Hügelkultur, translating in English to mound bed or mound culture is a method I have used successfully in the past with great success for growing. With previous experiments I was lucky enough to have large supplies of rich woody decomposing mass. This, in conjunction with green biomass and rich compost meant everything I planted flourished in this micro biologically thriving environment.

The base of this new Hügelkultur is a selection of logs from well dead and recently pruned fruit trees within the orchard. Before forming the actual mound all of this wood has had three months sitting under a living compost. The living component mostly comprised of chickweed and pūhā. As I started forming the actual mound I packed a mixture of on site soil with the compost around and over a central linear base of wood mass, careful not to leave any open pockets of air around the organic forms.

As my mound began to take a convex contour I started adding green layers between the soil/compost mixtures to add a quicker release of decomposable nutrients closer to what will become the immediate root zone of new plantings.