Despite the extreme hot weather we’ve been granted here in Maine and everywhere else (totes an outlier though), I’ve sort of finished the hardest portion of building these hugelkultur mounds.
It’s been a relief and sign of progress now that I’ve got the beds filled with all the various cardboard, loose branches and spent soil that I’ve been hording since we moved to Maine. I can seriously not recommend using a tractor more because between the insane amount of digging, boulder and gravel removal and just hauling dead leaves to and from, it has been a back saver.
As far as adding material goes, all that’s left to do is to pile whatever soil or compost I can find and then start planting! I think I will need to outsource some soil since the stuff I’m working with is mostly clay and gravel and I don’t have nearly enough compost made up for all of the beds. I do also have plenty of dead leaves in the immediate area and areas that need to be cleared for other projects so those can be used in a pinch.
I did transplant some mint into a couple of spots yesterday because I couldn’t resist finally planting something back here and where they were planted is going to be an herbal medley eventually. I checked on them this morning to give them a drink and cover them up a little with some dead leaves since it’s going to be another toasty-ass day here in Vacationland.
These little babies are the first generation of this back yard homestead and I’m so proud of them! And me! I have had Mike’s help a bit when it came to planning out the space in terms of functionality, marking out the beds, paths and patio, and helping me muscle any rocks or trees my stubborn-ass couldn’t. But it’s been me toasting my thighs and shoulders on the tractor, putting my girlboss sweat into it, and trying to breathe life to this hideous space.
This project has really humbled me into how much work gardening can be, and how much effort and work other projects will be. The people power needed for our homestead/co-op/not a cult is now obvious to me and it’s been a motivator to get more people up here in the coming years. I hope with a couple of people living in their tiny houses or yurts or whatever they decided here in our woods, projects like these be a lot easier and even more fulfilling.