In 2024 we happily removed 13 raised garden beds in preparation for a new school building to be built. However, due to the amount of growing space required, we knew we had to replace the garden beds ASAP.
We considered the timelines involved, and physical work required to rebuild the raised beds and decided there was a much better option. No-dig gardening!
Our challenge was to reuse a gently sloping north facing (we are in the antipodes) piece of ground that had once been a productive in-ground garden many years ago. Our primary school students would have been happy to double dig in the traditional manner, but the ground had become quite hard and compacted and needed some TLC. And, as we try to instil in our students, soil health is our first and foremost priority.
Most of the soil from the raised garden beds (that were to be removed), plus compost from our compost bays (that also had to be removed) was moved by wheelbarrow and 4-wheel cart by the students. The students used garden hoes to break up any large clods of soil then smoothed the surface. The ground was very uneven, so the introduction of this soil and compost was welcome. The students did an excellent job of levelling the ground!
Three large round bales of barley straw were donated to us from our senior horticulture students. This was spread over the newly composted and levelled ground. It took a lot of time to pull these bales apart and spread them over the ground. But, with some extra support with our final bale from some strong volunteers and staff, the straw was finally spread out.
The next step was cardboard, cardboard, cardboard… by the end we were quite happy not to see another piece of cardboard!
The process of collecting cardboard from the local chicken farm and other businesses was done by staff. However, the most time-consuming part was removing the sticky tape and stickers. This was mostly done by students (and staff).
We put down a row of cardboard at a time and covered it with woodchip made on site for walkways, or compost/mulch for the garden-beds. String guides kept our 1.2m wide beds and 40cm walkways neat and tidy.
As we had to remove our compost bays, we were not able to make more compost during this time. So, we used the next best thing. Compost/mulch bought from a local company that makes organic compost from local garden green waste, supermarket organic waste, woodchips, by-products from the processing of animals, fish, dairy and vegetables, animal straw and manure, and biosolids with the added benefit of locally sourced kelp that has washed ashore.
By the start of December 2024, we had completed five no-dig garden beds in our newly renovated ‘Patch’. That left around ten days to plant before the end of the school year!
Fortunately, over the several months of rejuvenating ‘the Patch’ we had also been sowing seeds in our small garden nursery/greenhouse. We raced to get things in the ground for our summer season. Although it was a little haphazard, we managed to do it.
Of the produce we managed to grow in our new no-dig beds, we are most excited about our watermelons that each weigh around 15kgs, and our cantaloupe that have a beautiful orange colour and lovely sweetness. For anyone that lives in Tasmania, yes, this is true! Watermelons and Cantaloupe!!! Neither of these should grow well here as we are in a temperate maritime climate – but our no-dig beds are on a north facing slope (towards the equator) and get all-day sun! We are also trialling Chickpeas and Okra, both doing well.
While we have had some issues with the local wildlife (wallabies, possums, native hens etc.) we look forward to the challenges and rewards that no-dig gardening can provide us.
We hope to continue the important work that has gone before. Providing primary students with opportunities for hands-on learning both in the kitchen and the garden.
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THE PATCH
In the winter when it was cold and wet,
We had some ground we would rather forget.
Full of weeds and uneven land,
The students filled it with dirt by hand.
Like layering a cake, they filled it with straw,
Layered some cardboard and then a little more.
While the weather kept this damp,
We decided what to plant.
Liking a challenge, we planted watermelon seeds,
Not knowing the future of how many it would feed.
While waiting for our seeds to grow,
We went back to the land, preparing to sow.
Knowing the benefits of ‘no dig’ beds,
We decided a layout of where we could tread.
Preparing our paths and where we would plant,
The children worked hard with time well spent.
Our patch complete, our garden beds ready,
The watermelon certainly looked sturdy.
Sowing all the seeds we grew,
The land looked almost brand new.
Summer came with the end of the year,
We came back to school with a bit of a cheer.
Most of our seeds had certainly grown,
The end of summer we could reap what was sown.
A wave of colour covered this land,
This was all by our childrens hands.
Harvesting watermelon, beans and corn,
Flowers and pumpkin our land was reborn.
So much produce, an abundance of flavour,
This is all by God’s great favour.
A blessing had been sown, by what the children had grown,
More than we could have known, God’s love is shown.
Mrs Jess Deverell
