Stunted veggies

So, we have a 5’x8’ mound made of rotten wood, leaves, unfinished compost, topsoil, composted horse manure and maybe some other stuff that I’ve forgotten about.

Last year we grew sweet potatoes in 1 half and watermelon in the other. This year, there’s corn, beans and squash planted throughout the entire thing, but there’s a clear line halfway through the bed where everything looks stunted. The plants on the side we grew sweet potatoes on last year are all about 1/2 the size of the other side right now. All were planted the same time, watered the same amounts and fertilized the same time. What would be the cause of this? Im wondering if sweet potatoes suck something specific out of the soil, but I read they are not heavy feeders.

There also seemed to be a yellow jacket nest somewhere in or under that half of the bed last year, but I couldn’t aggravate them enough to come out so I’m not sure how big or where the nest actually is.

Any advice is appreciated! Ill add a picture tomorrow if I remember.

Might it be nitrogen deficient in that part? I wonder if the rotting wood below is using it?

Where I live, I'd immediately suspect pocket gophers. They're the ruination of all things. They would have been attracted to the sweet potatoes, made a bunch of tunnels through your hugel, and now this year, there are big gaps inside your bed so the plants don't have as much soil or water to grow in. That's happened to me, anyway.

Is there any difference along its length in the way the hugel was constructed? I've also got a hugel that wasn't built well that plants are stunted in. The logs were too close together, with not enough soil in between them. Now that they're shrinking, same thing, big gaps with no soil and nowhere for plant roots to go.

Stacie Kim wrote:Might it be nitrogen deficient in that part? I wonder if the rotting wood below is using it?

Its the same wood running throughout the entire bed though, not just that half. And even the beans are stunted and they create their own nitrogen.

Jan White wrote:Where I live, I'd immediately suspect pocket gophers. They're the ruination of all things. They would have been attracted to the sweet potatoes, made a bunch of tunnels through your hugel, and now this year, there are big gaps inside your bed so the plants don't have as much soil or water to grow in. That's happened to me, anyway.

Is there any difference along its length in the way the hugel was constructed? I've also got a hugel that wasn't built well that plants are stunted in. The logs were too close together, with not enough soil in between them. Now that they're shrinking, same thing, big gaps with no soil and nowhere for plant roots to go.

I dont think we have gophers here, but we do have other small rodents. I did notice though that the sweet potatoes were pretty contorted and odd shaped from growing through the soil and getting into the actual wood below. Maybe soil has fallen deeper into the beds from digging the potatoes out last year. I guess if thats the case there probably isn’t much I can do for this season besides fertilize more.