Re: [SG] Low Maintenance Gardening
>The most important factor I find in any type of gardening to keep it
>relatively low maintenance is a thick layer of mulch. Very rarely do I
>have to weed.
This is the key factor. Mulch not only holds down weeds, by conserving
moisture close to the ground it reduces the need for irrigation. Mulch
also provides habitat for predatory insects and spiders that help control
pests, and, as it decays, enriches the soil with organic matter.
For shade and woodland gardens, I have found leafmold to be the best mulch.
Every second or third year I get the town to dump off a load of leaves--the
pile is usually about six feet high and ten to twelve feet in diameter. If
the leaves are not already wet (I try to get them after a rainy spell), I
soak them as much as possible with a hose and sprinkler over a period of
several days. Soon the pile is steaming as the chopped leaves are attacked
by bacteria and fungi.
The next summer, the partially decayed leaves are ideal for mulching, with
a chunky texture and great, spongy, water-holding capacity. After two
years or possibly three, the whole pile has broken down into rich, black
soil that can be tilled directly into new beds and vegetable gardens. As
the new leaves are added on top of old mulch, the organic layer in the
shade gardens gets deeper and deeper, and less and less watering is needed.
In the vegetable garden, the old mulch is tilled in after the autumn
cleanup and in ten years has transformed our red clay into a friable, dark
brown organic soil that grows wonderful food.
By all means, mulch!
Bill Shear
Department of Biology
Hampden-Sydney College
Hampden-Sydney VA 23943
(804)223-6172
FAX (804)223-6374
email<bills@hsc.edu>
