Re: [compost_tea] Mulch

From: butch ragland <wilddog_202_at_yahoo.com>
Date: Sat, 5 Mar 2005 09:22:59 -0800 (PST)
Let me describe one natural situation and another man
made. In Michigan near Lake Michigan there exist a
sandy area with a high water table. This constant
water supports a huge nursery industry. The same is
true near Cleveland, OH.
I plumbed my shower into the yard where I created a
bog with a pond liner.
Now to your dry situation, do you have any waste water
that can be captured. If so, then create this bog and
pile organic matter high enough to finally have an are
rated area above the evaporating water below.
--- Guth <guthltd_at_mpx.com.au> wrote:

> Thanks for the tips Butch,
>
> I am told that Seattle weather is "... wonderful, 10
> billion slugs can't be
> wrong".  Here in inland Australia, water doesn't
> fall from the sky much,
> lots of hot sun, parchingly low humidity.  Just to
> get a feel, sheep here
> are usually brown (from the dust) in brown fields
> (grass dries off in
> summer, which is a no/low growth season).  The
> camouflaged sheep really can
> be hard to spot from a distance.
>
> I wonder if burlap is not quite heavy enough for our
> conditions.
>
> I know a worm farmer who does something similar with
> old carpet over his
> piles of "worm-food"/compost, and has a trickle
> irrigation system under the
> carpet.  He says you would never need to do this in
> the green isle of New
> Zealand he comes from.
>
> You think carpet + trickle irrigation would make
> sense for this technique
> you describe?  Enough air?
>
> Best wishes,
>
> John Guth
>
> of ----- Original Message -----
> From: "butch ragland" <wilddog_202_at_yahoo.com>
> To: <compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Friday, March 04, 2005 6:56 PM
> Subject: [compost_tea] Mulch
>
>
> >
> > Dr E You remember the question/answer session you
> put
> > me through to make me tell you my year round
> program
> > for building my soil. At the end I had a program.
> I
> > had a program which was, get to that 1in active
> area
> > and from observation found it took 3-5 years to
> get to
> > what apparently can be done in a year with the
> burlap
> > (interbay). I'm going to this trouble because I'm
> > proud of my observation skills and the fact that I
> > figured out so much without th help of formal
> science.
> > I'm still learning a lot from you and others and
> don't
> > discount that at all.
> >
> > Interbay Mulch
> >
> >     There has been much posted on the forums about
> a
> > soil building method known as Interbay Mulch. It
> is a
> > method developed by a site coordinator at the
> Interbay
> > P-Patch in Seattle and has recently been featured
> in
> > an article in Organic Gardening. The P-Patches are
> a
> > large network of very well run Community Gardens.
> It
> > is catching on quickly in other P-Patches but the
> > folks at Interbay used the system for a full
> season
> > before it started being adopted elsewhere.
> >
> >     The Interbay Mulch is the use of a layer of
> burlap
> > placed over the top of various organic material
> that
> > you pile up on top of soil. Organic matter
> decomposes
> > much faster on top of the soil than it does if
> tilled
> > in as long as it is covered and kept moist and
> dark.
> > The byproducts of this process enrich and feed the
> > soil under it in some very interesting ways.
> >
> >     A few years ago a four day course on soil
> ecology
> > was held at Oregon State University. This course
> was
> > attended by one of the Interbay site coordinators
> and
> > the idea of Interbay Mulch occured to him while
> > driving back to Seattle.
> >
> >     The OSU microarthropod expert, Dr. Andy
> Moldenke,
> > said in his presentation that 90% of all soil
> > organisms live in the top inch of the soil. Dr.
> Elaine
> > Ingham of SoilFoodweb then said in her
> presentation
> > that plant health and productivity depends on that
> > biological activity in the soil. These two bits of
> > information inspired the concept of using a burlap
> > "cover" to create a deep,dark,and damp "litter
> layer".
> >
> >     The Interbay Mulch attempts to expand the
> > conditions in that biologically active one inch
> litter
> > layer to 6, 12, or even 18 inches. The idea is to
> > recreate and magnify the natural conditions that
> > produce rich, fertile soil. The use of damp burlap
> > (coffee sacks are readily available in the Seattle
> > area but purchased burlap can be substituted)
> proved
> > to be the ideal material for enhancing the
> biological
> > activity associated with the humus production.
> >
> >     Depending on your soil needs, and the amount
> of
> > organic material you have access to, you would
> build a
> > mulch 6" to 18" deep.
> >
> >     Mix the materials well and wet them down.
> Cover
> > over this with the burlap. The burlap should also
> be
> > damp. You could soak them in a large barrel (they
> will
> > be HEAVY) or water over the "hump" with a
> sprinkler
> > until everything is nice and damp. Monitor the
> pile
> > for moisture content and water if any materials
> are
> > dry. Decomposition comes to a halt when materials
> dry
> > out. The mulch will probably be reduced to 30%
> it's
> > original height when it is finished and will have
> > turned into a rich, dark and most importantly
> > biologicaly active humus.
> >
> >     The breakdown/decomposition time will vary
> > depending on your zone and the time of year you
> build
> > your mulch. Expect 4-6 months on average before
> you
> > can move the burlap aside and plant.
> >
> >     This has been compared to a long-known method
> of
> > soil building known as "sheet composting" and,
> more
> > recently, "Lasagna" gardening. While there are
> > similarities in these methods and some common
> > benefits, the Interbay approach differs in that it
> is
> > proven to be a faster and more effective means of
> > producing a large volume of rich humus as well as
> a
> > rich diversity of bacteria, fungi, protozoa,
> > beneficial nematodes, microarthropods, and worms.
> >
> >     The Interbay method actively seeks to create
> > conditions that culture the maximum populations of
> > beneficial soil microorganisms thereby achieving
> the
> > maximum benefit from the inputs.
> >
> >     Interbay Mulched soil, according to the lab
> that
> > tested it, is "uniquely active".
> >
> >     Living soil is successfull soil! And best of
> all,
> > it's free!
> >
> >     What is the purpose of the burlap?
> >
> >     Here is a list of benefits attributed to the
> > burlap cover:
> >
> >        1. Maintains the optimum dark, moist
> conditions
> > prefered by most decomposer organisms.
> >
> >        2. Encourages colonization by, and
> reproduction
> > of, soil organisms as well as the microorganisms
>
=== message truncated ===

=====
Butch Ragland
Conflict is as addictive as
cocaine, alcohol, cigarettes,etc
I'm sorry to report that
cooperation is not


     
           
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Received on Sun Mar 06 2005 - 01:16:17 EST

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