Dig the no-dig

A hot day today so I thought I would go outside, get bitten by midges and horseflies and build a no-dig deep bed. Why do horseflies have to bite such a big hole in your legs? I am quite happy to blood let myself and leave a saucer outside for them.

Anyway, as you can see I cut the grass short (that should keep the prudish neighbours happy), covered the area of the bed with brown cardboard and surrounded the bed with old timber. I am in the process of filling it with year-old compost to a depth of six inches.

The timber surround will be removed after a year when sufficient root systems are holding the soil together, as can be seen with the bed to the left. The resulting deep bed means that you don't have to break your back turning soil. In any case, turning soil destroys the habitats of valuable soil enhancing creatures beneath the soil. Don't turn it! No-dig it!