RE: hot windy site near Perth Australia
- Subject: RE: hot windy site near Perth Australia
- From: D* W*
- Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2001 11:18:34 -0700
Reply from Carol Joynson <CarolJ@minimed.com>
>
>
>I started gardening on a plot behind a house in San Jose, California that
>had been used to rebuild cars, barbeque, hold mock sword fights among 8 year
>olds, etc. It was hard-pan, gravel covered California dry clay. It rains
>off and on for about three months in California - the rest of the year is
>dry as bone and hot in the inland valleys. I grew radishes and peas, and
>moved up to corn and squash.
>
>Mulch. Mulch, more mulch, and a lot more mulch. I got hold of a local
>tree-trimmer and they were happy to dump a few loads of chipped tree
>trimmings in my yard. Saved them the dump fees. It took several seasons of
>more mulch to create a real garden, but the only way to get from hot, dry,
>dead to low maintenance and pretty is to add organic matter, lots and lots
>of organic matter. And the first year or two, if you can get the dump truck
>guys to put the mulch in the right place so that you don't have to move it
>yourself, is just waiting for the inevitable rot to happen.
>
>After a year or two, you'll be able to tuck plants into your "beds" and the
>plants will be able to work their roots into some soil. A plus point: most
>weeds can't get through a 6 inch layer of mulch. And if they do start from
>seeds blown in, they are very easy to pull because the mulch is loose.
>Also, the mulch will keep the sand from blowing, and keep the area a little
>bit cooler.
>
>Shredded corn stalks can sometimes be had from the local farmers in corn
>country. If you have a brewery or other factory that processes something,
>anything, organic, it's a matter of talking the husband, a friend, someone
>with a truck into getting a load of spent hops, used mushroom bedding,
>whatever you can arrange for (most places will give it away free if you can
>arrange to haul it). Manures of all kinds, heaped on and covered with
>chippings, straw, etc. will also help a lot - horse, chicken, rabbit, cow if
>you can get it. Then maybe you can start looking at salvias, rosemaries,
>and other things that don't mind hot and dry, and look beautiful.
ps
>
I forgot to add that once you have some mulch, you can speed things along by
putting your kitchen waste UNDER the mulch. If you put it on top it will
stink and won't make compost very well (there's nothing like experience...).
Kitchen waste is anything vegetable: vegetable trimmings, vegetable
leftovers, coffee grounds, egg shells (rinsed out and crunched), even paper
towels, if you use them, or shredded newspaper. DON't use meat or bone of
any kind. It truly stinks and will draw rats/dogs/whatever your local
scavenger is.
Also - run your drip system under the mulch so that the micro-organisms that
will be doing all the work stay a bit damp. The thicker the mulch, the less
water you'll need.
Good luck -
Carol
