Springtime hugelkultur bed prep, annual maintenance?

Hi everyone,

I've been enjoying this forum for awhile, but this is my first post. I'm excited to try some hugelkultur beds on the farm where I'm interning, but want to get a better sense of what they require from year to year.

At different times, there have been double dug beds here, but the gardeners are generally wanting to get away from such labor intensive methods. That is to say, they're not excited about broadforking beds and digging out paths.

So I'm wondering what you all do to HK beds to prep them for planting in the spring and/or to put them to rest in the fall. We're in Northern Missouri (zone 5), so it would be too late to cover crop this fall, but I'm wondering if the bed could just be prepped, mulched and planted into come spring. That would be a much easier sell, since I won't be around then.

Thanks for your input!
Rory

I add some old sheep poo and bedding on mine (about 1" thick) add a layer of soil (1-2") and plant seeds.