How do his veggies grow? The no-dig way (backyard garden, LATimes)

[jpak]

http://www.latimes.com/news/custom/scimedemail/la-hm-nodig12-2008jun12,0,6421495.story

PAT MARFISI carries bales of alfalfa hay and straw into the center aisle of his Hollywood Hills vegetable garden and begins tearing off pieces of the stuff. He doesn't have any animals to feed, just his "no-dig" landscape: raised beds using lasagna-like layers of fodder, bone and blood meal and compost -- and remarkably little water.

Now that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a statewide drought, Marfisi's 300-square-foot patch seems more relevant than ever. It's his personal horticultural laboratory for a low-water, sustainable technique he learned working on organic farms in Australia last year.

Since he began gardening in this fashion, he says, he has been "inundated" with food. With the exception of some recent losses to raccoons drawn to the soil's abundant grubs and earthworms, Marfisi's garden is thriving with beets, collard greens, chard, celery, tomatoes, chives, peppers, basil, chives, lettuces and leeks. He estimates he grows enough food to feed three people daily.

When asked how much he waters, Marfisi shoves his hand deep beside some Swiss chard and pulls out moist, decomposed soil laced with remnants of straw. "I haven't watered in 10 days," he says. "This is what I want people to know: You can have beauty and abundance without a lot of water."

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[SpiralHawk]

1. He gets an A for effort, but a D for gardening savvy...

when you consider where Blood Meal and Bone Meal come from -- vast industrial feedlots and slaughterhouses. There are far, far, far better ways...

"You are what you eat." - Tiny Tim

[jpak]

2. His veggies are not vegan

:evilgrin:

[Zachstar]

4. I highly doubt that is the point.

Today we got a serious issue when it comes to food production. And with possible serious economic problems happening due to extreme diesel prices looming I am more interested in efficiency rather than organic or whatever.

I draw the line at genetically modified tho.

[SpiralHawk]

9. Well, then he is welcome to enjoy broccoli ala industrial slaughterhouse waste

omnivore or whatever...He's welcome to set the table for himself. No objections from me, just trying to point out a reality.

I'm an omnivore, but I have been gardening organically and biodynamically for about 40 years. I have learned, through observation and experience, that Industrial Slaughterhouse waste is an abominable choice for my garden.

[olkaz]

6. I think you're missing the point here.

Don't make the perfect the enemy of the good.

[Zachstar]

3. Sounds like a good idea. When I used to garden alot I used dead grass as a mulch.

It kept moist for atleast 3 days. Tho for the hot weather I was growing the wrong food choices.

Next year I want to grow only what I can reasonably handle for the most amount of food produced.

I know its a side topic but in the south what is the easiest to maintain yet produces the most food? Tomatoes?

[jpak]

5. I grew massive winter tomato crops in S. Texas

I planted along the "dog fence" in November - they grew and flowered and grew and flowered unil March when the fruit set...

...and the weight of the tomatoes almost pulled down the fence.

[watrwefitinfor]

7. Squash and okra

which go well with the tomatoes.

Wat

[yellowdogintexas]

8. I have several beds that I built the lasagne way but I did not use

blood meal or bone meal.

Mine are a deep thick layer of leaves, then layers of peat moss, manure, and organic mulch.Down here where it is hot and dry I also add lava sand which holds moisture. Repeat the peat moss, manure and organic mulch until bed is the depth you need. I top dress the whole thing with cypress bark mulch.

Our soil is quite dense with lots of clay and hard to dig. The bed building gives a nice soft soil that is very easy to plant in.

We have lots of leaves so I can top dress every year with compost

The straw would be a nice addition though, especially in an area without lots of free leaves

I mostly grow flowers in my raised beds, the sun/shade factors in my yard do not bode well for produce.