Dateline: 23 January 2017 a.d.

Tillage Radishes

In my last blog entry, I mentioned experiencing a January warm spell. Taking advantage of the pleasant weather, I’ve been tending to my garden. Currently, I’m monitoring the progress of cover crops planted last fall, specifically tillage radishes. The radishes haven’t grown significantly due to the late planting. I plan to plant them earlier next year.

Readers of my “Minibeds-on-Plastic report #1” understand my interest in tillage radishes. My plan is to plant several minibeds with these radishes later next summer. As detailed in the report, I’ll also incorporate other cover crops to enhance the soil health in my minibeds.

The photo, while not depicting minibeds, showcases elements discussed in my report: raised garden beds, an occultation cover secured by tire sidewalls, a walkway covered with an occultation cover, and cover crops of oats and mustard in January.

While the report doesn’t specifically mention oats and mustard as cover crops, it emphasizes the use of cover crops and no-till gardening in the Minibeds-on-Plastic method.

Observing the tillage radishes and other garden plants ready for composting inspired me to try composting directly in a minibed. This idea stemmed from a YouTube video by fellow gardener, David The Good.

David and his family have embraced a gardening lifestyle in an undisclosed Caribbean location. You can follow their journey on David’s YouTube Channel. Keep an eye out for his Planet Whizbang hat in his videos!

Composting garden waste directly in a minibed seemed logical. However, I recalled reading that effective composting requires a pile at least 36 inches cubed. With dimensions of 30 inches square and 3.5 inches high, the minibeds seemed inadequate.

Yet, my garden is called a “Minibeds-on-Plastic experimental garden” for a reason.

I collected a variety of decomposing vegetation, including tillage radishes, beet tops, kale tops, carrot tops, chard tops, broccoli tops, buckwheat straw, and tree leaves, and piled them into Minibed E7 (refer to the Report for its location).

I chopped some larger pieces before adding them to the pile.

While a sizable pile initially, it will shrink over time. To maintain optimal moisture levels, I covered the pile with black plastic.

The plastic is secured with tire sidewalls. Come spring, I’ll check the pile’s temperature. If it hasn’t heated up, I plan to transfer the contents to bed E6, adding some nitrogen-rich feathermeal to accelerate the composting process.

Feathermeal, while unpleasant smelling, effectively heats up compost piles, and I happen to have a large supply.

This experiment has me considering building frame extensions to create a 30-inch cubed compost bin, potentially similar to my Lee Reich compost bins.

And so begins the year’s experiments in my Minibeds-on-Plastic garden. With snow predicted tomorrow, I’m grateful for the opportunity to garden in January.

If you are unfamiliar with my Minibeds-on-Plastic gardening method, click here now: Minibeds-On-Plastic Introduction.