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Ruth Stout's mulching method, Cheating is GOOD

Hi Rob,
 I don't know if I'm using her method exactly, but my experience may be of
some help to you.
 We have free municipal composting for our area. Four years ago I wanted a
perennial garden with some dwarf fruit trees growing amongst the perennials.
I started by dumping 18-24 inches, yes, 18-24 inches, of mostly finished
compost in the bed areas.
 The compost piles (6-9 ft high) were still hot in the center (where I
pulled from), and still smelled fairly strong of 'mulch'. Reaked is a good
word for it. The compost was all dark brown with a crumbly texture, some
just beginning to get the white threads.
 I filled all the bed areas as high as I thought was necessary. I was afraid
the mulch was still too hot to use straight, even though it cooled to air
temp(mostly), within 3 days. I dug small areas for planting the trees and
filled these with bagged topsoil. Then added a small amount of the compost
in with it.
 Most of the perennials went in straight from the pots, and did fine. The
trees were too expensive to 'practice' with though.

 There were only 8 trees (bare root), and after nearly 5+ yards of free
mulch, I figured I could spring for the 16 bags of topsoil. Especially since
it was Hyponex, *and* they were having a rebate offer, $1.19 a bag with a
$0.80 rebate! Hard to believe I'll ever get that lucky gardening again. <VBG>

 The compost dissintegrated (normal) over the course of the next 2 years.
The beds are now, maybe, six inches high. It's the best dirt you could
imagine. I don't bother sweating anything in regards to my plants health.
The nectarine tree produced 12 fullsize nectarines (2nd year). The apple
trees I'm still working on, needed to thin them this year but didn't get to
it. Been eating green apples all summer, but nothing real to show for a fall
harvest. I grow this stuff for the plants more than the produce.
 In comparing plants in friends gardens, mine are usually as nice or as much
as 50-60% larger and healthier in general. I also don't lift a finger to
help the plants. Haven't added *any* fertilizer in 3 years, only small
amounts of water during our mild drought this summer (seldom, then deeply).
 Just a little straight Preen to help keep the weeds down. I don't use *any*
chemicals, manmade or organic, except for the Preen. That includes not
spraying the apple trees. We have a small amount of cedar rust on one of the
trees, but I pick the leaves off in fall. It takes a while for them to go
dormant around here, last winter the newest growth never left the limb.
 We have mint growing around the base of the peach and nectarine trees (and
spreading fast). Thats supposed to help prevent borers, because they hate
the smell. Can't say for sure, but we don't have any problems *yet*. The
yard is *heavily* diversified, with a lot of small blooming plants that
beneficial insects are supposed to love. Can't say for sure what is working
the best, but it all seems to be working well. Lots of worms, bees,
butterflies and birds.
 Tried WoW and plain cornmeal a few years ago, but the preen is slightly
more effective (in spite of the comments concerning soil with high organic
content, go figure)
 Generally I plant my perennial beds the way y'all plant your veggie
gardens. Stick 'em close and keep 'em healthy.

 I would highly recommend adding as much finished compost as you can get
your hands on. Even if it's mostly unfinished, work with it for a year or
two until it's usable.
 My only real garden chores are moving stuff around until I'm happy with it
(moved most of the apple trees a number of times, to get them in the right
location for the garden. (only moved them in winter, it's not *that* good.
<VBG>), pulling a few weeds, and thinning stuff thats getting too crowded.
 Gardens to hang out in and have a cup of coffee and watch the fish in the
pond are a lot more fun!

 The only down side to any of this is now I'm a real cheap bast--- when it
comes to parting with my dirt. I need to divide perennials all the time for
friends, but I make them nearly bareroot. It looks real tacky, but it took
at least a year or two to turn my dirt into black gold, and I don't really
have the opportunity to do largescale sheet composting anymore.

Hope this helps,
Matt Trahan <matttrahan@ecsu.campus.mci.net>
USDA zone 8, Sunset zone 31, AHS heat zone 7, northeastern N.C.

http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/7478/

It all needs doing... and I'm kinda focused in a scattered sort of way.


------------------------------

Date:    Fri, 17 Oct 1997 06:54:22 EDT
From:    Rob Loach <robloach@JUNO.COM>
Subject: Ruth Stout's mulching method

I have found three books by Ruth Stout at our library:
   _How to Have a Green Thumb without an Aching Back_
   _Gardening Without Work_
   _No-Work Garden Book_

They were published from the late 1950s to 1971, and she was in her
mid-seventies when she wrote the middle book in 1961, so I'm sure that
she has surely passed away by now. For those of you who aren't familiar
with her major principle, it's deep mulching with organic materials
(mostly hay and leaves, but also anything that you would put into a
traditional compost heap--in fact she does not believe that a compost
heap is necessary--kind of sheet composting, I guess) and no
digging/tilling/etc. The result of mulching year after year is a very
rich soil. Is there anyone on the sqft list who uses her method in the
sqft garden? If so, I'd like to know how it's worked for you, and if it's
adequate for the extra nutritional needs of the closer-spaced planting in
the sqft garden.

I'm interested mostly in hearing the evaluations of those who have
actually tried it, with success or with failure, rather the objections of
those who haven't tried/wouldn't try it. :-D

Rob

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Robert Loach   (Greenville SC)   RobLoach@juno.com

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