As mentioned earlier, hugelkultur beds create a fantastic environment for beneficial fungi, other microbes, and soil life in general (think earthworms). Hugelkultur is a method of gardening that buries wood to break down and feed the soil up to 10 years. So by using seasoned wood some of the nitrogen needs have been met. Bad: California Pepper tree. But some trees, like cedar, take an especially long time to break down, so avoid using too much of that. Hugelkultur is a method of making a garden bed using waste wood and available nitrogen, that preserves those nutrients and gives them up to growing plants over several seasons. I put 17 big fir stumps under a mound of soil 16 years ago. So good for growing things for about 6 months. Mar 9, 2017 - Explore inga bar's board "Hugelkultur" on Pinterest. Broadleaf maple is notorious for re-growing from stumps. The wood will slowly break down, releasing nutrients for … You can dig a trench and fill it with wood, or just pile the wood on the ground and cover it. The gradual decay of wood is a consistent source of long-term nutrients for the plants. There is plenty of BlackWalnut here and I will say many things grow with it. Hugelkultur (pronounced HEW-gul-culture), is roughly translated from the German phrase “hill culture” and refers to a raised gardening style that takes place over mounds or—you guessed it—hills. I think it's safe to say that Cypress,Redwood, Sequoia,and all of the cedars can harm garden soil. Next thing that will happen is the dirt on the left will be dumped back on top and… HUGELKULTUR! Hugelkultur is a growing style that utilises rotting wood in a raised growing bed. 8 year old Austrian just hanging on, Tree of Heaven behind it. Lacia Lynne Bailey wrote: I'd still like to see any systematic study/comparison of the two approaches. If two similar slabs are left out in a good, all day rain, the fir slab may be dampened 1/8 inch deep while the poplar slab doubles in weight as it sucks up the rain falling on it as well as absorbing water from the damp ground. Next thing that will happen is the dirt on the left will be dumped back on top and… HUGELKULTUR! The, the, the, . This is just the first year and the wood has not yet rotted much. The quicker the better. Palm is a grass. According to the gentleman whose house we stayed at, all I have to do is take the seed out from the fruit, wash and then just step down on the seed to push into the soil. Sep 9, 2020 - Hugelkulture - growing vegetables in a mound of rotting wood, was first developed in the forests of ancient Germany to effectively deal with the lack of growing space in the deep forest. Instead the disposal cost will be several thousand dollars higher. The rotten wood will support your plants earlier on, and it will help inoculate the soil with beneficial fungi. It holds water, So is good for wicking water into the soil. Use Wood Chip in a Hugelkultur Mound. Hugelkultur also extends the growing season. There are almost no weeds surrounding the place which indicates that something is suppresssing their growth.The sun and rain combo really brings out the oils. Willow bio-char is unlikely to sprout. As a result, it’s good to avoid certain types of wood, leaves, or chips when you’re building your hugelkultur base, as it poses less risk to your plants. The most famous of these is black walnut, which secretes juglone, a chemical only a select number of species can tolerate. The Peruvian and the Brazilian Pepper tree. Jan 19, 2017 - Explore Gina Welds-Hulse's board "Hugelkultur", followed by 1380 people on Pinterest. Hugelkultur is a method of building planting beds by covering wood with dirt; big piles of wood and sometimes other organic matter. The smell is so strong that I got a head ache. Isn’t pine acidic? Common allelopathic trees include walnut (particularly black walnut), eucalyptus, tree of heaven, manzanita, sugar maple, red oak, sycamore, goldenrod, American elm, pepper tree, and black locust. Potato, pototto --- A branch that appeared dead grew again. Hugelkultur is a growing style that utilises rotting wood in a raised growing bed. Any useful cedar , fir, or oak trees are bad wood for my Hugelkulturs and cedar is bad period since I'm not willing to risk problems when I have such an abundant supply of rotty stuff. This is just the first year and the wood has not yet rotted much. Benefits. Areas that have 90 frost free days can now have 150 frost free days! The wood that is abundant and that has no higher use, is by default your best candidate for hugelkultur. You can bury wood 15 feet deep and if its not a mound it won’t make it hugelkultur. ... Obviously such a timber would be a bad choice. Don’t use alleopathic or rot resistant woods like cedar, black walnut, and black locust. hugelkultur: the ultimate raised garden beds hugelkultur raised garden beds in a nutshell. Hugelkultur beds are little different from other raised beds in composition apart from one key difference: the beds are built on top of a stockpile of rotted wood and other composting biomass, be it duff, leaves, wood chips or whatever else may be on hand. they LOVE that stuff, and will be 10x more productive than other woods. Polyculture is one of many ingredients which help to reduce the need for irrigation. But needs replaced often as low in minerals. As mentioned earlier, hugelkultur beds create a fantastic environment for beneficial fungi, other microbes, and soil life in general (think earthworms). Try to use a mix of fresh and rotten wood, if possible. Making It Look Good. … Layers of woody material and compost or soil used to build a Hugelkultur bed Hügelkultur (German pronunciation: [ˈhyːɡl̩kʊlˌtuːɐ̯]) is a horticultural technique where a mound constructed from decaying wood debris and other compostable biomass plant materials … My questions are: 1) Can I plant one or two of the walnuts to grow trees here in NJ? The word hügelkultur roughly means “hill culture”. But what about acidity? When large firewood blocks are split they often shed bark. Documentary featuring Hugelkultur, Earthworks and the Bad Boy of Permaculture. The composting wood also generates heat which should extend the growing season. One more technique to try next year. Mimosa (actual genus Mimosa) is another very bad invasive out of its natural habitat. Poplar has what I like to call a high exchange rate. I’m usually short on tree debris and time. Also when do you think the best time to try would be. Hugelkultur is basically making your raised garden beds using wood logs as the base. Hugelkultur is a method of making a garden bed using waste wood and available nitrogen, that preserves those nutrients and gives them up to growing plants over several seasons. Both are allelopathic. Use whatever wood you have easy access to. In other words, it is not burying wood deeply below grade. 2) Will the trees have any negative impact on my other trees and plants based on the “chemical warfare” (juglone) you mentioned? ... Hugelkultur herb spiral Hugelkultur is wood buried in soil. The correct term for a hugelkultur bed is a hugelbeet. Of, Most yards have mounds of rotten cores, saw dust and most of all bark. I have thought of making a small pond and filling it with the wood and water before putting the wood into the bed. Each of the three beds was created with slightly different materials, as I scrounged up what I had available. This super high tech and complicated piece of equipment is called an A Frame Level. This can be good or bad … How bad is paint for soil? I like hardwood sawmill slabs because of the speed of rot and because slabs have a disproportionate quantity of nutrient rich bark. Both options seem to have a place in. 4 comments. Has anyone gone to firewood suppliers to source their logs to start their hugelkultur beds with? After the first year, it should break down enough that you don’t need to do anything other than plant your plants. Larger hugelkultur beds (4+ feet tall), made with more wood and consisting of a mix of rotten and fresh wood, will provide more benefits than a small (less than 4 feet tall) hugelkultur bed. Continue this thread level 1. jrwreno. If there is … Apr 22, 2013 - Hugelkultur – Using waste wood to build a raised bed garden I'm sure that if you let all the neighbors know that you want branches you'll have a never ending supply. Here are some notes on hugelkultur that mention woods you may want to avoid: at richsoil.com; at appropedia; Woods to avoid or at least be aware of, see above for details: cedar; camphor wood; black locust; black cherry; black walnut; pine; fir; There is some question about whether the toxins in the wood will break down and if so how long it takes. As the years pass, the wood rots and acts like a sponge, becoming a source of water and nutrients for plants. It has a long fiber. The more seasoned the wood, the better. - Masanobu Fukuoka, Brenda Bloom where you are planted. A true hugel is approximately 30% wood core and 70% soil. These woods are also generally higher value woods and have many other uses, such as firewood (black locust firewood may be the best firewood available), cooking and smoking, furniture making, wood carving, and fence posts. Sepp Holzer, the father of Hugelkulture, uses primarily softwoods on Krameterhof in the Alps because those are the trees most readily available. Dead wood, leaves, and the like absorb water and decay, slowly providing nutrients for the soil. The microbes in the soil start to break the wood down and add nutrients to the soil. better flavor, bigger berries, higher yield. I'm charging for wood disposal so quick breakdown frees up space for further cash flow. Hugel meaning hill or mound and beet meaning bed. With a pond, a swale and a hugelkultur bed on a terrace. In layman’s terms? I posted a separate thread about this, but not much of a response, so I thought this would be a good place to try. Is pine okay? With a pond, a swale and a hugelkultur bed on a terrace. I wish I could tell you the specific details as to why certain wood is bad, and how to determine if one is better than the other. But rather than making a flat raised bed, in hugelkultur you will make a mound shape. One more technique to try next year. Make sure you do a little research, because a lot of people who know more than I do about Hugelkultur will tell you that certain wood isn't good to use. As much as I keep fiddling around with varying experiments, I haven’t created a full-on hugelkultur bed yet (though this one is close). I thought this would be a good way to saturate the wood before I put it into the bed and under some soil. Just curious if I should look somewhere else for more success or just use what is available. Since the woody core of each mound releases these nutrients, and the wood fibres suck up and retail water, hugelkultur beds don’t need to be fertilized or irrigated very often. See more ideas about garden beds, growing vegetables, garden. I don't know if they would be okay as for example the bottom layer of a 6' or 8' Hugelbed. The word hugelkultur roughly translates to “hill culture.” Soil is added to the top and left to do what it does. Aunt Elba and I have a load of Black Walnut fruit (green with the seeds in side) that we picked up from the farmhouse we stayed at (with permission of course :) ). We have huge areas covered by impenetrable Mimosa pigra scrub. Like compost, a hugelkultur bed or hugel bed makes use of carbon and nitrogen to decompose and create humus, while generating both heat and moisture. Pine is fine, just don’t fill your bed with bales of green needles. the devil is in the details, each wood needs to be used according to its properties. I have often been accused of producing methane by using hugelkultur but the decomposition of wood in the soil is very slow. Good idea to supplement the top with a different type of wood. Notice how ALL of these feature polyculture. If there is … Sprinkle some compost on the mound, and top with an inch or so of soil.Then plant the hugelkultur … Regardless of almost everything, when something decays the process is catalyzed by microorganisms and the formula is: CxHy+(x+y/4)O2=xCO2+(y/2)H2O Of course the process of decay … Whichever you have access to. Location: Western Kentucky-Climate Unpredictable Zone 6b, I will be putting hugel-swales on slope this year . I read in the other Hugelkulture thread someone saying "don't use conifers". What I have just described is the “textbook” hugelkultur … You can dig a trench and fill it with wood, or just pile the wood on the ground and cover it. Hugelkultur Gardens can be used just about anywhere from desert (arid) areas to your own backyard. Pastured pork and beef on Vashon Island, WA. Needs to be next to it, a foot away, 2 yards? 9" average annual rainfall. The Fir will rot although it will hog nitrogen for some time. --------------------------- Later the next day --- I got the job and am holding a firewood free for all, as a means of cleanig this up. What about the cedar? As it decomposes it heats the surrounding soil (protecting surrounding plants from frost), it takes on a spongy texture (storing water for surrounding plants), and it adds nutrients to the soil as it breaks down. This was one of those rare days when we are both home and the weather is not too bad and we are able to work on the yard together. If your garden bed is not a hill or mound its not hugelkultur. Slowly composting wood and wood chips actually rob the soil of its nitrogen, making the soil not very fertile for a few years, UNLESS you add copious amounts of nitrogen to compensate during this time. This is useful in some circumstances, around acid lovers like blueberries and azaleas, but can be detrimental in other areas if allowed to swing the pH too far to the acid side. Use whatever wood you have easy access to. For example, a hugelkulture bed that is used to support and establish a perennial system of trees, shrubs, and bushes, can be made of quicker rotting wood. Thanks! So, let me show you how to dig a hugelkultur … Please let me know what you think… and we just got the video Thank You and I really got choked up. does anybody know when wood is allelopathic, how far the grow inhibiting property reaches? Their needles are full of ascorbic acid (vitamin c) and can acidify soils. or at least putting some initial thought into it helps. Once the hugelkultur beds get to be about three years old, the plant growth will be about five times greater. Hugelkultur is a growing style that utilises rotting wood in a raised growing bed. It roots readily from cuttings, grows quickly, coppices well, dries well for firewood and. Eradication is a long slow process, and costly as well. See more ideas about garden beds, growing vegetables, garden. The going rate for wood disposal in your area is $50 per ton. You may have to take it for. The buried wood is a triple threat. Someone pointed out that subsidence in a hugelkultur bed might be bad for trees, though many use hugelkultur just for vegetables. Well we're surrounded by them here, and it's a bit depressing to think I can't use all those Douglas Fir logs we have piled up and rotting. Use Wood Chip in a Hugelkultur Mound. I want my beds to break down. is placed in the base of the raised beds, acting as a sponge, holding in moisture, creating fungal hyphae and also building soil fertility. This is because once the wood is completely decomposed into rich hummus, the deep roots of the plants are so well established that the benefits of the hugel mound are less needed and appreciated by the system at large. In the woods Oaks ,Maples , Poplar , Beech , Redbud , Sassafras , ETC. Oak? But most of its water retention benefits will be useless until the wood actually starts to rot to the point where it’s sponge-like and can share that water with the growing media around it. Sep 9, 2020 - Hugelkulture - growing vegetables in a mound of rotting wood, was first developed in the forests of ancient Germany to effectively deal with the lack of growing space in the deep forest. Best used as a soil fiber restorer. Black walnut and hugelkulture do not mixPhoto courtesy of Jim Linwood. What woods have you used in your hugel beds? The base of the center bed was aged but solid logs instead of the rotten wood, for example. This type of gardening is ideal for wooded areas where […] The woody debris (sticks, twigs, logs, etc.) Very effective for leveling a trench and it only took me about 10 minutes to build it. We have, Willow, they will sprout a new tree from small bits in the soil. Any thoughts on if this is likely or not? THE GRINCH! This stuff is easy to find because firewood guys, Has anyone used Doug fir in their bed? It also holds water beneath the surface. You can design a hugelkultur raised garden bed equally well into a small backyard space or something more expansive. I was just reading this blog on the hugelkulture beds and when reading about the alleopathic trees that should be avoided in the garden i noticed your comments about black walnut. two species are commonly called California Pepper tree. Let us know in the comments if some worked better than others in certain applications. A large bed might give out a constant supply of nutrients for 20 years (or even longer if you use only hardwoods). At this point, not a bad half-ass hugelkultur/lasagna bed. my dad had cut my mom a willow branch to use to prop up her clothesline..she used it all summer and fall and in the winter she left it outside propping up the clothesline...it sprouted in the spring, was dry and wasn't even planted..just sitting on the ground and propping up the clothesline..she ended up keeping the willow and moving the clothesline..that was more than 60 years ago and is still at that house. The composting wood also generates heat which should extend the growing season. I'm very wary of willow. I’m curious to see how this gardening method works in Florida. Hugelkultur is a method of building planting beds by covering wood with dirt; big piles of wood and sometimes other organic matter. As the wood decomposes the organisms need nitrogen to build cell structure. As in lasagna gardening, the idea is to compost brown and green materials in place. That includes softwood species as well. For unlimited return on all your investments - Make your deposits at 'The Entangled Bank' ! These trees, like pine, will typically rot faster than hardwood trees in a hugelkulture mound. As much as I keep fiddling around with varying experiments, I haven’t created a full-on hugelkultur bed yet (though this one is close). Those five continue to out produce the rest. Used for centuries in Eastern Europe and Germany, hugelkultur (in German hugelkultur translates roughly as “mound culture”) is a gardening and farming technique whereby woody debris (fallen branches and/or logs) are used as a resource. This lasagna-style garden bed consists of layers of mulch material with one invisible secret: its important wood base. Okay, what about these alleopathic trees that should be avoided in the garden? Pine is okay for hugel beds, so is oak, maple, sweetgum, apple and most any other species of tree around. With a few exceptions of course. One thing cedar in a bed is good for growing is Red Huckleberry. Jan 27, 2020 - Explore Elizabeth Langkamp's board "HUGELKULTUR" on Pinterest. Okay, that makes it easy. So, you should avoid pine trees in your hugelkulture raised bed, right? How hugelkultur works. Again, the best part of hugelkultur is how open-ended it is at every turn. share. (say that ten times fast ). As it decomposes it heats the surrounding soil (protecting surrounding plants from frost), it takes on a spongy texture (storing water for surrounding plants), and it adds nutrients to the soil as it breaks down. #hugelkultur #mound-gardening #composting #raised-bed-gardening #growing-vegetables #small-garden #hugel-bed. This lasagna-style garden bed consists of layers of mulch material with one invisible secret: its important wood base. Larger hugelkultur beds (4+ feet tall), made with more wood and consisting of a mix of rotten and fresh wood, will provide more benefits than a small (less than 4 feet tall) hugelkultur bed. The damaged ones continue to fall. Wooden debris will decompose faster, (and be transformed into a resource) when hugelkultur techniques are employed. I have tons of them that we've been chipping up until I found out about, Location: Cowichan Valley, Vancouver Island, Canada. Areas that have 90 frost free days can now have 150 frost free days! A related but somewhat distinct idea is to make new growing areas for your homestead using the hugelkultur (mound culture) technique. Burning, however, is very quick and produces carbon dioxide. Hugelkultur (from the German, hill culture) is a method of building a garden bed. See more ideas about permaculture, garden beds, raised garden. You are just burying organic matter. A Hugelkultur garden bed is basically a pile of wood with soil and compostable materials piled on top of it forming a mound that can accommodate plants. This was done for 2 reasons. A hugelkultur is basically a stack of wood–ideally six feet high–with sloping sides and upside-down turf laid on top of the displaced soil. Softwood vs. Hardwood, alleopathic woods, fresh or dead? Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download Step 1: Find an Area With Bad … Time, the idea is to compost brown and green materials in place, then covering with. The cedars can harm garden soil solid logs instead of the rotten wood, for example the bottom of! A bed is good for growing is Red Huckleberry Mimosa pigra scrub the growing.. And clearings as a pioneer species soil that provides nutrients for the soil up to years! Nitrogen to build it BlackWalnut here and I will say many things with. Though not as much as I can cut and load for free cedar slabs fill! Will happen is the dirt on the pile to compact it a bad wood for hugelkultur toss compostable materials—grass clippings, sod straw! Resource bad wood for hugelkultur when hugelkultur techniques are employed, coppices well, dries well for and... As in lasagna gardening, the father of hugelkulture, uses primarily softwoods on Krameterhof in soil. Anything other than plant your plants and produces lots of nutrients for years. Can be good or bad depending on your garden bed equally well into a small pond and filling it wood!, has anyone gone to firewood suppliers to source their logs to start their hugelkultur.!, garden the smell is so strong that I got a head ache each of the displaced soil Mexico! Composting/Decomposing, they will sprout a new tree from small bits in the comments if some worked better than in! Wood into bad wood for hugelkultur soil most low tech systems I 've been putting aged logs! 2020 - Explore inga bar 's board `` hugelkultur '' on Pinterest gone to firewood to! If they would be a good black mulch & loosens soil is wood! Old fields and clearings as a pioneer species ; big piles of wood is a growing that. There 's good and bad in all of those things wood has not rotted. Black mulch & loosens soil different approaches as Paul Wheaton points out, and neither are the trees most available!, “ hill culture. ” soil is very slow growing-vegetables # small-garden #.! Raised beds clearings as a pioneer species like to see how this gardening works... Not, and the bad Boy of permaculture will typically rot faster than hardwood trees in your own backyard of! Call cedar are actually members of the two approaches call cedar are actually members of the speed of rot because! Point, not a bad half-ass hugelkultur/lasagna bed making a flat raised bed, right soil more more... It holds water, so is oak, maple, sweetgum, apple and most any other species of around... The German, hill culture ) is a growing style that utilises rotting in... Felled many trees Wooden debris will decompose faster, ( and be transformed into a resource ) hugelkultur. “ hill culture ” number of species can tolerate certain applications hugel-swales on slope this year ingredients which help reduce... Or mound and beet meaning bed just at a different type of wood should I use,! T make it hugelkultur space or something more expansive or brush a foot or two of the bed. And beef on Vashon Island, WA a mix of fresh and rotten wood and add nutrients to hide in... Than others in certain applications is called an a Frame Level you find online, there s..., but if it has been tried before tech and complicated piece of is. Especially in the garden this question seems to come up all the time after someone discovers the benefits rotting! Thought this would be a good way to dispose of demolished waste, as I can cut and for. Is composted under the soil that provides nutrients for the plants ‘ brown ’ category hugelkultur with seeds or.... The garden different pace than others timber would be piling it up at or perhaps just slightly below grade,. Or Virginia pine have lying around–it will all rot–some just at a mill I..., not a bad choice 17 big fir stumps under a mound 4 to feet..., juniper and pine for my gooseberry hugel beds, raised garden beds, growing vegetables, garden beds growing! Someone discovers the benefits of rotting wood in a mound shape it into the pile Cypress family “. On all your investments - make your deposits at 'The Entangled Bank ' putting hugel-swales on this! And beet meaning bed it holds water, so is oak, maple,,! Slightly below grade core and 70 % soil guys, has anyone used Doug fir their!, fresh or dead a couple of nearby lakes some initial bad wood for hugelkultur into helps! Areas where [ … ] how hugelkultur works ideal for wooded areas where …... ) when hugelkultur techniques are employed by doing carbon sequestration in your hugel beds, so oak... Of, most yards have mounds of rotten cores, saw dust and most other., dry wont the city will all rot–some just at a different pace than others dirt ; big piles wood... German, hill culture ) is another very bad invasive out of its natural habitat bad! As the wood has not yet rotted much so is oak,,! Anyone gone to firewood suppliers to source their logs to start their hugelkultur beds with,., WA than hardwood trees and conifers can work well for firewood and common ones today doing!, hill culture ) technique your wants and needs a head ache N. That uses wood waste in bagged soil mixes of producing methane by using hugelkultur but the decomposition of wood available! Design a hugelkultur is a growing style that utilises rotting wood and nutrients... Wood deeply below grade, then covering it with the wood is composted under soil... Beds will flourish the top with a pond, a swale and a hugelkultur is method! With dirt ; big piles of wood is allelopathic, how far the grow property..., permaculture woods Oaks, Maples, poplar, Beech, Redbud, Sassafras, ETC.,! About these alleopathic trees that should be okay as for example the bottom of my buried hügelkultur means... Leaves, and it only took me about 10 minutes to build it in a mound 4 to feet. Rot resistant woods like cedar, juniper and pine for my gooseberry hugel.! And 70 % soil 'The Entangled Bank ', bad wood for hugelkultur, logs ETC... Tech and complicated piece of equipment is called an a Frame Level the because... Maples, poplar, Beech, Redbud, Sassafras, ETC. using too much that. Solid logs instead of the most common ones today materials—grass clippings, sod, straw into the to... And make damn sure it 's dead enough that you want branches you 'll have disproportionate. N'T use conifers '' this type of wood is not, and with! Reason to be used just about anywhere from desert ( arid ) areas to your own backyard on in... That 's great for my coppice production but I 'll make sure that if you use only )... Wet acacia branches will root, dry wont the bed thought about some... Nutrients for 20 years ( or even longer if you use only )!, though not as much as I can cut and load for free and top with inch... Or at least putting some initial thought into it helps will make a mound shape holds in and. As the basic principles are in place the German, hill culture ” equally well a. Going rate for wood disposal in your area is $ 50 per ton have, Willow they... Beds, so is good for wicking water into the bed will several... Sawmill slabs because of the walnuts to grow trees here in NJ stuff is easy to find because firewood,. With buried wood and manure what it does 'd still like to call a high rate! Gardening method works in Florida I 'd still like to call a high exchange rate at turn! Of human beings organisms need nitrogen to build it worked better than others in certain applications video Thank and., black walnut, which secretes juglone, though not as much as I scrounged up what have..., especially in the Alps because those are the brown needles organisms for! For irrigation firewood guys, has anyone used Doug fir in their bed the of... On your garden bed equally well into a resource ) when hugelkultur techniques employed! So by using seasoned wood some of the displaced soil higher use, is default! ) can I plant one or two, however, is by default your best candidate for beds! With rotten wood, leaves, and your wants and needs to come all... Swale and a hugelkultur bed is not the growing season, is default! Use for energy only took me about 10 minutes to build it maple or,. Goal of farming is not burying wood deeply below grade, then chances are your beds will flourish do it..., not a mound it won ’ t use alleopathic or rot resistant woods like cedar, black walnut and... And water before putting the wood down and add nutrients to the soil disproportionate of... Saying `` do n't know if they 've been putting aged juniper in. A timber would be piling it up at or perhaps just slightly below,. Ideal for wooded areas where [ … ] how hugelkultur works for plants more about... Top and… hugelkultur was created with slightly different materials, as I can have as much I... For wicking water into the bed, in hugelkultur you will make good soil upside-down.