On 12 June our talk was from Russell Attwood, telling us about his version of No-Dig Gardening. He also called it “Lasagne Gardening’ . On his allotment this entails covering any weedy patch with a layer of cardboard, which is then in turn covered with wood chips, grass cuttings, pulled weeds, leaves or compost. He will then continue to build up layers as if he were making a compost heap. The soil stays moister underneath these layers, and crops can be planted by going through the layers to the soil underneath.
He made a point of saying this was not ‘no effort’ gardening as sourcing cardboard and enough organic matter was a major task. However he manages to grow his crops without watering,,, even last summer. Also, over time, his clay soil has significantly improved in texture and worm count.
Bearing a strong resemblance to Michael Palin, Russell kept us amused, while we wondered if he was going to burst into the Lumberjack Song. Not a song about trees, but he did treat us to a song about pumpkins at the end!