where hügelkultur and regenerative gardening melt into each other. Let’s start with cutting down a tree. In my own yard, this art of killing living things perfected by humans since they were created/evolved has not stopped the tree stump from nurturing new life. Perhaps a bird ate some berries and then stood on this stump while defecating, depositing some undigested seeds along with its poop.

Elsewhere, a tree fell in the forest – or maybe was cut – and this happened, eventually…

This picture, also in my yard, shows the ultimate regeneration: a fir tree growing on a very old tree trunk. It’s hard to see, because the fallen tree has almost become soil over many years, but this is a fir tree, a fruit bush, ferns, and other plants growing out of what was once a fir tree.

What I marked is actually the decayed tree trunk that now is a low mound of what I call almost-soil.

My yard looks messy; weedy; “lumpy” because it was never “landscaped” after being logged back in the 90’s and before, leading up to this house being built, and then added on to about 5 years ago. Heavy machinery takes a wicked toll on the earth.

So we mow less and less each year. It’s a compromise between my husband and I. He likes a mowed lawn, I would rather toss out native seeds each fall and see what grows. The compromise is that he mows less and less each year, making sure the street view is mowed so that the HOA stays happy. He leaves plants around the singular trees in the yard. And he has fenced 3 areas that were meant to be gardens but now two are left to nature (keeping the deer out so a few things we planted can grow tall enough to not be impacted so heavily by the deer.)

I planted some herbs and flowers in the third area, which is the only area that gets at least 6 hours of sun a day, and that is where I have one raised bed and a few apple and filbert trees. The raised bed is still accessible to squirrels so I’m not expecting much to grow there. Fingers crossed. So far, one potato plant volunteer from the “compost” I added and a few peas are surviving. Since I can now water it sufficiently with ease (a sprinkler), I’m hoping something will grow.

There’s always another season, another chance. Meanwhile, I’m basking in sporadically warm sunshine and the intensity of spring green. Green blessings to you all.

This year’s gardening mashup

I’m all over the place this spring, but my madness makes sense to me.

I’m a mashup of chaos, raised bed, hügelkulture, and regenerative gardening. I started my raised bed with a base of small branches and unfinished compost, then topped it off with planting soil. I put all the seed I had (leftovers from past growing seasons) in a small bowl, mixed it up, and scattered it across the bed. Before I turned on my rainforest mist sprinkler, I walked over the bed so as to compress the seeds into the soil a bit. Then I added water.

Regenerative agriculture is my current fascination. The idea is to never leave the soil uncovered, never tilling, and never using fertilizers or chemical pesticides, herbicides, etc. I think you get the picture – organic no-till gardening.

But I highly recommend two documentaries: “Kiss the Ground” on Netflix and “Common Ground” on Prime. I watched the first many months ago, but just recently watched Common Ground. What most impressed me was the story of turning a part of the Chihuahuan Desert (which stretches from northern Mexico into Arizona and New Mexico) into a verdant grassland simply with carefully managed cattle herding.

This just blows my mind. You have to see it to believe it. I guess I’ve been prejudiced against cows, but grassfed and with enough pasture to rotate them out frequently, they are an incredible asset. And I can attest to the amazing flavor of grassfed beef.

The cows are mimicking the role of the buffalo before the colonizers all but wiped them out.

If enough of my seeds germinate despite the omnipresent squirrels, I’ll post some pictures in coming weeks.

Wake up your soil! Gentle techniques to prepare raised beds (because earthworms hate mornings too!)

Spring is creeping around the corner, and if you’re finally raising your head from your winter slumber, maybe you’re aching to see green again! Whether you’re a seasoned green thumb or a newbie ready to turn that patch of soil into a paradise of produce, prepping your raised beds early gives your plants a head start. Let’s dive into the steps to wake up your garden, once it’s dry enough that you won’t destroy the soil structure. Be gentle, because earthworms are not morning people, and like to hide in the dark.

Step 1: Assess the Condition of Your Raised Beds

Winter can be rough on raised beds, so start by giving yours a once-over. Check for:

  • Rotting or damaged wood (if you have wooden beds) or shifting structures.
  • Soil erosion—has the soil settled too much?
  • Weeds or leftover plant debris from last season.
  • Pests or fungal issues lurking beneath the surface.

If anything looks amiss, now’s the time to repair, reinforce, or replace as needed.

Step 2: Wake Up the Soil

Winter can leave your soil compacted and nutrient-depleted. Here’s how to refresh it:

  • Loosen the soil with a garden fork, but don’t overwork it—you want to maintain that rich structure.
  • Add compost—about an inch or two—to replenish nutrients.
  • Incorporate organic matter like aged manure or leaf mold for improved texture and fertility.
  • Check soil pH and nutrients with a simple test kit; adjust accordingly with amendments like lime (for acidic soil) or sulfur (for alkaline soil).
  • My preferred method of adding to compacted soil in a raised bed is to create a grid of small trenches by pulling aside a few inches of soil, adding compost or leaf mold into the trenches, then covering with the soil you moved. This creates ridges. I plant between them, then change the placement of the ridges each year.

Step 3: Boost the Microbial Life

Healthy soil is teeming with beneficial microbes that help plants thrive. Encourage these tiny helpers by:

  • Sprinkling worm castings or water with compost tea.
  • Mulching with straw or shredded leaves to retain moisture and warmth.
  • Avoiding synthetic fertilizers that can disrupt the natural balance of soil life.

Step 4: Plan & Organize Your Planting Layout

Raised beds offer prime real estate, so be strategic about what goes where:

  • Rotate crops to prevent soil depletion and reduce disease risks.
  • Companion plant to maximize space and deter pests naturally.
  • Consider early season crops like peas, spinach, radishes, and carrots, which can handle cool temperatures.

Step 5: Set Up Any Needed Structures

Spring weather can be unpredictable. Get ahead of the game by:

  • Installing hoop houses or row covers for frost protection.
  • Adding trellises for climbing plants like peas and beans.
  • Setting up drip irrigation or soaker hoses for consistent watering as the weather warms up.

Final Step: Mulch & Water

If you haven’t mulched already, do it now, and then water lightly daily. You want to keep the bed moist but not soggy.

Get Ready to Grow!

With your raised beds refreshed and ready, you’re set for an abundant gardening season. Whether you’re growing fresh greens, root veggies, or flowers, your early prep work will pay off in healthier plants and bigger harvests. Happy gardening!