Ditchthe Spade!

Digging is synonymous with vegetable growing. It’s the belts-andbraces start to ever ything we do – after all, how else would you incorporate the annual dump of compost but what if we’ve got it all wrong? What if you could achieve stunning results without the back-breaking effort? To many traditionalists it sounds implausible, even lazy. And yet more and more of us are ditching the spade only to discover the incredible results that can be enjoyed without e ver breaking ground again.

Pioneers like no-dig guru Charles Dowding (www.charlesdowding. co.uk) have been blazing a nodig trail for years – and they’ve the evidence to back up their decision. Charles’ own meticulous comparison of dug and no-dig beds demonstrates superior crops and a measurable yield boost to boot, with his no-dig beds producing seven percent more vegetables on average. As time passes the difference only grows starker as the no-dig beds mature and become more complex.

THE CASE FOR NO-DIG

Nature doesn’t do digging. Instead she creates then nourishes soil through the gentle addition of leaf litter and other organic materials. The only ‘digging’ is done by the legion of worms, bugs and microorganisms found within the soil. No-dig gardening adopts this easy-does-it approach, swapping digging for mulching. The spade only comes out of the shed to dig larger planting holes or to perhaps help ease out deep rooters like parsnip.

Leave the soil alone like this and the life it contains remains undisturbed too. This is a big deal. When soil isn’t repeatedly torn apart worms have the time to create air channels, improving soil structure and drainage. Meanwhile intricate networks of mycorrhizal fungi establish, making more of the soil’s nutrients available to plant roots. Both soil and plants become more resilient over time, with fewer or no additional fertilisers required for the same or better results.

Weeds are also greatly reduced because no new weed seeds are brought to the surface. With every passing season weeds become fewer and further between, until weeding becomes a quick and easy whip-around with the hoe to sever the few rogues blown in from elsewhere. Soil-borne pests, especially slugs, take a hit too, as natural predators thrive and a rougher, bumpier soil (at least at slug scale) impedes the progress of our arch-nemeses!

LET’S GET STARTED

Setting up a new no-dig system isn’t difficult, but you need plenty of cardboard and a bulk load of organic matter to start with.

Collect Cardboard

You can make beds straight onto a cut lawn if you wish. On goes a layer of cardboard (brown cardboard, without

Bed Design

Of course, no-dig growing isn’t a sit-back, feet-up solution; you still need to shovel on the organic matter! But it’s an awful lot easier than digging it in. You can also streamline mulching and general crop care still further by getting clever with how growing beds are laid out.

No-diggers rarely walk on their soil, preferring to complete most tasks by reaching into beds from paths set out between them. Creating beds no wider than 1.2m (4ft) enables the gardener to reach the middles from the sides, while paths of at least 45cm (18in) width allow for easy movement between them.

Organic Matter In Bulk

Next cover in organic matter. For the set-up you need lots of it – at least 8cm (3in) of the stuff You can use any wellrotted compost or manure (check it’s free of any herbicide residues). Lay it onto the cardboard/ground, rake it level and walk away.

If you have a variety of organic matter then prioritise the finest material for the top of the bed and the lumpiest materials for the bottom layer. In this way plants have time to establish before sending roots further down to chunkier depths.

Starting new beds off in autumn/ early winter gives the organic material ample time to break down further with the regular frost-thaws of winter.

Keep It Going

glossy printing on it), which is heavily overlapped so there were no gaps. This cardboard layer isn’t necessary in every situation but it does offer an insurmountable barrier for most lawn grasses and annual weeds. You can source enough cardboard from local recycling points, or if you don’t fancy ‘dumpster diving’, look on local Facebook groups or websites such as Freecycle. The cardboard will rot down over several months, contributing to the soil you’re gently nurturing.

The secret to a successful no-dig garden is the regular additions of organic matter. These are laid onto the surface as a mulch at least once a year, preferably in the autumn when the ground is bare. Don’t scrimp! Add a 3-5cm (1-2in) layer of welldecomposed crumbly compost, manure or leaf mould.

There are other benefits to a bed system. Organic matter used for mulching suddenly goes a lot further when it’s concentrated onto just the growing areas, while zoning the kitchen garden into manageable beds makes general maintenance less daunting and crop rotation a whole lot easier. It is best to create beds so you do not