Step 1: Measure and Prep
-Measure out the area for the hugelbed. The hugelkultur bed will likely be approximately 3-5 feet wide if you live on a small lot, and can be as long as you like.
-Calculate how much wood and soil will be required. You will use equal parts of woody material and soil. For a small hugelkultur bed, each 10′ of length will require 1 yard of wood and 1 yard of soil (1 yard is approximately 1 full pick-up truck). For a larger hugelkultur bed, use the same amount of wood and soil over a 5′ length.
-Measure the nitrogen-rich material. For each cubic yard of wood used, add one cubic foot of composted manure (or other nitrogen-rich material such as food scraps).
Have a question about this project?
As I mentioned in a comment above, we live in an area of Canada that doesn't have a termite problem (our winters are cold enough that we are relatively pest-free here fortunately), but that is a good note for readers who live in the US and other areas with termite problems. Always consider your local climate and environmental factors (such as rainfall) as part of your project planning phase.
Hi, I have a few questions about this planter bed. At the beginning the new bed looks to be mounded up quite high. How how long until the wood below is fully decomposed and how much does it shrink down during that process? Also, what did you use to seed it with? Did you use grass seed, ground cover plants that don't need mowing, or something else? I'm not much of a gardener, but this project has piqued my interest and I just need some advice on what you think works best. Is there a particular reason to wait a while before planting any perennials? Thanks so much for sharing your information.
Yes, we are definitely not out East...we are in BC :) I'm glad this project has been interesting to you!
I was writing down quantities and see 10’ for a smaller bed & 5’ for a larger one (checked the original post, too) so did you reverse the numbers or did you mean to say 10’ & 15’—or something else entirely? I’d like to get my ratios correct! 🤔 Thank you!!