tips & tricks
" The soil beneath woodchips is also always loose , soft , and well-oxygenated —
IDEAL
MEDIUM for just about any plant to grow ."
So , what ’ s his secret ? It ’ s all about the covering . Every inch of Paul ’ s garden is covered in a layer of woodchips . He never mixes the woodchips with the soil , though , or else the chips would leach nitrogen from the soil . He simply layers the woodchips on top of the garden . As time passes , the chips decompose and feed the earth with minerals . Instead of the soil being depleted at the end of the season , the woodchips ensure the soil is constantly being fed and renewed . The covering creates rich , healthy soil , which in turn creates healthy , vibrant plants . Even though Paul ’ s technique might sound counterintuitive at first , his principles work in harmony with nature instead of against it . All you have to do is walk into the forest to see these principles at work . No one waters or fertilizes the forest . No one goes in and tills the soil or rotates the crops . Yet , the forest is always flush with greenery . If you take a look around , you ’ ll notice the forest floor is covered in leaves and needles . The dirt is covered , not bare , and this covering is continuously composting . Every time it rains , water runs through this compost and feeds the earth with rich compost tea . Since the soil hasn ’ t been tilled , thousand-year-old microbial colonies are intact and able to use the nutrients from the tea to feed the plants through a vast underground network of hyphae . Paul ’ s woodchips do much more than fertilize the garden . When used as mulch , they effectively conserve moisture in the soil so that you rarely need to water . The woodchips themselves retain moisture and release it to the soil as needed . Paul hasn ’ t watered his garden in 34 years . If you dig in the dirt underneath a layer of woodchips , the soil is always slightly damp . The soil beneath woodchips is also always loose , soft , and welloxygenated — an ideal medium for just about any plant to grow . When the soil is covered by woodchips , you could drive a loaded truck over your garden and the soil will not compact . Because the woodchips prevent the soil from compacting , there is no need to till . Tilling is harmful to the beneficial bacteria and fungi in the soil . These beneficials create an intricate underground colony of webs that can travel for miles . If there are no nutrients available in the immediate area , these networks can find nutrients further out to take back to their host plant . However , when you destroy these networks by tilling , your plants become solely dependent on the fertilizers you give them . This rich , loose soil also makes for easy weeding . Pulling weeds in a garden with bare soil is hard physical labor . More often than not , you need to use tools to dig the weeds out of the earth . But when the soil is covered and not compacted , weeds come out easily without the help of tools . It almost becomes an enjoyable task . Paul ’ s homegrown food is sweeter and juicier than anything you will ever taste from the grocery store . Paul will tell you that God gave you taste buds to tell you how nutritious your food is ; the sweeter it is , the more minerals it has , and the better it is for you . Since Paul ’ s soil is constantly being replenished with minerals , his crops are
How to layer your garden like Paul Gautschi . ( Photo from backtoeden . com )
110 grow cycle