POTATOES AND THE STRAW MAN

We have been mulching our garden with some "secret" ingredients that really have supercharged it.  Where we tilled in leaf matter (from the city mulching operation) last year, the veggies went crazy and where there were no worms in the entire garden last year, there were hundred per square yard this fall - a great sign!  The potatoes loved it!  I was digging them out with my bare hands almost til midnight.  Harvesting them was addicting to me and to the kids.  What really blew my mind was that hay was added by the "weeding brigade" in some areas of the potato patch earlier in the year to keep the weeding thing to a minimum - especially around the edges.  Well, guess what??  Where the hay had covered the ground, we doubled our crop; maybe tripled it.  From one plant, I filled a 5 gallon bucket to overflowing!  Under the hay, where light was scarce, there was a whole new layer of potatoes.  Originally, the tubers had formed in the ground and then the hay was added over top.  A new layer of potatoes formed as the hay moldered down and kept things there hydrated, moist and cool from the hot summer sun.  The plants loved it.  I am sure, if more hay had been added, there would have been another layer of potatoes on top of the initial two layers of potatoes.  Most of us, who live in the mountains will have to survive on what we can grow in a relatively short growing season, while fighting frosts, etc.  I was amazed at how well the carrots, beets and of course, taters did in soil that was fluffed and filled with nutrients.  They loved the un-compacted soil.

We have been commanded to grow a garden - probably not necessarily to make money at it; as I think my time and money could be much better spent elsewhere, but one day, it may be all we have to make it on when there is nothing on the shelves and people are desperate for locally-grown food.

If you have not seen it, there is a great documentary out there on how to garden with wood chips.  Using hay or straw is a similar concept to reduce the need for watering, increase yields and keep weeding to a minimum:
   
           http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/

Enjoy!