guildfordcycads

Hello,

This sunken Hugelkultur is 3 1/2 years old and it’s absolutely one of the worst performing beds in the food savannah this year. Giant sunflowers did okay, as well as garlic and onions, but nothing else.

1. It sinks
2. It floods 2-3x a year. It does drain, though.
3. I mostly plant desert adapted crops (flour corn, melons, amaranth, millet, onions, garlic), so maybe an underground swamp is not the right fit for for me.
4. It seems to both get too wet and too dry / drain out too much. The native soil beneath it is “excessively drained” loamy sand.

5. My ecosystem lacks worms. The sand is too sharp here, and they are not endemic. I feel like worms might be key to success with this. There are lots of insects in the first 2 inches of soil, but not below that. The ants that till my soil in other places won’t go here. I don’t want to add worms.

   I have deposits of amazing volcanic river sand here, and I was think of filling it to the top with sand and some composted manure. I could plant my garlic there over the winter. I figure the roots at the top would get more oxygen and more consistent moisture, and could also reach for the loam beneath or not.

Or I just plant the whole thing with native switchgrass and forget about it.

Any thoughts?

While exploring Carroll Township, PA, I came across two sculptural evergreens with twisted forms that reminded me of Juniperus Chinensis ‘Kaizuka’—commonly called Hollywood Juniper. I put together a short video asking for help with identification and sharing a few thoughts on conifer traits and landscape use.

If you’re familiar with conifer ID or have experience with Hollywood Junipers in permaculture settings, I’d love your insight. Are these trees what I think they are—or something else entirely?

🎥 Filmed in Carroll Township, Pennsylvania
🌿 Part of my TreesWizard channel, where I explore tree care, pruning, and the quiet artistry of shaping nature.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts or ID tips—and for welcoming tree care into the permaculture conversation.

Hi folks – trying to find the best subreddit for this question – hope you guys can help!

Three months ago we moved into a new build property in the countryside. It has its own wastewater treatment tank buried in the front garden, which feeds wastewater into two reed beds in sequence (Tank > Reed Bed #1 > Reed Bed #2 > underground drainage into a ditch). Everything started off fine but recently Reed Bed #1 has become incredibly sludgy – so much so that water is not draining properly into Bed #2. The maintenance instructions state that some amount of sludge is to be expected after several years of use, not several months – so I’m not sure what is wrong! Reed Bed #2 seems perfectly fine for now. I’ve attached pictures of both.

We live on the east coast of Scotland and have had a pretty dry summer this year, on and off heavy rain, but nothing out of the ordinary – so I don’t think it’s weather related especially as Bed #2 seems fine. We’ve never had a wastewater treatment tank or reed beds so this is all new.

Any help or advice would be hugely appreciated!

Hi folks – trying to find the best subreddit for this question – hope you guys can help!

Three months ago we moved into a new build property in the countryside. It has its own wastewater treatment tank buried in the front garden, which feeds wastewater into two reed beds in sequence (Tank > Reed Bed #1 > Reed Bed #2 > underground drainage into a ditch). Everything started off fine but recently Reed Bed #1 has become incredibly sludgy – so much so that water is not draining properly into Bed #2. The maintenance instructions state that some amount of sludge is to be expected after several years of use, not several months – so I’m not sure what is wrong! Reed Bed #2 seems perfectly fine for now. I’ve attached pictures of both.

We live on the east coast of Scotland and have had a pretty dry summer this year, on and off heavy rain, but nothing out of the ordinary – so I don’t think it’s weather related especially as Bed #2 seems fine. We’ve never had a wastewater treatment tank or reed beds so this is all new.

Any help or advice would be hugely appreciated!

Hi folks – trying to find the best subreddit for this question – hope you guys can help!

Three months ago we moved into a new build property in the countryside. It has its own wastewater treatment tank buried in the front garden, which feeds wastewater into two reed beds in sequence (Tank > Reed Bed #1 > Reed Bed #2 > underground drainage into a ditch). Everything started off fine but recently Reed Bed #1 has become incredibly sludgy – so much so that water is not draining properly into Bed #2. The maintenance instructions state that some amount of sludge is to be expected after several years of use, not several months – so I’m not sure what is wrong! Reed Bed #2 seems perfectly fine for now. I’ve attached pictures of both.

We live on the east coast of Scotland and have had a pretty dry summer this year, on and off heavy rain, but nothing out of the ordinary – so I don’t think it’s weather related especially as Bed #2 seems fine. We’ve never had a wastewater treatment tank or reed beds so this is all new.

Any help or advice would be hugely appreciated!