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Core Gardening:
A Simple Solution
to a Common Problem
by Joshua Peede
Just recently in my online gardening
research, I was intrigued by a practice
called core gardening. I gained much of my
information through the MIgardener channel
on Youtube.com, and though I have not found
much information available about this concept,
I am going to share with you what I have found
in my research. It is said that this concept began
in the desert regions of the Middle East where
water was very scarce. People were seeking ways
that they could
garden with less
water usage, by
utilizing as much
of the rainfall for as
long of a duration
as possible. The
way that this
method works, is
by retaining rain
or irrigation water
in the soil, and
releasing it to the plant over a longer period of
time, causing less frequent watering. As I stated
above, I have just recently been introduced to
this idea, but I felt that it was too important
not to share. Also, I plan to implement the core
gardening idea in different ways and write a
second article to explain my findings and let you
know how it worked for me.
Core gardening is typically implemented in
raised bed systems, but it is not limited to this
use only. The overall concept is to dig a trench
about 6 inches deep and 1 foot wide or so, in
the middle of your bed, so that it goes the entire
length of the garden area. This trench is then
filled and mounded slightly with an absorbent,
decomposable material such as grass clippings,
wheat straw, or even small twigs. Make sure that
this material is 6-8 inches deep in the trench,
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Joshua Peede
Landscape Designer & Gardener
ISCO Landscaping • Wilson, NC
SCC Landscape Gardening Graduate
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People were
seeking ways
that they
could garden
with less
water usage...
then place about 8 inches of topsoil in the bed
above the trench. This top area will be the root
zone of your vegetables, or whatever plants you
are planning to grow. The trenches are known
to absorb the water if heavily irrigated in the
beginning of the growing season, so that you
can “charge” the core, otherwise it will not be as
effective. You can even wet the core thoroughly
before covering with soil to help jump start this
process as well.
The way that this system works is that when
the soil surrounding the trench starts to dry out
more than the decomposing material that has
retained moisture, then the water starts moving
by capillary action, from the wet to dry areas
around it. I guess you could say that the dry soil
acts like a sponge, and the moisture of the core
represents a puddle. If you lay a dry sponge in a
puddle of water, the absorption process begins
with no aid from outside sources. Typically,
these cores will wick about 1 ½ foot or so,
making it ideal for a raised bed of about 4 feet
wide. If your bed is more than 5 feet wide, then
you may want to incorporate a second trench
for the length of the bed to get adequate, even
moisture throughout. When using wheat straw,
it is best to use old bales that have been breaking
down and soaking up rain water from the winter.
This is an inexpensive way to save some money
on those summer water bills, because many
people decorate with bales of straw for fall, and
even if you do not, most likely you have a friend
or neighbor who does, and will be glad to give
you their old bales at the end of the season. Just
set these aside behind the shed for the winter,
and they will be ready to use when spring comes
around!
I plan to experiment with variations of this
technique in other scenarios such as containers
and even digging trenches in the native soil of
my vegetable garden later this year and next
season. If you have ever tried the core gardening
method or anything similar before, please email
me at homegrowngazette@gmail.com. I love
hearing methods and ideas from others as well
as sharing any information that I have learned
that could possibly help you be more successful
in your gardening ventures! ☐
No. 135 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. p.29
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