Dateline: 19 March 2017
Paul Gautschi (photo link)
In Part 1 of this series, I talked about the popular Back to Eden gardening method and its advocate, Paul Gautschi.
If the Back to Eden wood chip method interests you, I suggest trying it on a small area first, just like any new gardening technique. Every garden and gardener is unique. Soil, climate, space, physical ability, time commitment, resources, and desired outcomes all differ.
For example, some may focus on feeding a family and preserving food, while others, like myself, prioritize fresh produce for daily consumption during the growing season.
Remember that successful gardening is an ongoing process, not a final destination. Everyone, even seasoned gardeners, experiences setbacks. Adaptability, evaluation, and refinement are key to a successful gardening journey.
Around 15 years ago, I used wood chip mulch for about three years. While it did suppress weeds and retain soil moisture, it also created a haven for slugs. Despite the benefits, the slug damage was too detrimental. When I switched to black plastic mulch, slug issues virtually disappeared.
Interestingly, proponents of wood chip mulch like Lee Reich and Paul Gautschi haven’t reported issues with slugs. Eliot Coleman, who doesn’t use the Back to Eden method, suggests ducks as a solution. I, unfortunately, learned this after a predator ate my ducks.
Despite my experience, I still believe in the value of wood chip mulch as soil cover, promoting soil health without disruption. However, after researching Paul Gautschi’s approach, I’ve observed that he primarily uses it for his orchard, trees, shrubs, herb garden, and asparagus bed. He adopts a slightly different method for his vegetable garden, which I’ll discuss later.
It’s worth noting that wood chips, particularly ramial wood chips, are widely recognized as an excellent mulch for trees, shrubs, and herb gardens (slugs generally avoid most herbs).
Let’s delve into Paul Gautschi’s approach to vegetable gardening through anecdotal observations, as it’s difficult to fully grasp his evolving system from the Back to Eden documentary and subsequent interviews.
His answers to questions can sometimes be vague, possibly due to the evolving nature of his methods. This is understandable, as successful gardening involves continuous adaptation. Here are some recent observations, combined with my experiences and insights:
—Paul’s extensive use of wood chips requires a significant amount of material and labor.
—Wood chip mulch doesn’t eliminate weeds entirely, but it reduces their number and makes them easier to remove.
—Paul’s book, Growing Food God’s Way, recommends ramial wood chips from living branches less than 3” in diameter. Shredded bark, sawdust, or chips from large, dead wood are not recommended.
—He suggests a 4” layer of wood chips, ideally with a newspaper base, for establishing a garden. If starting over sod without newspapers, he recommends 8”.
—Paul successfully used a 12” layer of wood chips to suppress quack grass in a separate garden plot.
—While effective, a 12” layer of wood chips might be impractical for vegetable gardens because seeds and transplants are planted in the soil beneath.
—Interestingly, Paul’s current vegetable garden isn’t covered in wood chips. It might have been in the past (the Back to Eden film was released in 2011), but it seems no new chips have been added recently.
—Currently, his vegetable garden is covered in “chicken-scratch-compost” – a mix of horse manure, wood shavings, garden waste, and chicken droppings. He lets chickens process this mixture before sifting and applying it to his garden.
—Having used chicken-scratch-compost myself, I can attest to its benefits as fertilizer.
—While wary of other organic mulches due to potential herbicide contamination, Paul considers wood chips safe.
—He emphasizes that wood chip mulch should never be mixed into the soil. It should remain on top to encourage beneficial biological activity and prevent nitrogen depletion.
—Blood meal and wood ash are acceptable fertilizer additions to a wood chip garden.
—According to Paul, rainwater filtering through the mulch creates a “compost tea” that nourishes the soil.
—Interestingly, in a conversation with Dr. Mercola, Paul suggests that any readily available material, even rocks, can be used as mulch, citing Japanese gardeners.
—Inspired by articles in Organic Gardening magazine, I experimented with rock mulch as a teenager, with limited success. The articles later proposed using a double layer for better weed control, a technique I might revisit someday.
—Paul marks his vegetable rows with a string line and creates shallow furrows in his chicken-scratch-compost using an iron rake for seed planting.
—He uses 36” row spacing in his flat-ground garden (no raised beds, which he claims dry out).
—His wider plant spacing, compared to methods like square-foot gardening, is likely a factor in his success, especially in a dry climate. Adequate root space is crucial, as Steve Solomon explains in his books Gardening When it Counts and Gardening Without Irrigation.
—Paul’s garden enjoys ample sunlight, which is always advantageous for plant growth.
While there are both success and failure stories associated with Back to Eden gardening, it’s important to note that the method’s effectiveness relies on various factors.
In the final part of this series, I’ll compare my Minibeds-on-Plastic approach with the Back to Eden method. My goal is not to claim superiority but to offer a potentially more manageable and productive option for certain gardeners and situations.
to go to Part 3 of this series.
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