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Mechanically Stabilized Earth - for hugelkultur, earthworks, & natural building

 
steward
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About twice or three times a year, usually when talking about hugelkultur and how to make a nice steep slope, I reference this video about adding structure to earth to increase the structural integrity while also increasing the angle of repose.  

Figure it needs its own thread so it's not so hard to find.

The idea for hugels is that you can jab sticks and stuff that you're already mulching with into the soil in the side of the hugel to hold the loose stuff together while the roots are growing into place.  Eventually, by the time your sticky bits break down, it will hold itself together pretty well and only need minor periodic maintenance.  

I think there are also some good images of this sort of thing in the Berm Shed movie.

 
Beau M. Davidson
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Pearl had a great idea to make a chart of sorts of the kinds of materials that work well, and maybe various properties of the materials on the other axis.  I don't know of one that exists, but we could make one and add it.

What do y'all use?  I'll start.


materialsturdinesssizedecomposition speed
Hardwood SticksGreatVariousSlowly
Softwood SticksGoodVarious1-2 Seasons
Stalks (corn, mullein, etc)MediumVariousFast (use quick germinating ground cover)
BarkMediumSmallish-MediumishFast
Leaf LayersMedium, as horizontal sheetsSmallFast
Organic StrawMedium, as horizontal sheetsSmallFast
 
Beau M. Davidson
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Made some updates to the above hugel mulch materials chart for an upcoming workshop.
 
gardener
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I'm propagating elderberry for biomass, and it occured to me that it could be used horizontally to stabilize a hugle.
Raspberry and blackberry,might work as well.
If they root, they become either welcome additions or sources of chop-n-drop.
Willow might work even better but I think it won't play well with other plants.

I'm experimenting with stripping the leaves from my volunteer catalpa trees to use as green manure.
The catalpa sphinx moth feeds on  the tree an it is said to strip entire catalpa trees of foliage, without killing the tree.
I'm hoping the tree reacts to my stripping off leaves in the same way.
If so, they might be a good tree for horizontal reinforcement.

 
Beau M. Davidson
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William Bronson wrote: ... elderberry ... Raspberry and blackberry ...
If they root, they become either welcome additions or sources of chop-n-drop.
Willow ...



This is almost another category - rigid structural bits that might also grow and become living retaining root structures and crops.  I like it.

In my neck of the woods, though, they would probably have to be regularly cut back to keep them from becoming a hugel monocrop.

I'm experimenting with stripping the leaves from my volunteer catalpa trees to use as green manure.
The catalpa sphinx moth feeds on  the tree an it is said to strip entire catalpa trees of foliage, without killing the tree.
I'm hoping the tree reacts to my stripping off leaves in the same way.
If so, they might be a good tree for horizontal reinforcement.



Cool.  We have tons of catalpa.  Let me know how it goes!
 
William Bronson
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I wonder if a you could do this with live sunchoke plants?
If so, would they root along the stalk?
Imagine a nearly vertical wall filled with food...
 
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