Hugelkultur Q&A Smackdown with Paul Wheaton and Beau Davidson

Paul Wheaton, the Duke of Permaculture, and Beau Davidson, two experts on hugelkultur, will go live this Friday, May 29th at 9 AM Mountain Time to talk all things hugelkultur!

If you have questions about hugelkultur, this is your chance to ask them. Respond to this thread with them!

Hugelkultur is one of those beautifully simple permaculture techniques that can do a lot: hold water, build soil, grow food, make use of woody material, and create long-term fertility. But there are also a lot of details that can make the difference between a hugel bed that thrives and one that struggles.

Paul and Beau will be digging into practical experience, design choices, common mistakes, and the many ways hugelkultur can be adapted to different sites, soils, climates, and goals.

Bring your questions about:

- How to build a good hugelkultur bed
- What kind of wood to use
- How hugelkultur helps with water retention
- Common mistakes and how to avoid them
- Planting into hugel beds
- Using hugelkultur in gardens, homesteads, and larger permaculture systems

Live this Friday, May 29th at 9 AM Mountain Time

Click here to go to YouTube and press “Notify me” to get notified when we begin

topics to fall back on:

why "level" hugelkultur sucks

why "short" hugelkultur sucks

throwing wood in a trench sucks

avoiding air pockets

too much wood v right amount

purchased containers for hugelkultur v mounds

best trails and steps for really tall hugelkultur

I did a workshop last night with Michael Judd, and a fellow named Derek T. said in the chat that he had "climbed all over" Paul's massive hugels a couple years ago.  I told him I got to build some of them.

That was fun.  Maybe we'll see Derek at the smackerino tomorrow.

My site is mostly sand with ~6-8 inches of dirt/soil on top. When grabbing fill to build my hugels, I've been putting the sand in the centre, dirt/soil near the outside, and using the saved sod from the top to 'mulch' the surface, which also helps retain the structure beyond where the angle of repose would otherwise take materials. Oh yeah, there's some logs in there too.

Is the juice worth the squeeze when keeping the sand and dirt separated like that? Is there such a thing as too much sand when making the hugel, and if so at what ratio?

Also, what is the ideal slope for the sides? SKIP calls for 7' high at 7' wide which seems absurdly steep. How was this factor determined?

Just bought 10 acres 6 months ago, western Washington. We have a field about 4 acres and the other 5 is forested. I am now working on my first huglekulture. It's 25Lx5W, hoping for at least 5ft high. I already got it up about two feet. I've got lots of thinning to do in the forest to add to the huglekulture.

Base was started with logs from the neighbor. When layering, can I add the grass clippings with the dirt to fill in cavities? Will the grass clippings hinder the decomposition process? Also, we have a high water table (30-60ft down), is it still viable to dig down a foot or two to add to the height of the huglekulture?

Once set up, we plan on making another huglekulture to make a somewhat D shape without connecting the two.  I have a downed cedar tree I'm somewhat planning to use as the base. I know from the huglekulture smackdown(lots of info) video that cedar is rot resistant. I think it will still decompose, just longer than usual. Any tips would be wonderful! Thanks

What can be done to assess/ estimate water needs while establishing a hugelkultur the first few years?

Best application techniques without access to pressurized water?

Got worky duty, sorry to miss the live stream...

Ron Elk wrote:Just bought 10 acres 6 months ago, western Washington. We have a field about 4 acres and the other 5 is forested. I am now working on my first huglekulture. It's 25Lx5W, hoping for at least 5ft high. I already got it up about two feet. I've got lots of thinning to do in the forest to add to the huglekulture.

Base was started with logs from the neighbor. When layering, can I add the grass clippings with the dirt to fill in cavities? Will the grass clippings hinder the decomposition process? Also, we have a high water table (30-60ft down), is it still viable to dig down a foot or two to add to the height of the huglekulture?

Once set up, we plan on making another huglekulture to make a somewhat D shape without connecting the two.  I have a downed cedar tree I'm somewhat planning to use as the base. I know from the huglekulture smackdown(lots of info) video that cedar is rot resistant. I think it will still decompose, just longer than usual. Any tips would be wonderful! Thanks

Hello Ron!

Welcome to permies!

Congratulations on you new property!
These are great questions.   I am looking forward to hearing what Paul and Beau have to say.  
Thanks for posting pictures of your project too!

Coydon Wallham wrote: What can be done to assess/ estimate water needs while establishing a hugelkultur the first few years?

Best application techniques without access to pressurized water?

Got worky duty, sorry to miss the live stream...

Hello Coydon!

If you don't have good water pressure, hugelkultur is a great option for you.  
At Wheaton labs we often fill big jugs of water and leave them to drip out up high on a hugel so a specific plant can get the water while the whole water column benefits.  

Thanks!

starting ...

We begin in 7 mins!

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That was fun.  I thought we covered some ground!

Glad Alan and Samantha and Andres were there!