No-dig growing

As gardeners we understand the need to feed our soil with well-rotted organic matter, or rather, feed the soil organisms, who in turn make nutrients available to our plants as well as improving the soil structure. Traditionally organic matter was added by digging it into the ground. However, no-dig involves spreading a thick layer of it on top of the soil surface annually and sowing or planting through it. This not only saves time, it also means fewer hours spent weeding because the organic matter has a mulching effect. No-dig pioneer Charles Dowding is an advocate of this technique and his trials suggest there’s little difference in crop yields between dig and no-dig (and you’ve already saved on labour). In fact in many cases yields in the undug plots are actually higher! Other advantages include the fact that it’s easy to get on the soil over winter – you’re no longer forced to stay off clay ground for months at a time. Also the improved soil structure suffers less damage from erosion and has better moisture retention in summer. The technique does rely on access to fairly generous quantities of well-rotted organic matter though – you need to spread a 5cm (2in) layer once a year.