Green mulch for paths

Over the last couple of weeks I've been busy barrowing wood chips. According to Google Earth it's 330 metres to the car park (660m round trip), yesterday I made fourteen trips making it 9,240 meters or 5.75 miles. The uphill return journey with a full barrow seemed to get heavier each time. The most recent delivery to the site was very green and mainly Leylandii but it's covered pathways between beds.

Not covered the red cabbage bed yet (obviously) but the cabbages are starting to heart up nicely. Difficult to see in the photo but a plastic bottle swinging from a bendy tent pole is so far keeping the pigeons at bay.

Tea Shed painted

Door end of the tea shed was taking on water so needed an oil-based paint to get into the wood grain. We mixed this from old tins of cream and black and added soot to dull the gloss.

Compost

Beetroot did really well this year so any with slug damage contribute to the compost heap.




Back in the summer the 12x6 bay was well above the sides.

More wood mulch

We're still using whatever mulch we can source including last autumns leaves, compost and wood chips. Because of the Leylandi content the wood mulch is given a few weeks to begin breaking down before it's used on the beds.

Most of the beds are the same width so hoops and nets fit easily.

Initial breaking down is much quicker if the wood is left in a heap for a few weeks.

Green Manure

Phacelia used as green manure.




After chopping down it was covered with wood chips.

No-Dig Allotment

After their first growing season the wood mulched beds have proven a success. Watering and weeding has been minimal and below ground worms and other critters are returning. Fungal growth too is evident and the soil is softer and looks altogether healthier.