Now that Thanksgiving has passed, this is when I really put a lot of effort into the Urban Homestead. Why? All the FREE stuff!!! I’ll explain…
On the Urban Homestead, we use straw for bedding for the animals. Living in the city it is a 30 minute drive to the nearest Tractor Supply for me, so I try to limit this trip to once a month and stock up on everything I need. This time of year people are throwing away straw bales that they used for decoration during Halloween and Thanksgiving; so I capitalize and grab them from the curbs before garbage day and load up. This not only saves me money, but it saves me a trip out to TSC to buy straw! Also, with the straw I use it after the long winter too, it goes right on the garden or in the compost bin; and it’s loaded with Free fertilizer (courtesy of the chickens, rabbits and quail!).
Another FREE benefit this time of year, LEAVES! Like everyone else, I have a lot of leaves fall in my yard; but you will never see me put them in bags and haul them to the curb! Nope! I throw all of those leaves (and some from my neighbors) right on my garden. This is free compost/fertilizer and 100% natural! Over the winter the nutrient from the decaying leaves seep into the soil, creating a rich, nutrient dense soil that my seedling will thrive in. Every time it rains, it releases a concentrated form of compost into the soil; did I mention FREE and Natural!?! Another benefit form “deep mulching” the leaves, is weed prevention! Weeds will not grow up through a thick layer of straw and leaves, leaving your garden looking nice as well. When I go to plant in the spring I spread away the mulch and plant the seedling right in the dirt. The roots stay moist and the plant is exposed to the sun, a perfect combination.
I practice the deep mulch method of gardening because I am a blue collar factory worker, I work long hours and am rarely home to tend to the garden. The deep mulch method takes care of all of my needs and produces a bountiful harvest with very minimal effort and time put in. Simply by putting in the time is the late fall/early winter you save yourself a huge amount of time and expense when the gardening season arrives. I will never do a traditional garden again, deep mulch is the way to go!
My philosophy is simple; work with mother nature and not against her. Give it a try and your results will speak for themselves!
All the best,
-John of The JG Homestead