no dig charles dowding.

http://www.charlesdowding.co.uk/content/february-2013

Hotbed about to be sown on left, then all sown and covered with two new lights, now held down with screwed-in battens
 

 At Homeacres I sowed the two week old hotbed on January 21st, as snow was falling, with a good range of vegetable seeds in seven inch rows. Then I made two large lights to sit above the bed, and already see many things I could have done better! I must say that making a proper hotbed is quite an investment of time, but am hoping for early harvests to make it worthwhile.

And another experiment, two Japanese helpers are digging a bed for growing the Shumei way (natural agriculture) and beside it is a no dig bed. Neither has or will receive any compost or manure (the wheelbarrow has soil in from the first trench), neither Shumei or the no dig bed will practice any rotation of vegetable plantings. They have created a similar, two bed experiment on their plot at Yatesbury near Avebury. We shall grow the same vegetables on all four beds and are planning that now.

Charles Dowding, no dig gardening, salad leaves

Charles Dowding showing us around his polytunnel

For my birthday at the end of last year, Wellyman kindly bought me a day with Charles Dowding. Charles has been growing salad crops and selling them for nearly 30 years now. He has, over that time built up quite a reputation not only for inspiring the British public to be a bit more adventurous with their salad growing but also for following the ‘no dig’ practice of mulching beds and then letting worms and other soil organisms do the hard work of improving his soil structure and fertility.

Charles runs courses from his farm, where he explains the thinking behind his ideas and you get to pick his brain and see his philosophy in action, and this is how I spent yesterday. From his farm in Somerset Charles runs a successful market garden, selling bags of mixed seasonal salads to businesses within a 4 mile radius. With 2 polytunnels and over an acre Charles makes £30,000 a year from growing salads. The site is less than ideal facing north and on clay but by using the ‘no dig’ technique of mulching with compost and well-rotted manure every year he has created soil conditions most gardeners dream of. The colour of his soil and the lack of weeds were the most striking aspects of his farm.

Just a few of Charles' incredibly productive beds