Living Systems Institute

Learn about the sheet mulching techniques we use in our No Weed, No Water, No Till, Deep Mulch, Drip Irrigated Gardening System.  In addition, we are experimenting with a Hugelkultur . . . a European forestry technique in which the slash from forestry operations is covered with dirt to create a nursery bed for new plants.

See the video of our first event.  In the first event we began testing the various materials used in a sheet mulch.  We divided a circular bed into three equal, pie shaped sections and built a sheet mulch according to the standard formula.  In one section we used hay for the 12 inches of organic matter, in a second section we used used wood chips and in the third sections we used branches covered with wood chips.

These are hands on events building sheet mulch and hugelkultur. These are No Till gardening systems.  The annual events are held in March.  Contact us if we can help your community garden or garden team build sheet mulches/hugelkulturs.

Traditional gardening systems, even organic, deplete soil nutrients. Nature builds nutrients into the system over time by maintaining a habitat for a complete soil ecosystem that holds nutrients through complete growth, decay and regrowth cycles. When you till the soil you destroy that habitat, burn your organic matter faster than the plants can use the nutrients and release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

These No Till gardening systems recreate the habitat for soil organisms, build soil fertility over time, reduce the work load on the gardener, sequester carbon in the soil, and produce prolifically. Why would you garden any other way?

On March 6, 2012 we built a modified Hugelkultur at LSI:

Here is what it looked like in August.

On March 11, 2012 we built a modified Sheet Mulch at Sidnie's Garden:

On March 14, 2012 we expanded the 2011 experimental bed containing three materials: