No dig
Farming without digging
In trenchless farming - known as 'no dig' - the shovel is set aside. Instead, the weeding is done by the soil microlife.
How does no dig work?
Beneath the soil surface, life is abundant. Worms, insects, fungal hyphae, mites and bacteria abound. They burrow into the soil, eat waste and excrete nutrients. When this ecosystem is not disturbed by either shovel or tiller, it will develop and thrive. The result? A nutrient-rich and well-oxygenated arable soil.
Raised beds above the rest of the soil allow the soil to warm up. This speeds up the decomposition process.
In the no dig method, it is important to feed the microlife underground. They are the ones who do the work. A layer of about 10 cm of grass clippings and other green matter is laid on top of the soil between the plants. As this material breaks down, nutrients are added. Some people choose to cover the soil with compost instead. The difference is that you either put the plant residues directly on the land or let them settle in a regular compost.
How to get started with trenchless farming
If it is a piece of lawn or other overgrown land that is to become a growing bed, you need to start by covering the surface. 1) Spread old newspapers and/or cardboard boxes on the surface to be cultivated. The more troublesome the weeds, the heavier the covering - perhaps in two or three layers. 2) Make a growing bed by laying organic material on top of the newspapers and cardboard boxes. Use whatever is to hand - garden and kitchen compost, leaf litter, straw, manure and so on. Make the bed about 20 cm high. At the bottom you can put twigs up to 1 cm thick. You can use compost that has only partially decomposed. Just make sure that the most fine-grained material is on top. This will make it easier to sow and plant. There are also other variants of trenchless growing beds, such as lasagna beds and mound beds. 3) Now grass and weeds will be smothered. Neither sun nor air can reach under there. In addition, the grass is physically crushed. The newspapers, cardboard and compost will eventually decompose into prime growing soil.
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Transform an existing growing bed
If you want to use the no dig method in an existing garden bed, you first remove perennial weeds such as quackgrass and chervil. Then skip the shovel. Create a raised, nutrient-rich bed by adding a layer of composted material and possibly mulch.
What can you grow with no dig?
You can sow and plant directly in the raised bed. There is no difference in what you can grow in a trenchless cultivation bed compared to a traditional cultivation. But because the soil is so nutrient-rich, you can grow a little more densely. Many people also choose not to grow root vegetables and onions in the first year, because the compost mulch is still undigested.
Fertilizing a trenchless crop
British gardener Charles Dowding, one of the proponents of no dig, believes that cover cropping together with the addition of garden compost is quite sufficient as nutrition. Others choose to add gold water, nettle water or natural fertilizer, which is gently mixed in a couple of weeks before sowing.
Autumn fix without autumn digging
In late autumn, plant roots are left in the ground to decompose. Instead of digging the land in the fall, you add about 10-20 cm of organic material. This gives the soil winter protection and breaks down into a fine mulch that can be sown in the following spring.
Healthy plants in easy-to-manage land
Trenchless cultivation makes gardening easier and more natural. Your back can rest and the soil can be left alone. Organic matter is seen as a valuable resource to be brought into the cycle. The No Dig method produces healthy plants and easy-to-manage land.
Author: Johanna Damm Fact checked by Erik HoekstraLast updated 2022-10-14
