So I watched this documentary online, called "Back to Eden." It is about Paul Gautschi's approach to gardening which he developed by observing nature and receiving wisdom and revelation from God through prayer and Bible reading. I know, I know. It sounds a little weird and mystical, but his garden looked AMAZING and I was completely intrigued. I began to do some more research on the Back to Eden gardening philosophy online and became convinced that it was something I wanted to do.
The concept is very simple. He heavily mulches his vegetables and orchards with raw wood chips. The mulch keeps water in when it's dry, absorbs excess water when it's too wet and slowly decomposes over time to fertilize and compost into the soil. Paul does not water his garden and spends little time weeding, since the weeds that do manage to grow in the mulch are easily plucked out since the mulch does not compact. He also never tills the soil. Paul also has chickens and he rakes in the compost that they make for him each spring. There are many people who have used this method with success. Watch the movie and see what you think.
ANYWAYS - The very next day, I was very blessed to happen upon a tree removal in our neighborhood just as they were finishing up. They kindly dumped about 5 yards of raw wood chips in my driveway for free! We had enough to mulch our entire house - landscaping, garden, walkway, plus extra to save up for future raised beds, and composting. I will be very curious to see how our garden does with all this mulch.
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