kt shepherd permaculture
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Home
  • Blog

Mulching Through A Heatwave

19/7/2022

2 Comments

 
Picture
This infographic about mulch is part of my collection of ‘free to use’ digital illustrations. Click on the image to visit the link for that page.
As I’m typing this The Guardian app on my iPad has informed me that the UK has just recorded its first ever 40 degrees outdoors temperature. Amidst this horrific news and the fact that here in the Aire valley in Yorkshire my garden currently feels like midday in August in Andalusia, my system of mulching the raised beds and pots in my edible garden, gives me hope. Not a lot, but enough. 

My infographic above includes some of the main functions of mulching soil. It’s so beneficial and over the last few days it’s capacity to keep water in the soil has been amazing to witness. I’ve been watering gardens belonging to two different friends over the last couple of weeks and the difference in watering needs between their mostly unmulched growing spaces and my own,  have been huge. 

I’ve been assessing the watering needs of my growing spaces at 5am and 9pm for the last week. Some of the smaller pots have needed watering each day, especially those naturally water vulnerable plants, for example courgettes and young  lettuce with their shallow roots. The larger pots have been watered alternate days and  the raised beds just once in the last week. In all of these containers the soil just a couple of centimetres below the mulched surface was at least damp at each check. I’ve been especially impressed with the conditions in the raised beds as these are made from the increased heat storage capacity of recycled black plastic. 

I’ve used 3 different types of mulch - wood chip, partially composted homemade compost (carbon dense with pine shavings from guinea pig bedding) and plant living mulches. I haven’t been organised enough to do any controlled comparisons about the performance of each one, but in general they all seem to be fairly equally effective. 
Picture
Compost covering the surface of a large pot growing French beans and courgette
Picture
Nasturtium, radish left to seed, calendula and lettuce have provided a really effective ground cover for French and runner beans and courgettes
Picture
Nasturtium and wood chip
Picture
Wood chip and baby lettuces
For information about much larger scale solutions focused work about the water on our planet, I can very much recommend investigative journalist, Judith D Schwartz book, ‘Water in Plain Sight’ - I wrote a review about it here  
Picture
2 Comments
Charles Young link
19/10/2022 02:29:51 am

In usually party fill month industry yet. Seem receive hand once stay. Skin because all.

Reply
Mulch India link
4/4/2023 10:32:36 am

It is a very useful blog and very important information about Mulch.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Welcome to my blog. Here I aim to share everyday examples of how permaculture can provide healing and regeneration for ourselves, our communities and our planet.

    Contact Me 

    Connect with my social media or send me an email 

    Search My Blog


    Archives

    January 2025
    September 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    November 2023
    October 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    April 2022
    February 2022
    December 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018


    Categories

    All
    Accessing Permaculture
    Activism
    Alan Charlton
    Book Review
    Children In Permaculture
    Chronic Illness & Disability
    Climate Justice
    Community Projects
    Creative Dying
    Creative Event
    Creative Life
    Designing For Ourselves
    Designing How We Die
    Diploma In Applied Permaculture Design
    Earth Based Spirituality
    Edible Garden
    Fair Shares
    Kt Shepherd Doodles
    Kt’s Illustrations
    Kt's Permaculture Garden
    Local Event
    Neurodiversity
    Patterns In Nature
    Permaculture Course
    Permaculture Ethics
    Permaculture Event
    Permaculture Tool Review
    Permaculture Tools
    Permaculture Women
    Social Media
    Water
    Wheel Of The Year
    Wild Garden

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.